Dublin!!

I think we are at Dublin in my journey recap now. From the Cliffs of Moher we took a bus ride that lasted about 5 hours to Dublin. We got there mid-afternoon and just kind of walked around and explored a bit.

Dublin!

Temple Bar Area

A church by our hostel.

We were tired so we didn't do too much. Very late that night another friend was arriving to join us for the rest of our trip before we all started student teaching.  She got in late so as she was sleeping we obviously had to go to the Guinness brewery! Duh!

The lease sign by Mr. Guinness

We also got a pint of Guinness by purchasing a ticket for the brewery. There were 2 options to obtain said pint: there was a sky bar at the top of the factory where one would just get served their beer like any bar, or you could learn how to "pour the perfect pint of Guinness" and pour your own. We decided we would take the challenge of pouring our own pints because that is so much cooler! And the bar was crazy crowded anyway (which we found out after enjoying our pints).

Me pouring my "perfect pint of Guinness"

My finished pint!

That was the first time I had Guinness and it was sooooo good! Ryan has told me not to try it back home because it's not made the same so it doesn't taste as good, so I waited until this moment to try it. If it really does taste different in the US, that is very sad because Americans are missing out on some tasty beer.

After we went to Guinness we walked back to our hostel to wake our friend up to explore with her. We ended up just walking around a little bit, seeing the sights, and going into some of the shops. We had lunch at a little cafe and they had a song on repeat. Now every time I hear that song I think about being in Dublin!

I know on "vacation" and when in Europe one should be exploring and seeing the sights, but after we ate we decided to go see Hunger Games. I started the Hunger Games series in March and finished them about 2 weeks after I started, even while having papers and plans to write for school. The movie came out a week before we left so my friend and I saw it when we were at school. The other 2 girls had finished the first book this very morning and really wanted to see the movie after finishing, so that is what we did.  Hunger Games was one of the things we talked about while we were traveling-we were just so obsessed!! If you like to read, I really suggest reading the Hunger Games. They are too addicting.

After the movie it was getting late and we were getting hungry so we went to find somewhere to eat. Along with our dinner we decided to enjoy some tasty Guinness's. My one friend was really excited to try typical Irish food so she had lamb stew. She also had lamb stew because it was one of the character's in the Hunger Games favorite food (see, obsessed!).

 The next day we explored some more. It started raining and hasn't stopped too much since. We went to the National Wax Museum and then explored Trinity College. Such a pretty campus. Wish it wasn't raining though.

 We made our way to the Dublin Castle. We were thinking about taking a tour but by the time we got there there were no more English tours left. Whatever. We didn't really understand how it was a castle either because it wasn't what we had in mind of a castle, but it was nice to walk around.

 

 We also walked to St. Patrick's Cathedral. We were going to go inside, but it was more than we wanted to pay so we just stayed on the outside and walked around.

 For dinner that night I had some fish and chips! It was really good and I'm glad I tried some! We also went out to a bar that night. We wanted to find somewhere that had live music and didn't want to go to the Temple Bar area because it is more expensive and so crowded, so we walked a bit and found a nice bar. They had traditional live music of a flute sort of thing and 2 string instruments I think, something like that. It was pretty cool.

That concludes our trip to Dublin. The next afternoon we took a train up to Belfast in Northern Ireland.

For the Glory

Today I woke up a Penn State student and tonight I'll go to bed as a Penn State Alumnus. This is really weird considering I'm thousands of miles away in England.

I've been getting a bit bummed while looking at graduation pictures and just emotional all over about graduating and not being there. I just feel like I'm missing out on everything and it doesn't even feel like I'm graduating at all. But it's okay: I'm having the time of my life in England and I still get to walk at a graduation in August. It doesn't really feel like I'm graduating since I won't be there and walking, but it is real and my diploma will be arriving to my house before I home from Europe solidifying its realness. I also started to make a list of reasons why it's actually better that I'm walking in August.

• Less people in State College! 1 graduation compared to like 459 or 10 or something. Also, no spring move-out.
• Photo-op lines will probs be much shorter. See first bullet.
• I still get to graduate with 2 of my best friends.
• I'll be tan come August! 
• That's a joke. I'll still be completely pale.
• Hopefully by my second graduation I'll know what I will be doing with my life.
• Everyone can come back to watch us graduate in August.
• And therefore have one last weekend in State College!

