The Final Days

Hello Hello again and for the last time :(

Before going into my last couple days here, I would like to do a recap of where I've been this semester.

Ireland: Blarney, Cashel, Dublin, Waterford, Kerry, Killkenny, Borris-in-Ossory, Galway and Limerick.

Continent: Paris, Amsterdam, Munich, London and Oxford.

Seeing all these places that I have been to makes me truly appreciate the time I have spent over here and the fact that I could be over here. I was fortunate enough to be able to study abroad in the country where my family is from and have a deeper appreciation for my family, my education and my future. I have come to terms with issues, resolved problems and have become a stronger woman in the process and I couldn't be more thankful for that. Studying abroad has truly changed me for the better and I am forever grateful.

Traveling to all of these places has broadened my mind to other cultures and how people do things in their native land. I've tried different cuisines from all over (and loved every minute ;) ) and listened to music that truly captures what each country has to offer.

I am very excited to go home, but I will miss Cork and Ireland greatly.

It has become my home away from home. The people I have met will never be forgotten. They have contributed to the changed person I am today and I am very thankful for every one of them. I foresee them as friends forever.

When I first got to Ireland, I was scared. I was homesick. I was thinking to myself, "what the hell did I get myself into." And through these 5 months I have been homesick, but that was it. I knew what I had gotten myself into and I loved it. Every second (even the homesick times).

Coming to Ireland was the best decision I have ever made in my life. I am a new, confident, healthy individual with a bright future (hopefully including more traveling!)

I am not only thankful for being here and the friends I had made, but for my family and friends too. They helped me through the rough patches...and...(thanks to skype) I was able to see them just as if I were home.

I also want to thank my readers. For sticking with me and reading about my adventures through the last 5 months. I know you enjoyed were jealous of my time here and I'm grateful to have such loyal followers :)

Tomorrow is my last day. And it's a bitter sweet feeling. I'm almost all packed and ready to start my journey back to the USA so I guess this is good bye. This blog will not be gone, but in retirement until the next traveling adventure :)

Go raibh maith agat (thank you)

Sara Leslie

We meet again!

Hello Hello all! It has been a long time since I have updated this ole thing, hasn't it?

My dearest apologies, I've been traveling and taking some time to get my mind straight.

I believe the last post I wrote was about Munich. Well a lot has happened since then so I'll give you all the quick low down on what I've been doing:

After Munich I came back to Cork to take a couple exams and turn in papers. Once all that was done, it was time to enjoy my month off and travel to different places (disclaimer, I will not be writing everything I did, just a little sneak peak into my journeys).

First stop: AMSTERDAM

It was a very beautiful city. So many bridges that took me to many different and unique places.

Most of the time they were museums (Come on...I'm an archaeologist that wants to work in a museum, what do you expect ;) )

But in between the museums, many other experiences happened, such as...EATING!

This is the most delicious thing ever. It's a fresh stroopwaffle. It is a waffle (paperthin) cut in half slathered with caramel sauce. I am salivating just thinking about them now! Yum :)

Next stop: PARIS

The city of love, and indeed it was :) One of my favorite cities (besides London). I went on a bus tour that took us from London to Paris. It was all inclusive which was really nice. Not having to deal with planning things was a relief for once.

We did the typical tourist things.

The Eiffel Tower

Notre Dame

And many other sites. (Unfortunately I cannot put thousands of pictures up on here...otherwise this post would take forever to get through!)

However, I will say this. Paris was beautiful and magical. It sparked something inside of me that made me want to return and possibly even live there for a little bit of time. The romance seen as I walked down the street was magnificent. The love and respect that couples had for each other was both new and refreshing.

Alas, on to the next city...

OXFORD, Here I visited one of my oldest friends. We had a brilliant time and it was so nice getting to catch up with her and her family. I will definitely miss them when I go back to the states.

While I was there, we went to Oxford University. It was definitely different than I anticipated. But lovely non-the-less.

My friend Daisy and I

After Oxford came the city I was most looking forward to visiting. LONDON.

I was able to spend 6 days in London. Taking in all it had to offer, and more. Since I spent so much time there, I will not post all the pictures, but only a select few.

