Arrived Alive in wee Irishland

Well I got to Dublin safely. Naturally - cuz it's my life - the flights weren't entirely easy breezy. The flight was pretty good - minus saying goodbye to my loved ones at the airport. I sat beside an older couple who didn't say too much so I didn't have to worry about someone talking my ear off for 7 hours. I purposely picked an aisle seat so I didn't have to bother others about getting up and down with my small bladder.

The lady infront of me switched seats from up front to sit with her friends and she didn't sit still a lot. I think she was a tour operator as she kept pestering the flight attendants about certain things - headsets, blankets, etc. When dinner came around and I got the last chicken meal, she was not happy and I tried not to laugh when the male flight attendant said in his snooty British accent - "well, if you didn't switch seats like you weren't supposed to then you would've had a chicken meal." Gotta love the Brits crass attitude sometimes.

The other male flight attendant made a comment as I took a pic of my plane dinner as I told him it was for documentation purposes. He said "It's not that good to take a picture of it". It was pretty good considering plane food. Menu - balsamic chicken breast, risotto, green beans, multigrain bun/butter, garden salad, caramel cheesecake, and a small piece of Lindt chocolate served with tea and a mini DC - I'm sure Rimi would have kept the can for a momento. :)

One thing I've noticed about Europeans - specifically Brits is that they do enjoy their alcoholic beverages and the airlines know that. Alcohol was complimentary during the entire flight and when you asked for wine with your dinner (I believe I heard 99% of everyone around me ask) they gave you TWO bottles, not just one. I guess us North Americans are stingy. All in all, the flight was pretty good minus the turbulence - it was a pretty bumpy ride and my ears plugged severely on descending...they still don't feel entirely unplugged.

My adventure began when we landed as we were stuck on the tarmat for 30 min, then a bus came and picked us up (eventually) from the plane directly and took us to the Terminal. Then I had to connect to another Terminal so I had to take another bus that took another 10 min ride or so. Then I had to walk all over and get into a large line and fill out some paperwork about UK Borders, get my picture taken and then keep running. Then I had to go through security again and empty my liquids even though I was connecting to another flight this whole time and didn't leave the airport or security. After I had to literally run to my gate which was a 10 min RUN and the airport is so confusing. They were literally closing the gate while I ran up...talk about a close call.

So I arrived in Dublin, took a breather to find a Wi-Fi area so I could let people know I arrived ok and then made my way to the bus to get a ride downtown to my hostel. The bus was nice (Coach), the weather was clear and sunny and pretty warm. It was also neat to see what Dublin looks like on the way. It's much like Toronto with lots of green near the highways and such. The downtown area of Dublin from what I've seen thus far is a mix between Stratford and Toronto. Big city but older buildings, rivers and bridges. Unfortunately my hostel was a good jaunt from the bus stop and with my heavy luggage, it was quite a trek. The streets are not really labeled so I had to ask for a few directions here and there but I found it. Everyone is pretty nice so that helps for sure.

The biggest battle today was carrying my heavy suitcase and backpack up 3 flights of stairs. Lucky me...but the stairs will keep me in shape along with all the walking. I had it pretty good back home with my car (miss you Trix), homecooking and being familiar with everything. The next year or so will be quite different that's for sure. I was so frustrated with my rolley suitcase that I considered sending it home but I have to deal with it now and hope that the next time I move it, it will be onto a train and then into a new apartment. NOTE to visitors - bring a backpack if you plan on doing trips cuz rolley devices are not travel friendly.

All in all it was an ok venture over here. It didn't really hit me, as usual, that this was all real till I got to my hostel and I didn't know anyone and had all this luggage and didn't know what to do next. I have my orientation tomorrow morning so I'm hoping that I can find a city, apartment and job to settle in quickly with so I can meet new people and keep myself busy. I've heard Galway is a great place so maybe I'll take a stab at that place first. I'll likely do some tours and museum visits tomorrow afternoon and then go from there. I'm sharing a flat with 3 other German girls but I just introduced myself while passing them in the hallway. I think they are here with another large group of students as there are many of them and there are some chaperones too.

I guess that's it for now. I should get some sleep. I had a 4-hr nap this afternoon as I was about to pass out on my laptop but hopefully I can fall back asleep now as it's 1am.

Will try to take some pictures tomorrow and post them soon. Feel free to email me or fbook me anytime. I will try to pick up an International SIM card tomorrow to do some calls back home.

Miss you all...xo