As I write this, I am currently "graduating." My fellow College of Education peers are in the Bryce Jordan Center as graduation has started just minutes ago. Since we can't be at graduation, my friend and I celebrated by going to see a movie and going to get dessert and ordered a bottle of wine for ourselves. And since I can't take any graduation photos at school at the moment with the lion shrine or anything, I found a lion last week in London that will have to be a stand-in until August.

Sometimes I wonder how I wound up where I am now. In the beginning of high school I had wanted to go to a small school. I went from wanting a small school to graduating from one of the largest universities. I'm not sure when my mind changed or what made it change, but I think I was slightly influenced from the years of attending games with my dad. And once Ryan started at University Park, I just fell in love with it and I think that's what did it. I don't want to admit that part of the reason why I picked Penn State was because of the comfort of having Ryan there, but let's be real; I'm not a leader, I'm a follower. I knew he would be there and my family would be there every so often. Also, I've always looked up to Ryan and did as he did. I used to dress up in his clothes, I played the sports he did (and was better haha), and I even broke my collarbone because I tried to jump out of the van at the young age of 2 after him. I'm so glad to have "followed" Ryan and though I depended on him a lot my first year of college, I eventually was able to stop walking in his footsteps and start a path of my own. I can't wait to complete our graduation photos in August! (Ummm, where's your CC one!?)

It's crazy to think about how much I have done and accomplished in just 4 years. It seems like such a long time ago I was finishing my senior year of high school and making the transition to college student, but 4 years isn't that long at all. I started college as this shy girl that had some trouble finding her way, and now I am a lot less shy, much more confident in myself, a world traveler, and a teacher. I have been through ups and downs, highs and lows, I've been many new places, met tons of people, I've made friends, I've lost friends, found myself, laughed, cried, became a family, became a Penn Stater. There is so much I've learned about the world and myself in just these 4 short years. 4 years ago I never would've guessed I would be in England right now. It it wasn't for Penn State, I wouldn't have the amazing friends I have, the experiences I've had, and I most definitely wouldn't be in England right now. Despite all that happened within the past few months, I cannot be more proud to be Penn Stater. Being a Penn Stater is something special that I am going to carry with me the rest of my life. I am never going to forget my time here, the good, the bad, and I am so happy that I made the best decision in my life to attend Penn State.

I remember when I left high school everyone said that the friends made in high school probably wouldn't be around when you graduate college. I am so glad that those I called my "best friends" in high school can still be called that. No matter how far away we've been from each other (thousands of miles at times), and how little we've seen each other, we've still been close and I expect that they will still be important parts of my life for years to come.
                                    

I've met some amazing people. People that went from strangers to friends to confidants, to roommates to family. They've been with me every step of the way and I can't imagine going through college without them. Some weren't around as long as others, but I'm so happy to have had them all as roommates that I consider family.

                        

I always wanted a sister, and through no fault of my own, I feel like I finally have one and hopefully soon I can truly call her a sister. I'm so glad that Ryan met Lindsay and that she has been there for me all this time. We started in the awkward "I'm dating your brother" stage to being friends that share clothing to comforting each other as the other cried. I know it's a cliche thing to say, but I honestly feel that college wouldn't have been the same without her.

            

                        

 I've met new friends from an old friend at PSU Altoona and did crazy things with them right from the get-go. I got to see them more throughout the years, go to football games together, celebrate birthdays and go to concerts with these girls I've been friends with almost my entire college career. They went from people that I heard a friend talk about to people I am so glad entered my life and hope are still there in years to come. (Apparently I really like that pinkish top!)

I've met some people that are going to be amazing teachers in the next few months.

 I also made a friend that came all the way from Australia. One time we had a conversation about accents and how I didn't think I had one, but everyone does, we all just sound similar in America. When I met her, she was the one with an accent; now I'm the one that has a different accent from everyone else!

I've been to a ton of football games...

   

In the front row for my very first game in the student section.

At Pitt.

Front row and half naked!

After camping out for a week

At Duquesne.

At Northwestern.

At Ohio State.

In the rain.

In the "S Zone."

"At" Temple.

For win #400.

"At" Indiana.

For win #409 and the end of an era.

For the last time in the student section
and at the end of a long and tiring week.

I started school at 18, just a month after I graduated. After 4 birthdays, I am leaving college as an adult.

19th

20th

21st

22nd

As I finish writing this, the College of Education graduation is over and I can now officially say that I am an alum of The Pennsylvania State University. I think a verse from the Alma Mater sums up my time at Penn State perfectly.

"When we stood at childhood's gates,

Shapeless in the hand of fate,

Though didst mold us, dear old state

Dear old state, dear old state."