Student Bloggers

Arcadia headed a trip to Belfast this weekend to teach us more about Irish politics and history as well as give us the opportunity to adventure through Belfast. It was nice having the majority of our group back together for a trip and being able to be away from my apartment without going to the airport. Our first afternoon in Belfast, we visited the Titanic Experience. I am a big fan of the movie, but it was interesting to see the movie and the actual history compared side by side. That evening, we ended up at the Belfast Opera House by a happy accident. Allison, Audrey, Sharmen, and I were able to snag a few tickets to "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime." It was fun to be able to have a girls' night out and catch an amazing performance. The play was phenomenal (it had a REAL puppy) and a relaxing way to end our day of travel.

Saturday led us to the Giant’s Causeway and let me tell you, I am never going to get tired of Irish landscapes. The sun was coming down over the mountains and the rocks, reflecting off of the water and creating one of the most breathtaking sites. There is no way I can put this experience into words or photographs, but I’m glad my adventure buddy, Allison, was there to experience it all with me. I was in awe at how the world can produce these places that are worthy of fairytales and at how lucky I am to be able to go visit them. I could have sat at the Causeway all afternoon if I didn’t have a bus to be on. When we got back to our hotel, I decided my heart could not take any more of perfect places for the day or it might explode, so a group of us opted to grab peppermint mochas and wander through the city center. During our impromptu loop, we ended up at Queen’s University and spent awhile admiring the sunshine on the main courtyard while Allison put on a dance show for us. We then stumbled upon a bookshop with these great classic novels, even some first editions. It was one of those lazy afternoons with great people that allow you processing time. I was grateful for the unscheduled afternoon to just allow myself to be, to browse through the bookshelves and sip my coffee.

After dinner, we had the opportunity to go out and experience the Belfast nightlife. But of course, we came up with our own little plan. For inexplicable reasons, I was in the Christmas spirit and I recruited some fellow Christmas lovers to hold a miniature Christmas in October. Allison, Audrey, Julia, Bridget, Kevin, and I decided it was in the best interest of our well-being to go get tons of ice cream and chocolate and listen to hours of Christmas music at the hotel. Regrets? None. Sometimes you just need a little Bing Crosby and cookies n’ cream in your life.

On our final day in Belfast, we took a historical tour of the murals. I had a basic knowledge of the struggles in Northern Ireland, but I did not realize how relevant the conflict still is. There is still a heavy amount of political turmoil and bombings are still happening (one happened just days before we arrived). The divide became especially real when we stopped at the Peace Wall that divides the Catholics (nationalists/republicans) from the Protestants (unionists/loyalists). This giant wall was added to in 2011 to prevent people from scaling the wall at its lower height. Despite its purpose as a dividing force, the wall was covered in spray paint and sharpie messages calling for peace, love, and understanding between these two political stances. It is an intense experience looking at this wall and now knowing all the history behind its creation.

Between the Causeway, Christmas music, theater performances, and the Peace Wall, there was a lot packed in to our short weekend trip. I love these Arcadia trips because it gives us an opportunity to reconnect with each other in the midst of our individual school, social, and travel schedules. I really love my NUIG family and am incredibly thankful for the laughs, support, and love they give back to me. Whether it’s jumping on the bed belting out “All I Want for Christmas is You” before breakfast or sitting together to watch the ocean, I am very blessed to travel with these incredible people.