I’ve developed a full-blown addiction to iced matcha’s. Truthfully I’ve gotten one everyday after work. I love my little routine of leaving work taking a 15 minute walk to The Matcha Bar, then taking a stroll through St. Stephens Green. It’s the perfect way to unwind.
This past week has been unexpectedly social and eventful. I met a bunch of students from UC Davis and UC San Diego who are also on the Connect 123 program. We ended up going out together on Thursday and Friday night and had a blast bar hopping and getting to know one another. I’ve actually started getting lunch with one of them, Niamh, since she works down the street from me.
On Thursday we went to McSorley’s and discovered that they do trivia every Thursday night so We decided to give it a try and quickly learned that trivia is not our strong suit. Ironically, most of the questions were about the United States, yet we managed to come in 63rd out of 70 teams. The winning team ended up being a group of Irish locals tucked in the back corner of the bar. Regardless of our not so stellar performance, it was a fun night.
On our trip to the Blarney Stone I debated on kissing the stone since so many people kiss it, but I convinced myself if I put chapstick on it sort of acted like a barrier between me and the stone. The line to get to the top of the castle was so long. I think I waited for almost 2 hours. I also wasn’t expecting the narrow spiral staircase leading up to the top either. I can imagine that people used to walk up to them daily. The stairs didn’t seem very efficient or practical to me.
Later that evening, Kate and I went to visit Trinity College. We spent quite some time trying to figure out how to get in, but it was so worth it in the end. The campus was beautiful. We talked to an assistant professor there who advised us not to see the Book of Kells since the majority of the books are gone right now, so we took her word for it.
Kate and I also tried out Boeuf and Frites together and it was so good! You get a 10 oz steak, unlimited fries and garlic bread, plus a dessert at the end for $30. I feel like that’s a pretty good deal.
On Monday we visited the Guinness Store. I was impressed by the exhibit. My favorite part was the waterfall feature that spelled out words as the water fell—it was mesmerizing. Although I’m not the biggest fan of Guinness, I still ended up getting one. I was a little bummed when I found out he didn’t sell Guinness shots.(I know it’s not made with Guinness. It feels like they should have it since it’s in the name) To top off the weekend I went to a comedy show and saw Josh Johnson perform. I didn’t know who he was prior to this show, but he was hilarious. I definitely want to squeeze in one more comedy night before I leave Dublin.
