French Immersion 101. First lesson: cuisine française!

Bounjour et merci d'avoir lu! The reason I start off this entry with French is because I'm beginning to feel like I'm ensconced more in la culture française than an Irish one. My flatmate, Dan's, friend from Boston College is studying in Paris for the semester and she visited this weekend. So Friday night, Rebecca, Kasey, JQ, and I decided to make savory and sweet crepes...it was delicious! They were making fun of me because I had my notebook and camera out documenting the whole experience, but I had to explain to them that I'm the world's worst cook. Yet, I'm pretty confident that I could recreate the dish which is a big step for me. For the savory crepes we sauteed onions, mushrooms, and asparagus and baked broccoli with melted cheese. For the sweet crepes, Rebecca taught me how to make this delicious sliced apple concoction sautéed in butter with lemon juice, honey, and cinnamon. We combined this with nutella and whipped cream...mmm..my mouth is watering just thinking about it! Who knew cooking could be such an enjoyment? (I never would've thought so before coming here).

 The next day, Saturday, we decided to take a day trip to Midleton to check out the Old Midleton Distillery (Jameson Whiskey Factory). Now, I knew absolutely nothing about the process of making whiskey before I went, but now I have a supreme appreciation for what goes into making a good reserve. A couple of interesting points:

1. The whiskey liquid has to sit in a cask for a minimum of 3 years to legally be labeled a "whiskey" in Ireland (no wonder the Irish are known for making the best whiskey).

2. Irish whiskey makers take casks from many countries in Europe that have held port and other spirits, and store their whiskey in them. Over time, the port inside the wood of the cask seeps into the whiskey, giving it a unique flavor. Legally in America, whiskey companies are only allowed to use pure, pine casks, which explains why brands like Jack Daniels don't even compare to Irish and Scottish whiskeys. Also, American companies usually only distill their whiskeys once (lame).

3. Scottish whiskeys tend to be more smokey in flavor because in their process of heating the barley, the Scottish allow smoke to seep into the barley seeds. The Irish make sure smoke doesn't come in contact with their barley, which explains Jameson's smooth and vanilla-y flavor. Also, Scottish whiskeys are distilled twice. I personally loved the Scottish whiskey I taste tested, though.

4. Whiskey is simply spawned from barley and water.

Sarah, Dan, JQ, and Kasey in a Midleton pub

These casks could hold 45,000 gallons of whiskey!

When the tour guide asked if there were any volunteers who would like to taste test, Kasey, JQ, and I shot our arms up in quite an uncouth fashion. (My question is, who would turn down free whiskey?!)

Heading into the Jameson bar for some whiskey taste testing.

The ultimate comparison: Scottish whiskey (distilled twice) vs. Jameson (triple distilled) vs. muted American Jack Daniels (distilled once)

Jameson obviously won as the most smooth!

My new favorite mixed drink: Cranberry + Jameson

Certified taste testers.

That night we returned from the distillery to be greeted with mouth-watering smells wafting from my apartment. My French flatmates and friends, Martin, Florine, and Toumtam, decided to have a dinner party and make a traditional French Swiss Alps meal for all of us. I'm not sure what the name of it was (Toumtam told me a in a really fast French accent) but it was basically pork, potatoes, cream, onions, and French Cheese melted in a casserole style dish. I can't explain how tasty it was...needless to say the ten of us greedily had seconds because it was so good. After dinner, we ate the cheesecake Dan and Sara had made the day before. I would have to say that for being in a country that is known for its terrible food, I've never eaten better!

After dinner, we headed to a really great pub in Cork called The Franciscan Wells Brewery to meet up with some of Dan's friends. Our French friends tagged along, and I ended up really getting to know them more on a personal level. Although I live with Toumtam and Florine, I haven't really interacted with them all that much compared with my American friends. Even though they both know English, they have really thick accents and I think this language barrier made it a bit more difficult for me to communicate and get closer to them. I believe that knowing they come from another country and have their own distinct cultural background made me wary to approach them opposite from any other American person. It was so nice to carry on lots of conversation with them and learn about their past experiences before coming here. Now I just feel silly for being shy in approaching them, because they are wonderfully nice and hilarious people. I've started editing Florine's papers and helping her perfect her English grammar, which has been nice (I miss editing papers!) Also, Toumtam invited me to visit him at his home in Toulouse for Spring Break! An offer I certainly can't turn down. I really love the environment here because I'm surrounded by so many people of different nationalities that I can interact with, yet I don't have the pressure of learning another language.