I did the usual: Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, Greens park, Tower bridge, Tower of London, British museum, Natural History museum, and so much more.

Here is a look into my time in London :)

Yes, I went into Westminster Abby...Where Will and Kate wed exactly one year ago on the 29th of April :)

Although I had an absolutely amazing time in London, my favorite part was definitely the Harry Potter Studio Tour. Now not many people know this (haha let's be real, it's no secret), but I LOVED Harry Potter, the movies, the books, everything. So going on the studio tour was a dream come true for me.

yummmm butter beer :)

It was a banner day if you ask me :)

I left for Cork the next day, which was sad, but it was time for me to head "home". Once I got back, it was nice to sleep in my own bed and rest. Traveling takes a lot of of a person, even if you are by yourself. I've learned a lot over the course of my stay in Ireland, but one important thing that I will keep with me is: Having time to yourself is precious. It is time to think and reflect on yourself and your actions. I am thankful for everything I have and for the opportunity to travel to all of these outstanding places.

I will try and keep this thing updated more often, however seeing as I have less than a month left, it might be easier than expected ;)

Best wishes to all of you, and SEE YOU SOON!
Sara Leslie

Beer, Brats, Pretzels: Munich!

Hello all!

I have so much to update you all on!

After the 19th, I went on an adventure to Munich. It. was. AMAZING. One of the best weekends I've had in a longggg time.

When Phil and I arrived we went straight to see Jay and Justin. We met them in the city center and then walked around before heading to the hostel (which was very nice by the way).

This is Marinplatz. Very touristy, but absolutely beautiful :)

Then that night we went to a beergarden and I had a massive pretzel, a currywurst and a beer! It was very tasty.

Day two was filled with:

BMW museum

Then we went to the Olympic stadium that was used in the 1972 olympics!

We all then walked around some more and got dinner at this quaint little hole in the wall restaurant for a delicious dinner

Which was then followed by Spaghettieic. It is vanilla gelato with a raspberry sauce sprinkled with white chocolate (to look like spaghetti!) SO GOOD!

Day three included time at the Largest Technology museum that holds every invention ever. (they boys were in heaven).

After that, we ate at an authentic German restaurant.

I had a pretzel soufflé

And with that I had a beer mixed with lemonade. Strange, but delicious.

Day four was rainy and was pretty much a bum around type of day. Jay, Justin and I went to a bar to watch the soccer game and then walked around downtown before heading to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. Jay's birthday was that sunday so we decided to celebrate :)

Sunday came along and it was time for me to leave. It was sad leaving, but it was an amazing trip and I was so glad to have had that time with my really good friends :)

St. Patrick's Day and two weeks before

Wow, I have been seriously neglecting this thing. I am truly sorry everyone!

The past two weeks have been crazy!

With regards in school: This is my last week of classes yes! oh no! I've been completing papers and studying for exams like a mad woman! Hence why i've been on a hiatus lately. But since I am pretty much done (minus a paper due tomorrow) I thought I would catch all of you up on my adventures!

3-5-2012 TO 3-11-2012
That was was alright. School was normal and nothing really out of the ordinary happened. However, that weekend my sorority sisters came to visit me! It was so much fun! I took them to blarney (my second time) and it was really nice because I was able to see things I didn't get to before. Such as:

WEDDING!

There were two of them going on while we were there and of course I had to take pictures :)

3-12-2012 TO NOW!

This past week was the craziest one.
Monday: I had my Irish dancing final. It went smoothly and I was definitely more nervous than I needed to be. I'm so glad it's over though! Once class down, three more to go!

Tuesday through Friday were filled with writing papers, editing and preparing for this weekend! Because yesterday was...ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

Before we get to Saturday, I would like to tell you about Friday night.

Every St. Patrick's Day we would have corn beef, cabbage, carrots and of course. SODA BREAD. My favorite part. I knew I was missing out not being home for our usual feast, so I decided to make some of this delicious bread on my own:

Although it burned a little, it was still delicious and I didn't share any of it. I'm actually surprised that I ate the whole thing (finishing it today) :) yum. So good! (but not as good as momma's!!)

