Trips Travels

Today we went to the Garda station in Dungarvan. It was a very different experience than the police stations back home. They let us take pictures and walk around almost freely. We talked to the Garda officer taking us around and he was very friendly and open with information. After this, we walked to the court since it is only on Monday that court is held in Dungarvan. In the court there was a lot of people, and several cases being heard at once, so we sat in and listened. It was similar in some ways to our courts back home, I could see an influence, however it was also different at the same time. Seamus Heaney had a poem recounting this called "A constable calls", in which he talks about how a police officer came to his door and talked with his family. I have had similar experiences back home and felt a fear, although in Dungarvan Ireland I do not feel this fear, I look up to the Garda and they are very friendly.

The Cork City Gaol told an interesting story of what happens to people when you have them sit there and rot. We explored the jail and learned its history, of how it came to be and how awful it was. Learning how we confine and punish people was interesting as many times the punishments were not equal to the crime. We also walked around Cork and it felt very industrial in comparison to Dublin, or in the same instance less touristy. I went to the English market as well as the Marina market, both were very different yet cool to visit and see how local venders of food and products are still held in high regard. I also learned that the big green busses can run early, and will often times wait at a stop until they are supposed to leave because of how efficiently they run in comparison to some city busses. The jail itself was up a giant hill, which took the wind out of me and had me wondering how they transported prisoners to the jail itself. It was also a ways out of city center due to it bei...

Although I expect different food in different countries, the amount of different food that is available is surprising sometimes. Just travelling and seeing how many different places have different things makes me happy. I have tried foods in every country I went to because thats what you do. I tried guiness stew in Ireland, Scott Pie in Scotland, and Stroopwafel in Holland. All very different yet reflecting other nations and thier interests in the same time. We have also gone to food markets, which are very similar to other countries and just shows how small of a world it is at the same time. I love trying new foods and seeing what other countries have to offer. While unconventional, Seamus Heaney's poem "Digging" I feel relates to this topic as once upon a time we used to cook from scratch and now we can go to a food truck and get the same food so much easier. Yet it is a different chore and we focus on other things instead. So even as life evolves and professions change...

Recently, I went to another Celtic nation which was Scotland. Hopping off the plane from Dublin to Glasgow, I was not met by security but an open door once I got off the plane. I am immediately reminded that Scotland is apart of the UK with billboards hosting websites with ".co.uk" and the Union Jack in certain places. While travelling around the people themselves seemed more Scottish than the places I visited as I went to Glasgow and Edinburgh. Within Edinburgh is the Edinburgh castle, which hosted the Scottish army and they at one point retook it from the English during a battle. However, with a twist of fate, the British army still hosts a garrison in the castle but it is mostly highland units that occupy it. This is completely different from what I saw in Belfast where the people are split, it seems like the people are complacant and want to be apart of the Union while those who do not, don't say anything. It might be because of how long ago the Unionization happened,...

I love to learn, and so when I decided to visit other countries in Europe besides Ireland I thought it would be a good idea to try and learn the public transit systems for each country. I come from a background of not understanding public transit besides trains, so I got a trial by fire. My first challenge was Amsterdam, trying to figure the public transportation in a different language really pushed me to understand what I was doing and where I was going. Luckily, they had an app I could and did use to the fullest to get around. It told me what busses I could take with my three day pass and so those were the only ones I took. A few times I took the wrong one but ended up where I needed to go in the end. In Scotland it is a little easier because they speak english as their primary language being apart of the U.K. I felt lost but I ended up figuring it all out, although I was stolen away by the beauty of these random places I would end up, leading to new adventures and experiences I did...

On my travels to Ireland, Scotland, and Holland, I have noticed that history is not always history and is still very much apart of the culture and day to day life. Not only are the traditions older, so are the buildings and are often retro-fitted to house different things. This happens in the United States too but not all that often because of how much older the buildings in other countries are and how they still stand to this day. While some places in the United States have living history like this or customs and cultures that still exist, not all of the United States does and this is what is interesting. I am used to being from Texas and people still acting like it is its own country and being proud to be from there, although when I go to other states I hardly get that feeling. Another example is travelling through the deep south and Confederate things are still prevalent. Although in Amsterdam it was more culture that persisted and in Scotland it is the buildings and history that h...