Hello!

Raya and I finally arrived to Dublin, Ireland on Saturday. It was a long journey to get to the airport, fly over and make it onto campus, but we are so glad that we are here! We are staying at the Marino Institute of Education. There is a bus stop right next to the school (less than a 1 minute walk), and the bus takes you straight into the city center (about 40 minutes bus ride). The bus ride costs about 2.25 Euro, very cheap! Marino is in north Dublin, so it feels like its in the “surburbs” around Dublin. Raya and I are both love being just on the outskirts of the city because we get to stay on a big, beautiful, green campus! Marino Institute is gorgeous, and it has many green spaces and sports fields. All of the buildings are made of stone and covered in ivy.

We are staying in an apartment right next to the main buildings on campus. The apartment is set up very similar to a Crimson or Wegand suite. There are four rooms in our apartment, and each room has a full sized bed, desk and a bathroom. We each stay in a single and have our own bathroom and shower. There is lots of shelf space too! They provided us with linens, towels and cooking equipment, such as plates, bowls, utensils, pots, frying pan and spatula. You have to buy your own food, but there is a market that is a 1 minute walk from campus. You can also put money on your LEAP card here (the card you use for the buses). You will need to purchase a LEAP card at a local train station in order to get one.

We took a day trip to Galway on Sunday for 30 Euro, and spent the whole day just walking around. We didn’t spend any money in Galway and even brought our own lunches. There is a beautiful promenade along the sea you can walk along, and a beautiful park and cathedral. Definitely worth the day trip!

We spent the last three days in lectures learning about the Irish education system and learning about the Irish language. We also learned about how Irish teachers apply for jobs.

We start in schools today, and I am very excited to start teaching finally! It has been a great week in Ireland, and everyone here is so friendly and nice.

 

~Kelly