Northern Ireland - I am here

I've been awake since 6AM and my feet took me for a walk by the shore because my mind won't shut up. I came back to a cup of coffee that doesn't taste quite like the coffee back home, but it gets the job done. Now I've finished journaling for the morning & I'm about to enjoy some brunch with a few friends. 

-just in case you were curious about my day-

☕️📚🌻

The Bistro

While in Germany, one of my favorite places to visit was a small 24 hour bistro that was close to my hotel.  It had cold beer, great food, and cheap prices.  The men who worked there were from Syria and had come to Germany for a new life.  They barely spoke English and I barely spoke German and knew nothing of their native language.  Communication wasn't easy, but I always smiled, said "danke," and tried to clean up after myself when I visited. 
 
I went to the bistro at least once a day, whether it be for food or just for a drink with a fellow student on the trip.  The huge windows coupled with the patio furniture allowed me to sit outside and people watch, as well as see into the bistro and watch them cook.  I remember on the third night I was in Berlin, I was spending some time with a couple of fellow classmates, and my newfound favorite beer.  I can see the label like it was yesterday, but I can't remember the name of it, except that it started with a "K."  We sat outside, in the frigid air, the only warmth coming from a thin fleece blanket I had across my shoulders and the small amount of alcohol in my stomach.  We talked about anything and everything and lots of people would stop and talk with us when they heard our English.   

"Where are you from?!"

 

We would tell them America and they would then ask what part.  Most people didn't understand where or what Missouri was, which was surprising to me given that Saint Louis has been a hot topic in the media as of late.  So, I started telling them that we were near Kansas, which created a popular and charming response.

 

"Oh! The Wizard of Oz!" 

(How charming, right?)

 
As the night continued, less people passed by, but our conversation and the flow of beer continued.  After a while one of the workers came outside and said to me, "You are very nice!  I love you!"  I wasn't quite sure what to say to that, so I just smiled, mumbled an embarrassed thank you, and lifted my beer for a friendly toast.  However, in that moment I knew that I would be sad to leave Berlin.  These people knew nothing of me.  They knew nothing of my past, of my home, of my culture and I knew nothing of theirs, but as humans we had bonded.  We had found a way to communicate through food, smiles, and kindness and that is something that I look forward to doing in many more cities to come. 
 

The Bistro along with Berlin now hold a piece of my heart and I can't wait to go back. 

 
 
 
 

(This isn't taking me back unfortunately.)

I have finally purchased my flight to Dublin.  That's right, Dublin, not Belfast.

This is it!

When I realized that tickets to Dublin were, on average, about $400 cheaper than airfare to Belfast, I jumped on the idea of flying into Dublin.  Of course Dublin was already on my list of places to visit, so why not just do the Dublin experience when I get there?!

I purchased the flight right at $800.  Since the cheapest the flight to Belfast ever got was $1300, I saved about $500! So, I took that a hundred of that extra money to pay for a day tour to the Cliffs of Moher, a hostel in Dublin, and a train ride into Belfast the next morning.  I can't wait!  I am so stoked to arrive in Ireland and immediately see some of the best parts of  the isle.

Cliffs of Moher

SGF <---> BFS

Hopefully when I'm away I will feel a responsibility to update my blog at least every other day. I haven't felt that many things were blog-worthy in my life as of late, but let me tell you something that is...

AIRFARE.

- What in the world - 

I've been diligently searching for flights to Ireland in September, and I know (it's only April), but I want to keep an eye on prices, and let me tell you, it/is/not/cheap.

I'm sure everyone knew this already, as did I through social convention, however, there are so many particulars to sort out and I'm so unsure of all of them. Should I get a round-trip and possibly reschedule my return flight since I won't know when I will be coming back until I get to my university in Ireland and schedule classes. Do I only purchase a one-way ticket to Ireland and HOPE that I can afford another one-way ticket back to the states? Which airline is the best? How many stops should I have? What is a reasonable flight time? The list goes on.

And LET ME TELL YOU, not a SINGLE airline has any kind of information on heir websites about flight changes! How much will it cost me to reschedule? I don't know, because it's hidden far far far away in fine print somewhere that I can't seem to find.

