So, as most of you know Katie is back in the U.S. today!! YAY! Unfortunately, I am not. Well, fortunately I am still in Dublin, but you get the point. Anyway, today Katie and I went to the airport and got some starbucks, had our good bye kisses, tears you know...Just kidding. It was pretty sad though. Some of you might know that I do not have any navigational skills. This includes tram/bus schedules, metro maps, maps in general. (Thanks GEOG170 for nothing) So, once I left the airport I was officially on my own. Thank god I knew what bus to get on towards the city and was on my way. The only thing that made me feel secure about getting on this bus was that I finally got my cousins old cellphone so now I could call her if I was lost so that was reassuring.
My first destination was of course to the Music store to get the new Coldplay CD and to my surprise a Double Van Morrison CD was on sale right up at the counter. Had to get that. I got a converter so I could charge my iPod and my mac which is coming in the mail soon...I hope. Ireland is tricky because every other European plug is two-pronge while the Irish want to be different and have three-pronge and triple the voltage. This means my iPod might explode. The man who sold it to me was like "Come back tomorrow and if your hair is on fire, I'll know I sold you the wrong type of converter HAHA!" Verrrrry funny Mr. Irish salesman.
I walked around the city for another hourish and then decided to sit down near this pond on a bench in St. Stephens Green Park for the 2 hours that it was actually sunny out. I started reading this Bill Bryson book ( A Walk In the Woods) and was laughing my ass off just like Koolkat did on the train a week or two ago. This caught the attention of David. David sat next to me, wreaking of B.O. and told me how he is a wildlife expert and couldn't help but seeing that I was reading a book about nature. I was reading a book about how Bill Bryson went on the Appalacian Trail so, I guess he thought, "Perfect! A conversation piece." (I fall for it because I'm all chipper about being in Dublin and neglect the fact that weirdos are walking around every city.) He starts telling me about how he knows every species of bird/duck/plant, how he has $400,000 pair of binoculars? who the fuck knows. I keep putting my head down to read and looking at other fellow benchers and they are kinda laughing underneath their breath basically being like haha you got screwed with the regular freak trying to talk to girls. WHOOPI. So, right as I'm about to get up, a HUGE rain cloud looms over head and it starts POURING. Of course I was prepared with a raincoat and umbrella....but, who doesn't have either? Dear David. Oh David decides to huddle under my umbrella, uninvited by me for this rainstorm that lasted over 20 minutes. I got some sense and told him that I was going to go shopping and had to go after about 5 minutes (I'm so good at excuses?) However before this sense got knocked into me I gave him my number because I'm a fucking idiot. So, thats that. Definitely not answering. Sweeeeeet. My first stalker on my first day in a new city/country. Wonderful!
After my excuse to go to the shopping center, I got some lunch and kept reading my book under cover, caught the bus to my cousins house which is 1 hour by bus outside the city and then a 20 minute hike to her cottage. Basically, I need to find a job and an apartment by the end of the week or I will probably go insane or get hit by maniac drivers on the country roads.
Other than David, the commute, and not having a place to live near the city or a job, everything is really looking up for those of you who care! This will be my last blog entry but, I'll keep in touch with all of you ofcourseeee! See you in December for Christmas!
Love Cardee
Monday, July 7, 2008
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Dandelion
So last time we wrote we were clearly lying but now we shall tell you what we have really been up to! Norway was really fun but sooo expensive. We took a train from Copenhagen to Oslo, but missed our connecting train in Goteborg (in Sweden) so we had to take a bus to Oslo. There were these 4 really annoying teenagers next to us and a girl and her bf decided it would be fun to basically hump and grind in the seat next to Katie so she felt really awkward the whole time. Once we got to Oslo, Katies cousins Vivian and Stine picked us up from the bus station and we stayed at Stines place in the center of the city. We slept til like 3 on Saturday, had a feast for breakfast/lunch and then walked around Oslo for like 5 hours. That night we just hung out, watched a movie and made dinner and stuff so that was nice. The next day we drove down the coast to Kristiansand where Katies grandmother and cousins live. We got fed about another 10,000 calories worth of food and watched the Spain-Germany final soccer game which was fun.
