Student Bloggers

In traditional Irish form, this blog post is a little late. Well not so much late, but it is about last weekend versus this weekend and it’s currently Sunday night. Part of me, however, likes to think my tardiness is because I’ve needed a full week to recover from last weekend and I’ll tell you why.

According to my Fitbit watch, last weekend I walked 61,058 steps which is 26 miles. Granted some people (crazy marathoners) can run 26 miles in a few hours, but hiking that far has an equal fatigue level. Tired legs aside, each one of those steps brought me to see Ireland in a new and beautiful light.

On Saturday we traveled to Howth which is a thirty minute train ride from our school in Dublin. Howth is a small village and outer suburb of Dublin just north of the city. While the town is charming and holds a great weekend market, the hiking truly encapsulates every angle one could imagine of Ireland. We embarked on the six kilometer Cliff Path Loop that brought us first along what seemed to be the edge of the world. Green Irish grasses and flowers blew on our right and a blue ocean on our left made it feel like we were in a different place and time. The views were spectacular and not like anything I’ve experienced before. Our hike also took us down to the coast line where we were able to explore small pools and rocky/sandy beaches hidden between cliff bases. Following the markers we made our way back up inland through densely vegetated pathways and even across a golf course overlooking the ocean. To end our adventure we wandered through the streets of the small town getting a glimpse into local life and made our way back to the store fronts where we rewarded ourselves with vinegar drenched fish n’ chips.

*On an unrelated note, putting salt and vinegar on french fries is one of the most ingenious things and I don’t know why we haven't been doing this sooner.

Once we made it back to Dublin it was an early night because we had another hike already planned for Sunday! Many of us signed up for the Hiking Society at Trinity and on Sundays they usually do a tour. Last weekend we joined the group for a hike in the Wicklow Mountains. The Wicklow Mountains are actually a national park in Ireland and occupy almost the entire county of Wicklow. We were able to make our way up one of the mountain sides that showed us a completely different side of Ireland than the day before. The mountain faces contained granite and grass alike and were freckled with little animals like sheep and goats. At one point we stopped to eat lunch and sat down in soft grasses next to a babbling stream running down the mountain. In moments like these life really is really good.

Aside from the astounding views and nature, however, one of my favorite aspects of the weekend was the people I met. Hiking with the school club brought together a lot of international students and I met kids from Belgium, France, Germany, Brazil, New Zealand and Australia alike. At times I may feel out of my comfort zone, but being an international student and a minority is such a rewarding experience. Sure Ireland isn’t the biggest culture shock, but it can be refreshing to be different and let that contrast guide you into appreciating newness.

So despite a few days of sore legs that followed, last weekend proved to be truly exceptional. These experiences are rare in a sense and with each new happening I’m learning more about Ireland, the world and most importantly myself.