And the homesickness sets in...

Greetings from Cork :) It's been a crazy past couple of days, and as my schedule starts to wind down, I'm able to reflect on my place here and what my life is really going to entail for the next five months. I was talking to my flatmate, Dan, in our common room this morning and he told me he had a dawning "aha!" moment when he was walking to school. For some reason, an abandoned shopping cart floating in the River Lee served as a trigger for this revelation, but aside, he said it clicked that he was really living in a foreign country. I have to say, I don't think I've had this kind of experience yet, but last night I was hit with the worst homesickness I've ever experienced. After skyping with Jess, talking to Ireney on facebook, and calling Mom and Dad, I realized just how much I missed everyone. I think I've put a lot of pressure on myself to instantly be making friends, figuring out the layout of the city, and getting all my classes figured out, and it just doesn't work that way, especially for me. I've only been here for five days, and I figure I have months to do all of these things. This self-disclosure has been a load off my back, and I can finally sleep again.
Other than that, I'm completely enthralled with the city of Cork and Ireland in general. My life has basically been cycles of sleep, school, running errands, figuring out my module schedule (what they call classes here), and going out to pubs in the evenings. The second day I was here, Dan took Rebecca (my friend from Maine), Toumtam (my French roommate from Toulouse), and I to a pub he heard about where Irish musicians come together to play music, equivalent to a "jam session" in the states. This was probably the most awe-inspiring cultural moment I've ever experienced. It sounds dramatic, but when you're in a place where the people grow up learning how to play instruments expertly, the talent is amazing. In a cozy pub, we listened to Dan play fiddle along with the four other Irish people there, with their instruments varying from the guitar to the tin whistle. Another girl walked in with her friend in the middle of the session, borrowed a fiddle from another Irish girl there and started playing. It was stunning...I think almost everyone here knows how to play an instrument and that fascinates me. Dan, Rebecca, and I have a running joke that we'll start a folk band with Dan playing the fiddle, Rebecca playing the tin whistle, and I'll be dancing along in the method of Irish Stepping. Once I get my USB cord in the mail, I'll upload a video of the session.
Which brings me to the next topic that has been consuming my life as of late: Module scheduling. Although I love the extremely laidback lifestyle here, it shouldn't be applied to classes because it ends up being an absolute disaster. Nothing is online here, and we literally schedule our classes on a piece of paper after we go to each individual department of subject and get their approval. It hilarious, because all of the American students I met here are close to pulling out their hair due to the lack of organization. Betty, my friend from Austria, seems to be completely fine with the system and only just started looking at her classes. It just goes to show how uptight and fast-paced America really is. This is what I'm taking Spring semester:

Contemporary Irish Writing
Literature and Modern Ireland
Introduction to Anglo-Irish Literature
Introduction to the Modern Irish Language
Irish Step Dancing (Old Style)

I'll be reading and writing about classic Irish authors such as Yeats, Beckett, and Joyce. I absolutely can't wait! I'm excited, but also nervous, about taking Irish step dancing because I've heard it's very hard. When I was talking to that Irish guy that first night, I told him I had experience in Tap and he told me it was much more difficult than that, but I'm ready for the challenge. I miss dancing so much, and to learn a style in the host country will be amazing. I'm also learning the Gaelic/Irish language which seems daunting, but there's a required field trip at the end where we are taken to Gaeltachts (very old and small Irish speaking communities) in the Ring of Kerry and are told to communicate only in Irish to them.
Aside from school, I've added quite a repertoire of Irish spirits to my palette :) I've been trying to taste something new every night I go out, and so far I've had the local Guinness, Murphy's, Bulmer's cider, and hot whisky (I can't remember the specific name of it). I never thought I'd see the day that I'd be sitting in a pub sipping hot whisky on it's own. Surprisingly, it was delicious and definitely took the nip out of the cold night. As for the Guinness...delicious!!! Nothing like how it tastes in the States, it's so fresh and has a much more sturdy taste. If it was ever my drink of choice before, it's now my staple beverage. Unlike their alcohol, the Irish have awful food that is high in fat. Sandwiches are spread with butter or mayonnaise, salads are bathed in dressing that might as well be mayonnaise, and everything else is a million euros. There's an English Market just in town that my flatmates and I usually go to, and they have fresh meat and produce for cheap so that's been my alternative.
This weekend I head to Dublin for my group-EAP orientation. We'll be dining out at nice restaurants and sightseeing all of the city so I can't wait! I'll upload pictures of Cork and my time in Dublin once I'm back on Monday. I hope everything at home is wonderful, I miss you all! Cheers!