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.