"A small drinking nation with a fishing problem"

Today was my first ISS (International Studies Seminar) for my Ireland study abroad program that took place at the ungodly hour of 7:30 this morning. I stumbled into the classroom a bit disheveled after only awakening 20 minutes previous to my arrival, and was not looking forward to the rest of my day. However, as per usual, the meeting with my three professors-Dr. Kaul, Dr. Koontz, and Dr. McDowell-proved well worth the trip.  They passed out the schedule for these ISS classes which included what chapters of our small book "A Brief History of Ireland" needed to be read by, and also a page describing the various hotels that we will be staying at during our 11 weeks.  Needless to say, hearing about 4 star glass-hotels shaped like boats and hotels with indoor pools and a Jacuzzi produced a lot of smiles on the faces of students. 

We then were asked by the professors to take 10-15 minutes to answer a couple of questions on paper in order to understand what we are hoping to experience on this study abroad program. The questions were:

1. What are you looking forward to while in Ireland? What do you hope to gain from this experience?
2. What are some anxieties you have concerning this trip or what are you wondering about?
3. What is the difference between "tourism" and "study abroad"? How do you intend to make this trip  academic?

Straightforward questions that elicited many interesting answers. For instance, many people were concerned about proper attire to wear in a country as Catholic-based as Ireland.  We found out that if we are to go to church, girls must wear dresses and hats. Hmm...

One girl asked about the cuisine because Ireland is pretty much known only for its potatoes and blood pudding-not exactly making your mouth water. However, our professors noted that the country is becoming more culturalized in that there are certain areas where they have random Thai restaurants and Mexican joints, so the people are ordering just potatoes with a side of potatoes. Also, being an island, apparently the Irish have excellent seafood options which I am very much looking forward to as a big fan of salmon and shrimp! Later in the day, our professor posted a great example of the cuisine of Ireland according to outsiders, though it still rings true:

Gotta love college. Next seminar class is Tuesday to account for the Thanksgiving holiday and will consist of "Packing/Weather" (a.k.a. bring your rainboots, kids!)

It's getting real, folks.