Éirinn go Brách!: I leave for home in 8 days!

Is my time here already almost gone completely? It feels like last week when I posted an update about how I had 8 days until I was leaving to BEGIN the trip! Looking back at the list of places I've explored while I've been here really is amazing. Because of our wonderful program directors, we've been able to experience so much in such a short time span. And I'm sure I now know more about Ireland than I do my own country. It has been such an awe-inspiring five weeks! I will be extremely sad to leave this all behind. :(

I'm sitting in my Photo IV class right now and my final project is pretty much ready to go, so I'll just give you a quick update on my weekend. Taylor and I decided to spend the weekend in Waterford rather than travel. We had plans to take surfing lessons in Tramore but then I went and sprained my ankle BIG time so that did not happen. The first two days were intensely painful and it was agony to try and walk just to the bathroom. Fortunately, it seems to be healing up quite nicely now and I can walk at a moderate pace with my Ace bandage and pain medicine. Everyone here has been so accommodating and helpful as I hobble along behind the group! Even though my injury made me want to be home in my own bed so badly, my friends here have made it much easier on me. So, instead of surfing, we just hung out at home and relaxed.

Tayto and I with our Bulmer's -- the ultimate drink of choice on this trip!

Having a grand ol' time, despite my ankle.

Five dollars if you can guess which one is sprained!

For Tuesday's field trip we went to Kilkenny which is only about 45 minutes away from Waterford (a short bus ride is a treat here!) We toured the Kilkenny Castle. That was honestly a lackluster experience made better by the fact that I got in free with my Heritage Card and made worse by the fact that my ankle was killing me. Most of the items there were reproductions. I was grateful to get inside from the soft rain and blustering winds, however. We all made a fun game of spotting the "hidden" baby monitors they had set up all over the castle. Taylor, Hillary, and I grabbed lunch at a place called Katz Kafe. I had the most amazing smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel! Afterward we toured the Smithwicks (pronounced "Smit-icks") factory. The tour was super cool despite the minimal photography allowed and at the end we were offered free pints of Smithwicks in a pub closed to the public. I only had about 3/4 of mine and then switched to water. I enjoyed it much more than Guinness but towards the end the bitterness was getting to me. On the trek back to the bus we grabbed hot chocolates from Choc-a-Latte; they were made from melted chocolate from a fountain and therefore were absolutely DIVINE. Back at Waterford, Taylor, Joey and I had dinner at this really nice Chinese restaurant Jade Palace. It was 20 euro for a 3 course meal and I couldn't finish my entree because the portion was so large. Not bad for an upscale meal! Not sure why, but the Chinese I've had here has been fabulous! Go, Ireland.