Routine in a New Place

Each day varied in terms of what activities we had planned. We had a set itinerary with site visits, tourism opportunities, and lectures that took place each day, but every evening we had free to explore on our own.
            Every morning we went to a small café about a 10-minute walk from our hotel where breakfast was provided. We were very grateful to get a delicious breakfast each morning and it definitely helped keep our energy levels up as we went about our day. We typically either had time in the classroom, a site visit, or a lecture in the morning and would go our separate ways for lunch. We would then reconvene after lunch for another activity, and by late-afternoon/early-evening we would be free to do as we wished. My roommates and I would typically take time to sit and write our blog post for the day, take a quick nap, or spend some time to ourselves before going out for dinner or to explore the city.
            We were provided with bus passes that we could use all throughout the city, but Dublin is very walkable so we would mostly travel on foot. We also took two daytrips on a coach bus out to the country where we got to experience the rural side of Ireland. This was a great opportunity to observe more of the Irish culture and see the landscapes that you often think about when envisioning Ireland.
I went into this experience knowing I was going to be spending money. Many of the expenses for the experiences are included in the cost of the program so I was mostly spending money on food and shopping. We were provided with a kitchen in our hotel which helped us budget our money more because we could get cheap, simple groceries to cook our own food every now and then. If you don’t have a kitchen, it may be a good idea to go to the grocery store and see what pre-packaged foods they have and that can cut down on some food expenses. It was also fun to see the different products that they sell and find some snacks that we don’t have here in America.
Overall, each day will be different. You will be learning new information about the city you’re in, making new observations, and over time you will become more comfortable in the city and navigating it. My favorite part of my study abroad experience was exploring the city with my friends and seeing where the day would take us. No matter what you are doing one day, it is important to make the most of your experience and have fun.