School is starting to pick up now, seeing as I only have the month of March left. Within the coming weeks I'll have to write three essays (gasp!), start studying for my Irish History final examination, and practice for my Irish Step Dancing practicum. The only drawback to this is that my social life is picking up simultaneously, which entails St. Patrick's Day and planned trips to Galway, the Cliffs of Moher, and Paris at the end of March. As time is passing me by faster and faster everyday, I just try to live in every moment and realize how wonderful of an opportunity this is. Walking back from the pub last night, Dan and I had a kind of existential discussion on the moments in our life that led us to this very point and subsequently, the people surrounding us that have become our family in a foreign place. It's pretty amazing to me that within a mere two months one can feel completely settled somewhere new (a couple years ago, this concept would've been incomprehensible to me). Aside from realizing that I have actually accomplished this, I think the biggest change I see in myself is gratitude for every situation I find myself in. Every minute interaction is truly a gift.

The Munster Rugby team's mantra, "To the brave and faithful, nothing is impossible" never rang more true in regards to their game against Edinburgh this past Friday, in Limerick. Before the match, I had absolutely no idea the rules of the game or even the status of our province compared to other countries. Thankfully, I had Rebecca by my side, who plays women's rugby for UCC, and could answer my plethora of questions! Although I'm still grasping the intricate rules of the sport, I could fully appreciate the ambiance of a packed and rowdy stadium. Ireland literally is "rugby country" (a statement splayed across banners in pubs all around Cork), and boy, are their citizens proud of this! It was nice to enjoy a beer and watch the game with some good friends.

Goo Munster!

JQ, Kasey, and Rebecca

Afterward, we walked around the city of Limerick at night and found a quaint little pub right by our hotel. After ordering some Bulmer's Irish cider, a group of old Irish men started singing and playing the guitar and banjo right by our table. It's moments like these that remind me of how settled I feel in Ireland; any kind of traditional music played seems like a common occurrence to me. I can't even imagine the dismay I will feel when I step into an American bar and realize the beer is subpar and instead of instead of talented musicians, I'll be greeted with a barrage of thumping techno music.

The next day, Saturday, was spent relaxing and reading. I've started my third Irish novel: Murphy, by Samuel Beckett. I'm really excited to delve into this book because Beckett writes in the style of French Existentialists like Jean-Paul Sartre (whom I took a literature class on at UCSB and loved). It's funny, because the more I'm reading Irish written works the more I'm materializing into this major literature nerd...no joke. I'm prone to writing down vocabulary words I find in the books I'm reading that I've never heard of, recording quotes that strike me in some emotional way, and have even been known to occasionally opt out of a night of drinking to lay in bed with my tea and Irish novel (very contently). I don't know if it's the people I'm surrounding myself with, the slow pace of living in Ireland, or the literature itself, but I feel so much more scholastic than I ever did at UCSB. Which is ironic if you think about it, because I know UCSB is a much more prestigious school than UCC. I honestly think that the Irish have the educational system down...a laid-back atmosphere where you aren't pressured to race through novels and cram for midterms and final exams, in effect, actually enjoying what you're reading and applying it to your life. Going back to UCSB is going to be a rude awakening.

Speaking of the people I'm surrounding myself with, I don't actually think I've touched on my group of friends in Cork. It's been pretty hard to branch out and meet Irish people, which I didn't presume in the slightest before traveling here. I think due to the fact that it's towards the end of the year, people have solidified their group of friends, and also, the Irish are used to having an abundance of Americans around all the time. The exciting way we perceive them probably isn't exchanged, but that's okay. My exposure to Irish people has really been through my Step dancing class, the Mountaineering club, and run-ins at pubs. I've actually had several hilarious experiences where I'll be dancing and an Irish guy will randomly twirl me around...I've even been "dipped back" and classically led before which was surprising! Boys in America just really don't know how to dance without completely violating your personal space. Anyway, I hang out with a really cool group of people, and interestingly they're all from the East coast. Most go to school in Boston, and Rebecca lives in Maine. It's been entertaining to compare their habits to that of West-coasters, and I think the main difference is that they're very highly educated and even more laid back than us! It's been a wonderful change to hang out with such a different crowd that I click with so well. We all pretty much live together (Dan is my suitemate, and the girls live right across the hall) so we make dinner together all the time and hang out. For instance, yesterday was a sangria-and-ice-cream-sundae sort of night.  Gotta love it.

I can tell that I'm starting to ramble (I'm beginning to think I write entirely too much for a trifling study abroad blog) so I'll finish up quickly. I hope I haven't started to bore you guys too much...it would be nice to get a comment once in a while, I'm beginning to think I'm writing to no one! It's nice to here "voices" from home too :) Miss you all.

