walking – My Love To The Leprechauns

Limerick Gained A Reputation For Piety, But We Knew It Was Only The Rain

Emily Bernstein

February 1, 2017

Note: This post is a little late. It focuses solely on this past weekend and not really on this week at all (because, really, who wants to read all about my classes again?).

This weekend was a whirlwind of waking up just after the rain stopped and then living in perpetual rainfall, traveling to and from Limerick, and lots of laughs with friends.

Most of us got a late start on Saturday morning (except Guy, who got up at 7am to go on a bus trip to the Ring of Kerry that looked so beautiful that I’m a little sad I missed it, but it was at 7am!). After we all managed to get our act together, we (Kaitlin, Kim, and I) decided to go into Limerick City to do some much needed clothes shopping (I really just needed more socks), and to explore King John’s Castle.

A few other girls (Lilly, Kendall, and Emily) joined us on our little adventure, so we got on the bus and headed into town. I know I’ve said it before, and I’ll probably say it again, but Limerick is just so pretty.

It was cold and cloudy when we arrived, so we all hurried into a store to look around (and I got my socks). The most important part of the day is that I got tacos – yes, that’s right, tacos. While not up to California street taco standards, these tacos were definitely delicious and certainly made me homesick for good old fashioned Mexican food.

While walking towards the castle (so that we could all pretend to be princesses, obviously), it started to pour rain. The six of us decided we would wait out the rain by exploring St. Mary’s Cathedral, a beautiful church just outside the city centre.

From where the congregation would sit: the altar.

This altar is the biggest and heaviest in all of Ireland.

A gentleman working at the church showed us around, telling us about the altar, the history of the church, and who was buried where. He was so passionate about teaching us about the church, but he moved very quickly! I tried to snap a few photos to show everyone, but honestly, the pictures don’t show all the color and intricate stone carving work in some of the little crevices of the church. By the time we finished the tour, the rain had cleared up so we took our time taking photos and walking along the little cobblestone streets of Limerick.

From there, we headed to King John’s Castle. They were going to close in an hour, so we hurried through the museum part of the tour so we could be sure to make it to the part of the castle that was actually the castle. I’m sure we missed good stories of the castle being sieged and who lived there and why it stands where it does, but we wanted to climb to a high tower to see the view and take pictures. If anyone is exceedingly curious, I’d be more than happy to go back again to get you the details.

Kim and I being soldiers. Me making faces is something that I’ve always done, and will always do. Some things never change.

Kim demonstrating for all of us how to properly pour water in an old church that was reconstructed in the castle’s courtyard.

The view of the main castle from the courtyard.

The stairs we climbed to get to the top were steep and slippery from our wet shoes tracking over them. I’m not a huge fan of steep stairwells to begin with, but add in wet stone and no railings? I wasn’t a very happy camper.

But, well, the view was worth it.

Looking into the city from the castle, with the sunset in the distance.

I can only imagine the patchwork of green and farms that the view would have held hundreds of years ago when people lived in the castle and called it home. Still, it’s pretty darn beautiful. Just after the rain, too, the sky seemed to shine a little brighter on the city and the green land we could see in the distance.

From left to right: Kaitlin, me, and Kim. And yes, this was a real candid of us being beautiful princesses.

We got a quick dinner after that and then headed home to rest and get ready for the evening. Kaitlin, Kim, Guy, Ian, Lilly, and I headed back to Limerick to go to an actual Irish pub (and not one that is on campus), and while we didn’t meet another chatty Irishman, we did have loads of fun together. Even at night, Limerick is quite beautiful. The streets were wet and the streetlamps made them shine – it was the epitome of a European night that you read about/see in movies.

Sunday, we all literally did nothing. It rained (of course), and I hung out in my apartment for the whole day, did some reading for classes this week, and everyone just caught up on some much needed sleep for the week.

This post title is brought to you by Frank McCourt, the author of Angela’s Ashes. I thought it was apt considering I was mainly discussing Limerick and a lot of it had to do with the rain. If you haven’t read the book, I highly recommend it; it’s very sad but very wonderful.

I’ll spare you the nerding out over my schoolwork again, and instead just say that I’m excited to continue classes!

Until next time!

