Dublin has seagulls!

   The past few days have been a complete whirlwind of preparations, packing, and mild panic (whoo for alliteration!).  I had to go all over Kansas City tracking down things that I might need while overseas.  I had Kim's help cramming as much as possible into my bags (which, I am proud to say, barely made it under the maximum combined total of 80 lbs).  I also made sure to appreciate the little things in life by committing myself to activities such as eating as much Lucky Charms cereal as possible during the days before I left.  I have the sneaking suspicion that this habit will not be able to continue here in Ireland.  They might look down on poor Lucky and his hearts, stars, and horseshoes.

   But finally, yesterday, or today, or sometime a while ago, I left cold, snowy Kansas City for colder Chicago.

I was not upset about leaving behind the crazy Midwestern weather.

   Then from Chicago, I got on my flight into Dublin. I spent most of the flight curled into a ball, trying to conform to the seats. And I got maybe an hour and a half of sleep in.  Finally we landed, and it was still dark.  The ramp-thing that connects the plane to the terminal was broken, so it took while to get off.  The repair people were actually busy repairing another ramp-thing, which makes me wonder about the overall safety and quality of said ramp-things. 

   I caught a bus into Dublin City Center and walked a bit to my hostel, which is bright blue.  I checked in and got some much needed help hauling my bags up the stairs to my room.

   I have a pretty view of the river from our window. I'm the first to arrive, so I have the four-bed room to myself for the day.

   My whole day today has been basically spent trying to stay awake.  I decided to go on a walk to Trinity College, which was a really pretty place.

   It's also a very confusing place, and I had trouble finding my way out.  I like to think that this was due to me being very sleepy, and not me being very stupid.

   Then I accomplished my one task for the day:  I bought a hairdryer and some towels.  This task was growing more and more dire as the day went on, because I was pretty gross from the traveling extravaganza. 

   I have found WiFi sanctuary in McDonalds.  The problem is that I feel like I have to buy something in order to use my computer here, which is a problem, because McDonalds food is pretty damn disgusting.  

   My current goal is to stay conscious until 8 PM, which I've officially deemed as a not-terribly-embarrassing time to pass out.  To wrap up, let's talk about some things I have learned so far.

1.  Of all the Irish accents, the voices of the McDonalds' employees here in Dublin are the most difficult to understand.  I was trying to get a simple hamburger, but I somehow ended up with a chicken finger meal. Suspicious...

2.  I think it's the stupidity kicking in again, but I did not realize that Dublin would have seagulls.  I mean, yes, it is right next to the water, but still.  Oh, and they're GIANT... and stare at you.

   Finally, the most important lesson:

3.  Crack means fun.  While buying towels, I got into a conversation with some guys who were ringing me up, and they commented on me being "not from 'round here", so I said that I'd just arrived and would be in Dublin for a few days.  They started suggesting places to go.  Guy A said something about some place that I cannot really remember.  My lack of memory probably stems from the fact that I was so surprised by what Guy B added to this.  "Oh (place Guy A mentioned)? Yeah, there's a lot of crack to be had there."  At this point, disturbing images of the Paseo were coming to my mind.  I must have looked extremely confused, because Guy A had to stop to explain that, somehow, the word crack is slang for "fun" in the local lingo.  It might have a different spelling than crack, but it made me wonder if other words, such as heroin or LSD, translate to be equally enjoyable. 

Until next time and place,

B