Dublin Day

And what a lovely day today was! My friends, today was Dublin Day. The day I went and explored the City Centre; the day I let my tourist side come out swinging; the day I decided I chose the right place to be.

After registering for yet another class this morning, I decided to head into downtown Dublin. I knew I had a pretty large break in the day, and I needed to get a cell phone anyway. I had to get a couple of things before I could venture into this bustling unknown, however. First I waited in line to get my Student Travel Card, which I guess I can use to get discounts in some places, including on my bus pass. Then I had to actually get the pass. Both processes were pretty easy, and I must say, I like the way they look in my wallet.

So after all that nonsense was finished, I took my bus pass and rode the bus up to the city centre, around Grafton Street. It was just beautiful! I couldn't breathe for the first few minutes I was there. There were old stone buildings, modern new buildings, street performers, stylish people, old and young, Irish and foreign, big groups and small. It was like nothing I'd ever been a part of.

I must say, I'm particularly proud of this photo.

I ended up eating lunch at a cafe in the middle of Grafton St, and for the life of me I cannot remember the name of it. I got a burger and an iced tea. The burger was okay, a little disappointing. It came on a sort of ciabatta bun that was really floury, making it impossible to eat without getting white powder all over everything. It also came with lettuce, tomatoes, and onion (which were arranged in what I think was supposed to be a salad, but I put it on my burger instead), and french fries, which were extraordinary.

But let me just talk for a moment about the iced tea. It was... perfect. It was sweet, but in a way that hinted at the use of just a naturally sweet tea leaf, as opposed to the "sweet tea" we have in the states. It almost had a fruity taste to it that I couldn't quite place on my palate. However, it complimented my meal extraordinarily well, and it was only two Euros!

Another fun thing for me to find on Grafton Street was, of course, a Disney Store. Two floors of the merchandise from the "Happiest Place on Earth." Complete with a mini movie theatre and a princess room. What more could I have asked for? I know where I'll be shopping for my baby cousins.

I've never heard of this princess... Anybody?

And now, I just need to talk about IKEA. The college organized shuttles to IKEA for students to buy any housewares they needed for their dorms/apartments, especially international students, for obvious reasons. Anyway, I took one of those shuttles there this evening, my very first ever trip to an IKEA store. And really, there are only two words to describe it: first word HOLY second word CRAP. 

HOLY CRAP. Not only is the place GIGANTIC, as you can see from my pictures, it is also very well organized. I had a really long time to shop, so I started out by quickly strolling through their show rooms. They pretty much set it up like a self-guided tour. You go one way through different showrooms, categorized by part of the house, and there's a route already set up with arrows on the floor so you cannot get lost. Then, after all the showrooms, you end up in a "Self Serve" area of the store. This also has a set path for you to go by, to ensure you get to see EVERYTHING the store has to offer, but this is where you can actually pick out and buy your own items without having to go through a catalog and a sales rep. A lot of their merchandise was fairly cheap; I got a lot of basic items (dishes, small towels, a pillow, cookware, etc.) for under five Euros. It was a cool experience, but I'll be honest when I say I don't want to go there again any time soon. 

So that was today. With every day, I'm getting more and more comfortable and excited to see what else is in store for me. I'm meeting more and more people (p.s. there are very many attractive men in Ireland...) learning more and more new things. I can't wait to see what else lies ahead!