Let's get to St. Patrick's Day shall we??

SATURDAY! It was amazing being a part of this holiday in Ireland. I mean, you can't get more authentic than st. patty's day in IRELAND. It was spectacular and beyond crazy. The best combination I think!

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Isn't she adorable! I couldn't get enough of her :)

After the parade, my friends and I walked around to various street vendors where a half a pepperoni pizza and a delicious chocolate and marshmallow rice crispy treat went undocumented ;)

Then, we wandered back to out apartment where we spent about 6 hours drinking (Jameson was definitely included ;) ) and having an amazing time before...PHILLIP CAME! :D


Phil arrived around 10:30. Once he got here we all went to a pub to celebrate the end of an amazing day.

Sunday:
Yesterday all of us decided to head to the Gaelic football and hurling match that was going on in Cork. We were planning on taking a taxi because it was an hour walk to the stadium..well we walked..They were NOT joking about an hour walk. Thank goodness it was a gorgeous day out because the walk was really nice and gave me time to digest all of saturday.

Poor cork :(

Unfortunately Cork lost both games.

We walked back and saw that the city centre was buzzing with people! So we decided to stop, and luckily we did because the street vendors were back and there was live music playing! It was a nice treat and a great break from walking :)

Again, a half pizza (this time cheese) went undocumented ;) and phil and I decided to walk back to the apartment to relax a little and settle in for the night.

I was exhausted and actually napped once we got back. Much needed after that exhausting day! But, over all. It was a fantastic weekend!

Today is now filled with paper editing (due tomorrow!) and walking around the city center to get some fresh air and show phil my university!

This week i'll be in Munich! So i'll chat with you all next weekend!

xo
Sara Leslie

Bad Blogger

Hey everyone!

Sorry i've been on a hiatus lately. The motivation needed to come back...luckily it HAS! :D

Now to update you all on the last week and a half. During the weeks, nothing really has happened. I go to class, chill in my room, and work out. You know, the usual. The last weekend in February was nothing special. I stayed in my room/apartment most of the time, while also making sure I went out and hung out with my friends.

This past week has been kind of crazy though. It was the beginning of March, which can only mean one thing...ONE MORE MONTH OF CLASSES! I'm in shock about how fast this semester has been going. I literally only have 2 more weeks of class, a week of "studying"...or exams (if you're me), then TWO MONTHS LEFT. It's insane.

But not to get ahead of myself, i'll keep going with this weekend ;)

This weekend I had my last field trip with my Archaeology class. We went to the Rock of Cashel (and other various sites that I won't bore you with). The Rock of Cashel was beautiful and the weather was beautiful as well :)

I'm loving my headband that my sister, molly, got me for christmas! It has come in handy over here with the bi-polar weather :)

After our exhausting field trip, we got back on the bus and had a 2 hour drive back to Cork...which meant only one thing. READING. yes you heard me correctly, I read :) The book for right now is the Hunger Games. I'm trying to finish it before the movie comes out so I can compare. I'm addicted to it right now...if you were to see me reading it yesterday, you would've been shocked. I got through 7 CHAPTERS! I surprised myself even :) But I couldn't put it down. Soooo good! Definitely recommend.

Once I got back to my room, I had dinner and was planning on going out, but unfortunately plans changed and I wound up chilling in my room again. Not an Ideal night, but it happens.

OH I forgot to mention. On friday I made cookies :) Chocolate oatmeal flour less cookies. they. were. AMAZING. Even my friends thought so. They taste like brownies. The recipe made 17. I gave two to my roommate and her boyfriend and then I took a couple...or maybe 5 ;)

well. Today is another day of pounding out this paper so I can finish before tomorrow (and let is sit so I can start my other 1500 word paper :( ) 600 more words to go!

until next time!

xoxo
Sara Leslie

Kerry On

Sorry it has taken me so long to update on my FANTASTIC WEEKEND!

Like I said in my last post, I celebrated Valentine's Day (which was spectacular) :). Then this past weekend I went on a school trip to the Ring of Kerry.