A rainy, wonderful week and a half.

Dia duit! I have to admit, I've been procrastinating on the posts, but let's just say I've been recovering all weekend. It's been an eventful week and a half starting with a traditional Céilí dancing night, a weekend trip to Dublin, a short day trip to Howth, Ireney's stay in Cork, ending with the kissing of the famous Blarney Stone. There is much to share, so bear with me!

Two Irish dancers performing a step ensemble...with brooms!

 Wednesday night was spent with friends partaking in a Irish Céilí, which is a traditional social gathering of dancing to Gaelic folk music. The beer, the music, and the liveliness of the dancers encouraged everyone to brave the dance floor. Thankfully the Céilí instructor was patient with us, because there were many times I'd find myself set dancing with a complete stranger who had no idea how to lead me (and I concurrently not knowing how to follow). It was all in good fun, though, and I felt like I could really utilize the steps I learned from my Irish Step dancing class in a traditional setting.

That weekend I headed to Dublin with Kasey to meet up with Ireney and her friends from Rome, who stayed in a hostel not far from my friend Nicole's pad in the area of Dublin 2. I felt that my number one priority was to take Ireney and her friends to the Guinness factory to try their first Guinness in Ireland and I can proudly say that I got Irene hooked (it really wasn't that hard!) Then we headed to the renowned Trinity campus to see The Book of Kells and the Old Library, which were both breathtaking. To see the four Gospels in manuscript form dating back to the sixth century still intact to this day was pretty impressive, not to mention the painstaking calligraphy and drawings of the Celtic monks. I understand now why it's regarded as "Ireland's finest national treasure."  After dinner, we hopped around a couple of pubs in downtown Dublin called "The Bloody Horse" and "The Porter House" and had what can only be deemed an epic night. Let's just say it involved a group of British lads, scintillating conversation about the historical dispute between Ireland and Britain, a live Irish band, and a 170 euro bar tab (which they happily paid...score!) The next day I said a brief goodbye to Ireney and got on a bus from Dublin to Howth with my friends from EAP orientation. Howth is a small fishing village in Fingal county near the big city, known for its seafood and farmers market. After drooling over the homemade shepherd's pie and Irish cheeses, we went to a local seafood restaurant. It was a wonderful way to end my visit in Dublin and get away from the imposing buildings of the city.

First taste!

Chatting it up with Seamus, possessor of quite possibly the world's best job (I kept calling him Mr. Finnigan haha)

Walking the rainy streets of Dublin with my dearest

The coolest cow bike I ever saw!

Live band at The Porter House on Temple Bar

 

Picturesque village of Howth

 After a packed weekend, I came back to school (what is this entity you call school?) for Monday and then Irene arrived in Cork by bus Tuesday night. After situating her in my apartment, I took her to my favorite pub, The Corner House, where I introduced her to two heavenly staples of my life: Beamish stout and live Irish traditional music. The next day was spent touring my campus and I even forced Irene to attend one of my Literature classes (to my surprise, my little Art History major thought it was pretty interesting and even learned a bit about Irish history!) We then had a night out on the town with some of my flatmates and good friends across the hall at good ol' An Brog, a pub that has become our standard destination for all-night dancing. After waking up the next day a little begrudgingly, we treated ourselves to a full Irish breakfast and took a bus from Cork to Blarney to kiss the renowned Blarney Stone! Like Irene, I can't say that I've attained "the gift of gab," but it was exciting to climb up the narrow steps of the castle and view the Irish landscape from such a high distance.

In celebration of Dan's 21st: pumpkin spice cupcakes and creamy, Beamish stout...mmm!

My French roommates; Florin and Toumtam

My main quad area

The crest of UCC; apparently if you walk over it, you'll become pregnant and fail all your exams

Irene, Kasey, Rebecca, random Irish dude, JQ, and I at our favorite dancing spot, An Brog

The full Irish breakfast experience: Potato wedges ("chips"), poached egg, beans, sausage, bacon, mushrooms, tomato, and white & black pudding (congealed blood)

Kissing the Blarney Stone!

The beautiful Blarney gardens

I was so sad to see Irene go the next day, but we left with sentiments of excitement for my visit to Rome in mid-April and our life in Florence for the summer. It was so comforting to see a familiar face and to share my lifestyle here in Cork with her, and only made me more thrilled for traveling outside of Ireland. Needless to say, after a busy week and a half, this weekend was spent holed up in my room not spending money, catching up on reading, sleeping, and starting an essay. I find it hilarious that after almost two months of being here, as an English major, I'm just starting to write my first essay due Friday. What can I say? You've gotta love the Irish education system :)