Mouse of the World

 Good Sunday to everyone back home, 

Books that I've already rented from the library, less than 1 week into classes.

I am writing this as I have pizza in the oven for dinner tonight. So, for at least some of this time, I will be pushing out as much information as I can while racing my phone's timer. 

Let's begin where we left off. 

Previously,

Cork was lonely, most days ended in rain, and I had so much free time within my days that I was often scrambling to fill my headspace with art, movies, prayers, plans, exploring campus, or the gym. I had not yet met any of my roommates in my innumerable trips to the kitchen to make copious amounts of tea. Often, I worried that they'd hear my phone calls through the wall and think that I held disinterest towards them. The anxiousness was rampant. 

Modules Begin

On Tuesday, I had my first class: hydrogeology, a class I've been trying to take forever at Juniata. I woke up early that day, as I have been doing most days out here (at 5-6 am, I'm talking). I watched the sunrise over a cup of instant coffee and slices of peanut butter toast, my headphones on and the warm, ambient lighting of the kitchen my only company. Many of the sunrises have been a gradient of azure. The hours leading up to class included getting a quick lift in and then a mistaken walk to the main campus, when the correct building is 17 minutes from it. Proven by my next class on WW1 and its politics on Thursday after hydrogeology, the classes are mostly either 1 hour/1 lecture or 2 hours/2 lectures with a break in between. This break is good for getting a quick lunch snack if a vending machine is near and you don't have a lunch packed; I now have a lunch box, so hopefully this is no longer a dilemma for me! Content-wise, each of my classes was very interesting, and each professor seemed to have a good personality (I have 2 more to meet, yet, because 2 classes are starting lectures this coming week). I'm eager to study the topics more in my own time, and to incorporate a portion of my early mornings to studying. The faster I develop a routine, the better. After this blog, I'll have to do history readings for the WW1 class. 

Personal Experiences

As the week progressed and I broke outside the bounds of campus and Crow's Nest, I've come to realize that the extensions of the campus are far more beautiful than I previously anticipated. The morning I walked vigorously to hydrogeology, I couldn't help but be excited that my path took me over the River Lee via a large bridge structure and along the trail. Many trees bordered the edges of this path, so I hope they elicit some beautiful autumn colors as we progress into the other half of September. I don't quite know when to anticipate Ireland's autumn foliage, but it seems to be taking longer than it would at home. Perhaps I'm getting my hopes up too early. In my walks, I also discovered more vistas within Fitzgerald Park, a brief ways down from the gym I frequent. This is the park I mentioned last week as having a live performance of "The Climb." I have found a favorite bench to sit on and watch the river flowing on days I need to quiet my mind-- once I tire of that (who ever really could tire of nature's company?) there's a cafe behind it that I will need to try sometime. 

One day last week, I tried to attend a Mass service for the first time in a while, right within the Honan Chapel. I chose a seat at the back to maintain a quiet presence throughout the service, like a mouse who'd snuck into the rafters. It was nice to try communal prayer, however, I was approached by a club afterwards, and as much as I liked the service and still think the chapel is very beautiful, I fear they'll remember my face as one of the few other young people attending church services mid-day on a college campus. They seemed very excited about my name being Mary as well, so I don't think they'll forget that, either. So, I will need to find another one, now that I've turned down this club's attempts at getting me to join. Irish cathedrals and chapels seem to have a theme of beautiful interiors-- something like that could only be expected of a country so devoted to their religion and centuries of culture. 

As much as I felt like a mouse last week, scurrying to where I need to be and quietly existing in every space, something still managed to shift for the better. I started running into my roommates. I have two from a Chicago college, and one from Maine. Girls like me, drinking considerable amounts of tea, finding their place in the city, seeking out a good thrift-store session, and missing their boyfriends back home. They feel so different from my New Zealand flatmates, because they all feel like girls who sing to my soul, to put it lightly. They match me in what they enjoy and show interest in my presence just as much as I do theirs-- so every small interaction I've had with them in the kitchen over this last week has been enjoyable, and it's nice to no longer fear stumbling across one whenever I'm leaving the room. We have even been in the talks for a roomie thrift day or a roomie dinner night. It feels so good to just talk to somebody and be away from my phone for social interactions, for once. To talk to people in person beyond the basics of "what's your degree" and "where are you from" is a privilege which I've taken for granted as of recent-- it's helped me the most in my adjustments and my attempts to occupy my mind with what's in front of me, and not so much of what I'm missing back home. This week will finally be the club & societies event, so hopefully I make even more friends when I get the chance to join in and meet other people with interests like mine. That'll be my most accessible pathway of involving myself at the college and making once in a lifetime connections.  