Now for those of you who do not know what the Ring of Kerry is; It is on the west coast of Ireland in County Kerry. It is the coast line and a tourist's Dream. It a trail that takes you along the coast to see beautiful landscapes that you would not be able to see any where else in Ireland.

We left Friday afternoon to start off the journey. The best part was that it was only 2 1/2 hours away from Cork! Short travel times makes Sara a happy person :)

On friday, we stopped off at the Kerry Bog village, which was pretty much a replication of a bog village that would have existed in the 1800s. It was really neat to be able to see how they would have lived.

After that we got to the Ring of Kerry Hotel (really nice) and had our first homemade dinner. *disclaimer: every meal was homemade and ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!* The desserts were even better :) That night was filled with Irish dancing and traveling to a local pub, great way to end the night!

Then on saturday we ventured out to Valentia Island and saw Cliffs, a Dairy farm and went to where the transcontinental cable (the one that connected Europe with the US) was established. It was an exhausting day filled with beautiful sites and a lot of walking. We also saw a ring fort (I nerded out). That night we had another delicious dinner, followed by a Gaelic football demonstration and trivia at the bar in the lobby. Saturday overall was a really solid day :)

On sunday, we had breakfast and left the hotel. We finished the Ring of Kerry tour and then made our way back to cork. However along the way we stopped at these little places to take pictures. There was this one place that took my breath away. *we had perfect weather the entire weekend, which NEVER happens*. We got off the bus and automatically I see the ocean, a beach, cliffs, and islands in the background. Then I turn around and I see mountains, fields of grass AND a rainbow. Then it starts to drizzle. That will be the only time in my life that, that will EVER happen to me again, to be able to see and experience all of that in a matter of minutes. It was an amazing feeling and I am so lucky to have experienced it.

Needless to say my weekend was absolutely amazing. I seriously recommend going if you ever visit Ireland (which everyone should).

After that weekend, nothing could compare, so this week has been pretty boring so far.

Monday was the usual.

Tuesday was FAT TUESDAY! However, in Ireland it's called Pancake Day. I think I can live with that ;) I splurged on pancakes and brownies...I felt sick this morning, but at the time it was delicious :)

The rest of the week will be relaxing and just preparing the rest of my travel plans for the last 3 months!

I cannot believe I only have 4 more weeks of classes and 3 more months left. Time is flying by!

Gotta take advantage of it now!

xo
Sara Leslie

Love is in the Air ♥

Hello all!

Well it's been quite the week. Actually not really...it's been pretty boring.

Monday through thursday was the usual. Class and hanging out (I just recently got Netflix...it's AMAZING!) I'm addicted now :)

On Friday, however, My friend and I went to go see the Vow. What a great romantic movie! It was a tear jerker! A great way to start off the weekend and a couple days before.....VALENTINE'S DAY! After the movie, we went to a pub and hung out for a bit with some other americans that we knew and then called it a night.

Saturday = BEST. DAY. EVER. wanna know why?? because I stayed in bed ALLLLLL DAYYYY LONGGGGG. It was marvelous. I've never had one of those days and it was just what I needed, and what my knee needed. I watched movies and typed up notes. It was a great day.

Sunday was nothing different, went grocery shopping etc. Same ole sunday.

Today. For the first time since the first week I've been here, me knee didn't KILL my while dancing. It was a great feeling. I can feel the improvement and hopefully it stays like this!

Now, tomorrow is...VALENTINE'S DAY (if you couldn't tell, I LOVE valentine's day...actually I love ALL holidays :) ) But valentine's day especially because it is an excuse to eat chocolate, indulge and spend time with the one you love. Now even though the boyfriend isn't here, that doesn't mean i'm not going to celebrate! My girl friends and I are going to go get hot cocoa from the amazing chocolate place I stated in a previous post and then we are going to go out for some drinks later that night! I'm so excited. I love pink, red, flowers, chocolate, romance, and luckily it is all put into one day :)


I hope all of you have a romantic and special Valentine's Day, even if it is with your family, or with yourself (make is special with some wine, and a nice movie ;) )

xo
Sara Leslie