Approaching my 4th week in Dublin I am excited to keep making great memories and learning more at my internship. The past week I did a lot of office work not too much in the field but it’s nice to have that balance between the both. I have definitely felt like I am starting to fit in more in Ireland and I honestly am starting to feel more like a local everyday. I will say the weather here is similar to Pittsburgh in the spring it rains at the most random times and then it will be cloudy for days and you start to miss the sun. I will say the Irish people don’t let this weather put harm on their days. They still seem to enjoy their days no matter what the weather is on UCD’s campus you will see so many local kids playing sports and enjoying their days even when it is raining which is really nice to see.

Adapting to Irish culture, though, has been more of a challenge than I thought it would be. When I went into this experience, I thought since Ireland is an English-speaking country and frequented by Americans that it would be easy to adjust. In some ways it is but in different ways it requires more effort than I thought. For example, learning the different vocabulary here has been a fun element to my daily life, but also has been somewhat confusing at times. Terms like “craic” (good times or fun), “boot” (not footwear but trunk of a car), or “jumper” (sweater) and many others are a few examples that I had to adjust to. Also, even though I have always considered myself pretty good at understanding different English accents, there are so many different varieties of Irish accents (Dublin, Cork and the West) that there have been times that I’ve needed to ask people to repeat what they said. That is somewhat humbling! That said, most people that I have met here have been very friendly and understanding and I believe they appreciate it when someone is trying to learn. I will also that Ireland is not as diverse than the United States so I do feel a little bit more of an outsider being a colored person in a place that is more of a white population. It has been hard for me I think to fit in with my co-workers a little bit because of that and I just come from a different culture.

One of my favorite aspects of being abroad is having the opportunity to travel. This past weekend, I took a trip to London, and it was simply amazing. I visited iconic sites such as Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey, and walked around neighborhoods such as Soho and Notting Hill. The energy of London is different from Dublin; it is faster, bigger, and just a little more intense but equally beautiful and vibrant. It was surreal to actually stand in front of places I had only seen in movies. I made sure to document the entire weekend, and I tried to really soak it in. Traveling during my time interning abroad has reminded me of the importance of just taking the opportunities when they’re in front of me.

While I keep going with my internship and spend the next amount of time living and traveling in Ireland, I hope to be able to develop both my skills for career development and understanding of the people and culture in another country. I want to come home with more than just photographs and memories, but perspective, confidence, and a better understanding of how I could operate amongst people from different walks of life. At the moment it has been an unforgettable experience, and I’m looking forward to whatever is in store in the next few weeks!