Yesterday, I finally went to Cobh, which was a beautiful coastal town that I did a significant write-up on that can be found on my Facebook. I met new people in passing conversations while waiting in line for the bus to arrive. Although I don't know if I'll see them again, at least maybe they'll see me as a familiar face in passing, and I also feel more comfortable in my spur-of-the-moment talking skills. I chatted plenty with the people in my group whilst exploring the city, especially one girl in particular who shares a shy nature like mine and bouts of homesickness; I shared with her my "expertise" (I must have something to say if I'm surviving it twice around now). For her, her reminders of home lie in the flags of her country being flown here and there, and for me, it's in the live music that I've come across time and time again, often being songs that have followed me throughout multiple stages of life (be it Coldplay, Fleetwood Mac, The Rolling Stones, ABBA...). 

On the drive back, I'm thankful I fought to stay awake, despite the sun beating down on me and baking me alive in my cardigan - these factors were working in combination with the fact that, that morning I was up very, very early yet again. The bus passed through the big city centre that I've yearned to go to since a couple days into living here; my main obstacle was first my lack of a Leap card, and then it was my own mind. My expectations were way off base of what the city centre actually looked like. While expecting another case of city buildings packed into an octagon shape like The Octagon in Dunedin, NZ, I was surprised to find wide sidewalk spaces, and street after street of shops, restaurants, pubs, salons, markets, all in a picturesque layout that made me wonder why Cork wasn't commemorated as much as Dublin as an Irish city to visit. Many people meandered, with it being the weekend and the weather being so lovely; it was so full of life, and I especially had moments of pondering about the lives outside the window, such as that of the man walking with a woman, him being very preoccupied with several balloons, her with a bouquet of flowers. The clear skies and prominent sunbeams only amplified the beauty of the moment, and from witnessing it all, I firmly decided I'd get to this place myself, and soon. 

Today

So, that's what I did today. I packed a tote bag and a casual outfit, managed my hair into as stylish a bun as I could while suited for the windy weather, and marched on down to the western gateway bus stop. The app Moovit helped me find the bus I needed to get on and where exactly I needed to get off. My first experience with public transportation was quite nice out here. Not extraordinary, but comfortable, and nice to not be using my legs as my only transport for the first time in two weeks. I stepped off into the center within view of a large fountain -- Cork likes its fountains, it seems. I only had so much in mind. Days of inspecting this place's map collided with my brain at once. There were numerous streets I could wander down and just as many crowds to follow. With that in mind, I chose the approach of just walking in the direction of stores and stopping where I seemed interested. This included Penney's (a life-saver out here), a home goods store reminiscent of a furniture-only TJ Maxx (which they call TK Maxx out here), Easons the book store, and some other quick pop-ins. I finally obtained a lunch box, a pair of knockoff uggs, a COMFORTER!!! (finally!!), nail polish, and some more post-cards to write and send out. 

I left the city feeling accomplished for overcoming my fears (taking the bus alone) & handling the bus like a natural, as well as feeling very excited to live in this city. If I truly wanted to, the walk to the city center on a day that I'm on campus would not be terrible, nor would it be all too bad from my apartment complex. My next endeavor will be thrifting for some room decor (anything to make my space more cozy) and maybe a nice sweater, a book, or a pair of pants. I do not want to repeat the route I took in New Zealand when I decided to restructure my entire wardrobe around how the people around me were dressing, not at all. I'm a little more conscious of how much I have to make my money stretch. I have just enough cute pieces to satisfy my needs as it is. My justification is that it'd be nice to not spend so much time deciding how to pair what shirt with what pants and how many more wears I have with those pants until I have to do laundry with the VERY EXPENSIVE MACHINES at the bottom of the complex. Seriously, it is $7 every time I need to go through full laundry cycles. Imagine $14 a week on that. 15 weeks. $210 to deduct from my budget just to do laundry. I wish I was allowed to work a job out here! Aside from money, the memory of donating so many things at the end of New Zealand's months is etched into my mind. Never again, books included, no matter how many times a week I have to look at Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. 

Other Moments I enjoyed

-My discovery of the Irish sport "Hurling" while on one of my evening walks

-Being in Cobh and walking past a coffee shop which had signs on the door saying "NO COFFEE!"

-Jumping between logs in the park to feel whimsical again

-Religiously watching Gilmore Girls and feeling extra alive after a rewatch of Dead Poets Society

-Seeing the famous Deck of Cards Street and the 300ft St. Colman's Cathedral (and also sneaking hot chocolate into the cathedral-- don't tell the Reverend)

-Seeing a HUGE cruise ship in person

-Enjoying all the colorful buildings of Cobh. How often do they repaint their buildings?

-Learning from my roommate that often we take sayings out of context, e.g. "Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction revived it." 

So, now that I am finishing this entry as it has gone dark outside and my frozen pizza dinner has long been consumed, I am going to conclude my experiences for the week here and post the rest of my pictures for this entry on Facebook. Thank you for keeping up to date with me. 

Sincerely,

MGW