Miles with Margaret

  Pictured above is The Cliffs of Moher! It was beautiful and serene, a lovely sight to see. The group visited this site on our trip to West Ireland. We were lucky enough to travel all around the west with our lovely tour guide Tony, who led us in singing song and telling stories. The west has the most beautiful blue water, stunning beaches, and adventures awaiting around each corner. I believe our trip to the west was the best part of studying abroad so far. When reflecting on my recent travels, and how I have grown since I stepped off the plane almost four weeks ago, I think I have changed quite a bit. I have started focusing on life, the earth, and being outdoors. I used to spend a lot of time on social media, and a lot of time overthinking and now I feel like I have cut down on both of those things a good bit! I wrote a poem about how happy I have become since being here, and how grateful I am for this experience, but also how I have changed for the better. I truly think being ...

I just returned from an incredible journey to the West of Ireland. What didn't our group see? We visited Galway, Killarney, Dingle, castles, parks, monuments, mountains, and more. One of the highlights of this trip for me was hearing more traditional Irish music. I have been to pubs where there has been live music played by Irish musicians that played pop song covers, but I have not had the chance to hear true traditional old Irish music being played.  Two night in a row when we were staying in Killarney, I went out to pubs. Both nights included a portion of time spent at Patty Sheehans- The Killarney Grand. The first night we heard an amazing, lively brother duo play, and the second night we heard a women play.  After some pub hopping, we found ourselves at a place in the quieter part of Killarney, where we ordered our drinks of choice (Guinness of course.) However, as we approached the bar to place our order, the bartender seemed to be in another world, writing in his notebo...

Guys, I think I had the best Monday of my life. I started it off with a traditional Irish breakfast, and a delicious cup of coffee. Then me and my group hopped on a bus, singing Disney songs and karaoke with our amazing tour guide Tony, who stopped at multiple beaches and destinations, eager to show us all around the great west of Ireland. The highlight of my day you might ask? Refer to the picture above, of me holding the sweetest baby lamb. The group stopped at a farm where you pay 2.50 Euro for a bucket of food. Then you can feed goats, sheep, pigs, lambs, alpacas, and other animals. It was an incredible experience, although I did get kicked by the goats… Also, the nature of the west of Ireland is simply breathtaking. It was truly unlike anything I’ve ever seen, I almost felt like I was getting a spell cast on me by fairies! Like the Yeates poem, Come away, O human child! To the waters and the wild  With a faery, hand in hand,  For the world's more full of weeping than you...

  Today I had the opportunity to do a poetry reading by a beautiful waterfall near Killarney. I read “In Gallarus Oratory” by Seamus Heaney. You can still feel the community pack This place: it’s like going into a turfstack, A core of old dark walled up with stone A yard thick. When you’re in it alone, You might have dropped, a reduced creature, To the heart of the globe. No worshipper Would leap up to his God off this floor. Founded there like heroes in a barrow, They sought themselves in the eye of their King Under the black weight of their own breathing. And how he smiled on them as out they came, The sea a censer and the grass a flame. This poem is truly special, and although I did not get the opportunity to experience the oratory itself, I think the thymes in the poem can apply to the beautiful experience of being at the waterfall.  Heaney seems to use nature as a theme, the grass and sea acting as an alter for what seems to be a sacred experience. I myself felt that bein...

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to show my cousin Alex around Dungarvan Ireland! Dungarvan is currently where I am staying as I study abroad. We met in Dublin for the day, then we journeyed back down the country to Dungarvan. I took him to some local pubs, he met my friends, and we had a fantastic time. The next morning we decided to meet early, as he had a bus to catch at 14:00. Although I was showing him round, we embarked on an adventure that even I have not gone on yet while I have been staying here. We rented bikes, and cycled down the coast on the trails. I was truly overcome by the beauty of the trails. We saw everything from the coast (Pictured behind us), to tunnels, to greenery. We ended up biking about 30 miles, which was a little hard towards the end, especially with a hangover!  I was super grateful to be able to connect with my cousin this way. We had really never gotten the chance to spend that much time together before. We had a lot of good conversations, b...

  This past weekend I traveled to Dublin, which was a super fun excursion! One of the highlights was visiting The National Leprechaun Museum, which turned out to be a pretty unique experience. We were told a bunch of folklore-inspired stories about the origins of the leprechaun and how they’re often misrepresented. For instance, the guide mentioned how Disney movies, like one with little orange and green leprechauns, are totally off the mark. Unfortunately, our guide didn’t give a clear picture of what a real leprechaun looks like, but it seems they’re more like wrinkled old men? As always, I remember in class the leprechaun tales we read in my Literary Ireland class. Specifically,  The Crock of Gold.  I must say I did picture the men to be orange/green...Although I was wrong about that part I was right in my ideas that all leprechauns are mischievous! Another funny moment of the tour, was our guide constantly making jabs about how broke he is, and how this job does not p...

 When I read a book, I see and imagine the scenery taking place in my head, almost like my brain is a movie screen. The book in question is The Crock of Gold  by James Stephens. In this magical and mystical story fun of fairies, leprechauns, and mythological creatures, there is also a significant aspect of nature.  When I take a journey to this world with Stephens as my guide, I read about all of these magical stories, often through the eyes of the philosopher. This philosopher travels around, perhaps in the Irish countryside, getting in all sorts of trouble, and meeting all sorts of characters. I connected his travels to mine so far, as a study abroad student in Ireland. This past weekend I had the pleasure of visiting The Giant's Causeway located above Belfast on the coast of Northern Ireland. I took this picture right near the causeway, capturing the effortlessly beautiful landscape it holds. When reading The Crock of Gold , I picture the funny philosopher trampling ar...

Welcome, fellow travelers, fellow curiosity club members, and fellow explorers of the world. This is my very first post of "Miles with Margaret." I am excited to invite you on this journey with me, exploring the great country of Ireland, and focusing on the literary aspects of many Irish writers! The photo attached above is myself in the great city of Dublin, pictured with a statue of none other than the renowned Irish author James Joyce, who is most famously known for his work Dubliners . At the time this picture was taken I had only known the information stated thus far; that he was an Irish author and had successful, well known works. I thought this was the end of my journey with Joyce, and became distracted with the famous Dublin portal which sits next to the statue. However, the next morning me and one of my fellow travelers found ourselves upon the pharmacy that Joyce had frequently visited in Dublin. The owner of the store talked our ear off upon the history of Joyce, ...