My internet continues to work against me so time is short for what I can give out to you. This last week was orientation which by all standards was no more interesting than any other type of orientation. We listened to people talk about different campus services and important things we needed to know. I won't bog down any details for you since it's more for my needing to know than anything for you :)
This week however, was our first week of classes which is more interesting than orientation. I like classes here they're lecture based all of them except a few select ones which visiting students cannot take (like a class on the American Civil War). Some classes have tutorials that students must attend during the semester there are usually about 5 per class if you have them and they are little discussion groups held on a reading or to talk about something in class more in depth. These are typically run by other professors not fellow students. Class sizes are large here unless it is a final year course those tend to be smaller. There is over 50 people in most classes though I have a feeling the numbers may change by the time registration happens. In Ireland, and I'm sure in other places in Europe, students can shop around for classes for a few weeks to see if they want to take them and after those two weeks they register for the classes they want for credit or plan on taking. I thought this was a odd thing to do because you'd end up having to hand out a reading list over 4 times but no one seems to mind. Most students try to go to classes they do plan on taking and if they really need to change it they will before registration. All of my professors are men I'm sure there are others who are women but that isn't the case for my courses. I don't mind over the years I've had quite a few men as professors. Hmm hang on a bit the fire alarm is going off-----
No worries false alarm our neighbors were taking very hot showers and the fire alarm was set off by it. We're still waiting for security to come turn it off.
Anywhos each class is two hours a week one hour each day. I don't have class on fridays and my earliest class is 10am but most of the others are 11 or 12 noon. I'm enjoying the classes though sometimes I have a bit of a time understanding my profs depends on what they're saying if they say something in Irish I'm doomed unless they explain it so I'm going to see if my 'adoptive host family' can help me out with learning Irish. I have learned so far that the Vikings are responsible for pillaging and plundering most of the coastal areas of Ireland hence all the coastal towns and why some of the best relics are in museums in the East and some in the West because they were stolen. So the Irish are sort of shaky in feeling towards the vikings but it's in the past so they aren't too concerned but if you talk about Oliver Cromwell ah now that's a fellow that no one has ever forgotten in the Emerald Isle. He may have come plundered, raped, massacred many people in Ireland and even sent more off to be slaves/prisoners in the Caribbean in the 1600s but Ireland still hates him to this day. And honestly I can't blame them Cromwell had this belief that the Irish needed to be civilized and that they were beneath the English and needed conquering and were nothing but a lowly bunch of heathens. I would not be surprised if you found a I don't love Cromwell shirt in a gift shop.
Well I must go we are going out to the college bar in hopes of meeting people and making friends. I'm going to laugh if I get rejected for trying small talk with people again :)
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