Monday we went to visit Katies grandmother which was quite a treat. For those of you that dont know, Bestamor is in fact insane. She can barely walk but decided that it would be a good idea to put on a ski coat and 'swiss walking sticks' which were actually a pair of ski poles, and walk up and around the rough terrain outside her house. Mind you it was about 80 degrees and she looked ridiculous but she was happy and it was really funny. We had tea and ice cream with her friends wooooo, then Katies cousins picked us up and we went into Kristiansand, did some shopping, ate another 7,000 calories worth of pizza and then drove back to Oslo.
Tuesday we met up with Ben and Dave again, drank a 50 dollar bottle of vodka then decided to hit the town. We first went to this Irish pub near Stines house, and laughed when we got inside and the bartender asked for our ID. But then to our dismay and utter surprise they kicked us out, telling us that we had to be 23 to drink there. 23!! What the hell! We were really embarrassed and slunk out. We walked about another hour, almost went into the Hard Rock Cafe but couldnt bring ourselves to go in, so we kept walking until we finally found a place that wasnt dead. Beers there are $14. I'm not kidding, really. $14. It was insane. We had a few beers at one place, went to another place, then went somewhere else and played some pool. We left and tried to find food but everything was closed, which was probably a good thing because drunk food probably would have cost us like $50. We walked back in the direction we thought was Stines apartment, but got utterly lost. We ended up having to call her and get a cab which was $30 for about 3 minutes.
The next day we had to leave for our flight to Ireland at 3pm. Needless to say we felt quite ill, and the trip was absolutely miserable. We had to take a train to the airport, so Stine dropped us off, got us lunch and put us on the quiet car in the train so we could sleep. We had just barely gotten settled in when a girl came up to us, and eagerly asked us where we were from. We said the US, and she was really excited to tell us she was from Minnesota, and quickly cleared Katies belongings off the seat and sat with us. Then a man came up and yelled at us bc it was the quiet car so she was like Its OK! We can just move to a different car!! Reluctantly, we trudged behind her, extremely mad that our 'quiet' journey had been interrupted and we werent going to get to sleep afterall. We went into another car of the train, where the girl, aptly named DANDELION, proceeded to tell us her entire life story, including the mysterious disappearance of her step grandfather, her relationship with her biological father and her struggle between her identity as an American and a Norwegian. We were so uninterested but she was so excited to talk to Americans we had to pretend like we were listening. At the first pause in conversation we both put our headphones on as quickly as possible and closed our eyes. I think she got the hint and the rest of the ride was mildly enjoyable. When we got off the stop at the airport she said goodbye and yelled out 'Have a nice life!!' Thank you Dandelion, thank you.
Once we got to the airport, we checked in and went to the bathroom (finally one that we didnt have to pay for). Aftwards, we took a lazy stroll over to a shop, browsed some postcards and magazines, and sauntered over to another shop. This is when Carla realized to her horror that her skirt had been tucked completely into her underwear the entire time. So while we had been gazing at panoramic postcards of Norway, the entire cafeteria full of people behind us had a nice view of Carlas ass. Awesome.
We had another piggie meal of a baked potato with sour cream and bacon, and got onto the plane. We must say it was one of the most uncomfortable and horrendous plane rides we have ever had. We flew on RyanAir, which was 'cheap' ($110)...and of course we were in the emergency exit row. Our seats didnt recline, Katie didnt have an arm rest, the stupid stewardesses on the plane were basically screaming over the loudspeaker the entire time about alcohol promotions which we really didnt appreciate, etc. It was awful.
We finally got into Dublin around 830 and got a bus into the city. We dropped off our stuff at our hostel and went to meet up with Blake, Phil and Phils friend Martin. Dat was fun.
Today we woke up, checked out of our hostel, walked around in the pouring rain, checked back into our hostel and slept the entire day. We then went out for yet another piggie dinner and walked around Temple Bar and Trinity which was nice. We arent gonna go out tonight because we are going to Cork tomorrow to visit Carlas moms cousin which should be fun. Hopefully we can find somewhere good to celebrate 4th of July. I guess all we can do is drink American Beer?
Katie comes home on Monday so this might be one of the last entries. Tear. But there are many more stories that we will tell all of you and who knows, maybe this weekend will be eventful. Miss you alllllll, Katie will see you soon, Carla wont. BYEBYE!
