“This is going to be the best experience of your life”
“It will change how you think of the world”
“You’ll thank me later for pushing you to do this”
All things my mom told me leading up to this trip. I truly could not have imagined what she meant at the time but writing this blog already almost 3 weeks into this experience I could not thank her enough for pushing me to this.
This weekend we took a trip to Galway which has been without a doubt one of my favorite experiences of their trip. The first day we headed to the Cliffs of Moher which were indescribable. It is one of those places that you see pictures of in books or online and smile at its beauty but cannot imagine it being a real place. To go and experience it first hand gives you the feeling of how beautiful; life truly is. How something that you know exactly what it looks like and what to expect will still take your breath away.
Following that we continued on and by the evening we were at Galway. We were able to walk through the streets and experience the environment of a different city in Ireland. While walking in Galway Cat was even able to show us a pizza shop that her ancestors had started long ago that has since then been sold. My friends and I explored the city and at the end of the night returned to the hostile for our sleepover. Although we intended to go to bed early we stayed up talking until late in the night and were exhausted when our alarms went off to get breakfast before heading to the Aran islands.
Nicole had the plans ready for us as she often does and had picked a spot for breakfast just as she did later in the evening for dinner (knowing no one else would remember to do it). Once there we were given bikes to ride around, although I was apprehensive at first when I opened up to the idea Sam, John, Cat, Evan, Cole and I rode the bikes to an abandoned castle to explore. We spent hours walking through the grounds and climbing the structures. At that moment I realized that this summer truly would be one of the best experiences of my life. Beyond what we were seeing as a class, the adventures we take upon ourselves to go on will continue to bring us to parts of the world that I never thought I would see.
