The learning begins...

We had our first day of actual academic material on Friday. We started our day at 10:00AM with a speaker on a "brief" history of Irish history. We covered a great deal of history leading up to the events beginning with settlement of the island and ending just after World War II (which was actually very important to the place that Ireland is at today). We had a quick break for lunch before another 2 hour session. This time we had a speaker specializing in religion's role in the conflict. A self-proclaimed controversial speaker, he had some interesting things to say about religion in Northern Ireland society today, as well as in the history of the Troubles. It was all very interesting and it was good to actually start class, but it ended up being a very long day. It didn't help that more than half of our group was out late at the pub the night before - myself not included. Jordan and I went out for a quick pint, but walked home early like the good little St. Olaf students that we are.

The Irish literally go out every night, and it's not necessarily for one little social pint at the pub. I cannot imagine how much money they go through every week just to go out. Every night is a different place. The Student Union Bar is the place to be on Monday nights. Tuesdays and Thursdays are the Anchor. Wednesday and Saturday is Kelly's. Friday is Havana and Sunday includes a pint after church. Our taxi driver on the way to mass last week told us to cleanse our souls and then have a pint - that's the Irish way. 

Another thing that I forgot to mention yet is the existence of palm trees in Northern Ireland. That's right, palm trees. I don't know if they are popular in the Republic, but they are quite prevalent up here. It's a strange sight, especially when they're coated with snow as they were when we first arrived. Who knew that palm trees could grow this close to the Arctic Circle. By the way, the weather here has gotten so much better. I actually didn't have to wear a coat this weekend.

Back to the weekend - we went out to Havana on Friday night. This was another pub/bar/nightclub combo and we all liked it better than Club Aura. And everyone went out this time! It's really cheesy, but we decided to pick a day for each person and "celebrate" them. Mostly this was so that everyone could pretend they had a birthday on the trip. Friday was Becca's day so everyone came out to celebrate.

On Saturday a bunch of us made the long trek into Portstewart again to go back to Morelli's for lunch. It was just as good as the first time. We shopped around a little bit along the ocean and then made the walk back. Jordan and I had planned to make dinner together for Valentine's Day and a couple of other people needed things so we stopped at a grocery store on the way back. Just before we got there a group of boys that were probably around 10-years-old yelled across the street and asked us if we were American. They found out that we were and promptly threw a raw egg at us. It didn't hit any of us, but it didn't make any of us very happy. We were all quite surprised because up to this point we haven't really encountered much anti-American feeling, especially in kids who probably have no reason to feel that way. It's strange to think that people that young can feel that way simply because it's what they've always been told. Of course, on the other hand, it could also have been because they were 10-year-old boys looking for something to do. They had an egg just sitting in their pocket waiting to be thrown at someone and we happened to be the most interesting someone to happen along. Either way it was definitely something new. 

Jordan and I made one of my favorite meals from home for Valentine's dinner and we were able to cook with real wine...that we bought ourselves! How exciting! After dinner some of the girls decided to go out, but the rest of us hung out and had a movie night. Going out all the time is exhausting both for your body and for your wallet. I know I needed a break.

Today was pretty laid back. I watched the Ireland v. Italy rugby match on TV with Jordan and Ben (Ireland killed Italy - as they always have according to the announcers) and then we watched Sunday Ski on the BBC. I'd love to watch a rugby match in the pub sometime because I've heard it's quite the experience. The next match is Ireland v. England, which is probably the match of greatest interest in Northern Ireland. We might have to spend the money on a taxi to go watch that one somewhere that isn't our kitchen. 

We start our first full week of classes tomorrow, with a field trip to Derry planned for Wednesday. We have quite the line up of speakers and topics so this week should be a busy one. We've been slowly settling into more and more of a routine. The girls in my flat planned out meals for the rest of our time here in Coleraine. The time is already going quickly. Even though we've only been here for a little over a week, we will already be leaving and moving on to our internships in a little less than two. We've already begun to plan ahead for spring break and the places that we all want to travel. I'm sure I'll be home before I know it, but until then I am missing you all and I love hearing from you. Love and God's blessings!