I'm positive that when I not only saw a whopping $1300 - $2500 round-trip ticket, but a 21 hr flight time, I decided right then and there that I would find some other way to Ireland. Maybe a hot air balloon, a pirate ship, hell, even take a few swimming lessons from that woman who swam the English Channel (Gertrude Ederle - thanks Google.) 

I could go ahead and purchase the $1300 ticket and probably lose all of my luggage and experience multiple delays. I'm sure I'd enjoy the company of the new mom, (screaming infant in tow) that I just know will be placed right beside me. I could purchase this ticket, but what if it drops to $1100 in two weeks? It's probably best for me to just purchase a ticket and never look back. My $1300 ticket will turn into a $900 one the next week. C'est la vie.

Also, I don't even HAVE $1300 at the moment to drop on a ticket. This is where it becomes even more stressful. I have ONE credit card and I'll be the first to let you know that my limit won't allow for airfare. These are the things I'm consistently worrying about. I'm hoping that it will all work out and end up being completely worth the stress.

To make matters even worse I've been told that IP's are tracked when frequently searching for airfare so that airlines can jack up ticket prices and make flights seem more booked. I was ALSO told that the type of computer I'm searching on could determine flight prices. To sum everything up I'll quote a text that I received from one of my good friends:

"So you should use a TOR browser, 6 weeks out, in the morning, on a cheap PC, and you might get the best price." 

Basically, I'll let ya know when the flight is booked and when I finally purchase the ticket I won't EVER look back because I don't want to see the money I could have potentially saved.

~ Have a bea - YOU - tiful day! ~

1. 
   

There's Always Time for Nachos.

Yesterday I had my official meeting with my Study Away Coordinator, Ashley and received the paperwork to finalize my acceptance of going to the University of Ulster in Ireland. EEK!

This morning, I'm sitting at my work desk, staring at the packet of information I need to sign and return to the office ASAP. I'm extremely happy about this opportunity, but it also saddens me. I realize that life without me will move on here in the states and coming back and settling into a groove may be hard, but I also feel like this is a once in a lifetime chance and I can't pass it up. Most everyone has been very positive about my intentions of leaving for a semester overseas and I believe that ultimately I would never forgive myself if I didn't seize this opportunity. 

So, here I am, still staring at the papers with an odd mixture of emotions, but mostly excitement. There are multiple stages of mentality while studying abroad, all of which I am preparing myself to experience. I'm also thinking about how once again, I can relate to Linda Belcher on a spiritual level.

Oh! Today is also the Spring Equinox. 

I love today. ☺ 

Note to Self:

Today I sat down in Macroecomonics to be confronted with a test on nominal and real GDP, CPI, growth rates, inflation, and interest rates and all I could think was:

I think I've only ever forgotten about one test and it was something so trivial that I still felt completely prepared for the exam. Today was slightly different. 

All that I could think about as the instructor passed out his bright green test, was everything that I hadn't studied for two weeks due to spring break and if I'm being honest, my extreme procrastination. By the end of the exam I felt as if I did the best I could and hopefully pulled a B, but now I'm pretty exhausted from the mental anguish.

Moral of the story: Don't forget about scheduled exams, folks.

Why are titles so hard?

I've never had a blog before, so as I start this journey I ask any reader who may stumble upon my posts to bear with.  I'm not exactly a sensational writer.  I've started this essentially for myself and hopefully for any family and friends that may want to read about my days in the future.  I've become incredibly enthralled with the idea of traveling and I'm already a mathematics enthusiast and wanted a space to geek out about these aspects of my life.  However, most people aren't as enthralled about math as I am and creating a personal blog seemed like a cure for my predicament.

I'm new to the blogging world and I'm still learning the ropes of writing and maintaining.  It's probably safe to assume that I'll have long-winded posts every now and then, or have a post completely covering a math topic, but don't be afraid of them!  (The math posts at least.)  Hopefully, in about five months time, I will be posting about my adventures in Northern Ireland as I've been placed and admitted to a university there through ISEP (International Student Exchange Programs.) Traveling is something else I'm quite the novice at, but I can't wait to become a seasoned traveler.  I hope my life is filled with seeing the world.

Cheers.