PS: did I mention Limerick is beautiful?

PPS: Hi Dad!

It’s Teeming With Life Down There…

Emily Bernstein

January 22, 2017

1 Comment

Let me start from yesterday.

Yesterday, we got the opportunity to go into the city centre of Limerick so that we could see it and begin to explore. On Saturday mornings, they have what they call the Milk Market, which is basically a farmers’ market. It was so cool! There were people playing music, selling cheese, fresh sausages, wool products, hats, pottery, you name it. I loved it. And yes, while we Americans all stuck out like sore thumbs, the Irish still treated us so well.

The view in Limerick. This is the cover photo of my blog in the daytime!

It was cold, and it was a dreary day, but it was still cool to see Limerick.

To be honest, going into Limerick and seeing the sites was the first time I really felt like I was in Ireland. Of course the university is Irish and I’ve been meeting and seeing many Irish people, but it’s still very modern. I mean, it’s a university after all!

But Limerick… I felt the Irish magic there. There’s really something about being in a real Irish city, exploring the cobblestone streets, and seeing the castle and old churches just really makes you feel Ireland.

And now, we get to today. Talk about Irish magic.

Today, we went on a bus tour to the Irish coast. Along the way, we saw farms on farms on farms on farms. In Garth Brooks’ song about Ireland, one I’ve quoted on this blog several times, he sings about the rolling fields of green and fences made of stone. I never thought I’d get to see those in person, but today, I did. And boy, was Garth right. Ireland is all patchwork green, cows and sheep grazing, and fences stacked in stone. It’s just beautiful.

Primarily, we spent time at the Cliffs of Moher. If you don’t know what these cliffs are, look them up, but don’t trust the photos you see on Google, because nothing does them justice. Nothing but standing on the muddy grass above them, staring down at the waves crashing against the rock. Nothing but feeling the ocean breeze hit your skin, wondering what these cliffs must have seen, what they must think of Earth now. Nothing but being there and seeing them with your own eyes.

It’s hard to describe these cliffs. They are majestic and huge and go on for miles. They stand, unashamed, staring at the water. They feel majestic, dangerous, protective, and completely and utterly wild. While there, I kept thinking of a Wallace Stevens poem about them:

THE IRISH CLIFFS OF MOHER

Who is my father in this world, in this house,
At the spirit’s base?

My father’s father, his father’s father, his –
Shadows like winds

Go back to a parent before thought, before speech,
At the head of the past.

They go to the cliffs of Moher rising out the mist,
Above the real

Rising out of present time and place, above
The wet, green grass.

This is not landscape, full of the somnambulations
Of poetry

And the sea. This is my father or, maybe,
It is as he was,

A likeness, one of the race of fathers: earth
And sea and air.

Yes, it’s nerdy, I know. But these cliffs are amazing. I could not believe it. I want to go back – spend more time there, maybe sit down and write there, and just enjoy the view for a bit longer than today. Just…wow.

After the Cliffs of Moher, we made our way to Burren, a very karst landscape (a landscape full of sedentary rock that has settled in such a way that allows life to grow through the cracks in the rock). While this view didn’t astound me or make me tear up the way the cliffs did, it was still beautiful.

Navigating these rocks are easy – Kim and I climbed them with no problem – but you constantly want to stop, bend down, and see the life from below. The title is a direct quote from Kim (an environmental studies major from Rhode Island) that was just too funny and good to pass up. And really, it just sums up Ireland. Every inch of this country is just teeming with life. I don’t have too many pictures from Burren, because all the pictures really just looked like rocks, and no one really wants to see that.

When we returned to campus, we had dinner, and then we all (Kim, Kaitlin, Guy, Ian, and me) all headed to Stables, a pub on campus, to watch football. Little did I know that I was going to watch the slaughter of the Packers. Oh well, boys, there’s always next year. Maybe use your time off to work on your defense.

Anyway, classes start tomorrow and I just can’t wait.

I’ve decided to begin including a quote or two that really stand out, make me laugh, or just remind me of some of that Irish magic. Today, the quote (besides the title) is: “You can tell how old we Irishmen are by the shape of us. The rounder we are, the older we are.” -Some Irish guy telling me about beer bellies.

Until next time!

Sláinte.