Monday we went to visit Katies grandmother which was quite a treat. For those of you that dont know, Bestamor is in fact insane. She can barely walk but decided that it would be a good idea to put on a ski coat and 'swiss walking sticks' which were actually a pair of ski poles, and walk up and around the rough terrain outside her house. Mind you it was about 80 degrees and she looked ridiculous but she was happy and it was really funny. We had tea and ice cream with her friends wooooo, then Katies cousins picked us up and we went into Kristiansand, did some shopping, ate another 7,000 calories worth of pizza and then drove back to Oslo.
Tuesday we met up with Ben and Dave again, drank a 50 dollar bottle of vodka then decided to hit the town. We first went to this Irish pub near Stines house, and laughed when we got inside and the bartender asked for our ID. But then to our dismay and utter surprise they kicked us out, telling us that we had to be 23 to drink there. 23!! What the hell! We were really embarrassed and slunk out. We walked about another hour, almost went into the Hard Rock Cafe but couldnt bring ourselves to go in, so we kept walking until we finally found a place that wasnt dead. Beers there are $14. I'm not kidding, really. $14. It was insane. We had a few beers at one place, went to another place, then went somewhere else and played some pool. We left and tried to find food but everything was closed, which was probably a good thing because drunk food probably would have cost us like $50. We walked back in the direction we thought was Stines apartment, but got utterly lost. We ended up having to call her and get a cab which was $30 for about 3 minutes.
The next day we had to leave for our flight to Ireland at 3pm. Needless to say we felt quite ill, and the trip was absolutely miserable. We had to take a train to the airport, so Stine dropped us off, got us lunch and put us on the quiet car in the train so we could sleep. We had just barely gotten settled in when a girl came up to us, and eagerly asked us where we were from. We said the US, and she was really excited to tell us she was from Minnesota, and quickly cleared Katies belongings off the seat and sat with us. Then a man came up and yelled at us bc it was the quiet car so she was like Its OK! We can just move to a different car!! Reluctantly, we trudged behind her, extremely mad that our 'quiet' journey had been interrupted and we werent going to get to sleep afterall. We went into another car of the train, where the girl, aptly named DANDELION, proceeded to tell us her entire life story, including the mysterious disappearance of her step grandfather, her relationship with her biological father and her struggle between her identity as an American and a Norwegian. We were so uninterested but she was so excited to talk to Americans we had to pretend like we were listening. At the first pause in conversation we both put our headphones on as quickly as possible and closed our eyes. I think she got the hint and the rest of the ride was mildly enjoyable. When we got off the stop at the airport she said goodbye and yelled out 'Have a nice life!!' Thank you Dandelion, thank you.
Once we got to the airport, we checked in and went to the bathroom (finally one that we didnt have to pay for). Aftwards, we took a lazy stroll over to a shop, browsed some postcards and magazines, and sauntered over to another shop. This is when Carla realized to her horror that her skirt had been tucked completely into her underwear the entire time. So while we had been gazing at panoramic postcards of Norway, the entire cafeteria full of people behind us had a nice view of Carlas ass. Awesome.
We had another piggie meal of a baked potato with sour cream and bacon, and got onto the plane. We must say it was one of the most uncomfortable and horrendous plane rides we have ever had. We flew on RyanAir, which was 'cheap' ($110)...and of course we were in the emergency exit row. Our seats didnt recline, Katie didnt have an arm rest, the stupid stewardesses on the plane were basically screaming over the loudspeaker the entire time about alcohol promotions which we really didnt appreciate, etc. It was awful.
We finally got into Dublin around 830 and got a bus into the city. We dropped off our stuff at our hostel and went to meet up with Blake, Phil and Phils friend Martin. Dat was fun.
Today we woke up, checked out of our hostel, walked around in the pouring rain, checked back into our hostel and slept the entire day. We then went out for yet another piggie dinner and walked around Temple Bar and Trinity which was nice. We arent gonna go out tonight because we are going to Cork tomorrow to visit Carlas moms cousin which should be fun. Hopefully we can find somewhere good to celebrate 4th of July. I guess all we can do is drink American Beer?
Katie comes home on Monday so this might be one of the last entries. Tear. But there are many more stories that we will tell all of you and who knows, maybe this weekend will be eventful. Miss you alllllll, Katie will see you soon, Carla wont. BYEBYE!
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