Dinner under the Dome

While generally my weekends are more exciting than the weekday drudgery of classes, Tuesday, provided some out of the ordinary events. The Saint Mary’s girls had been invited for the first time in the history of the program to a dinner with the Notre Dame Ireland program in Dublin. After most of my classes on Tuesday, I threw on a dress and splashed some makeup on my face and I was ready to take the train into Dublin. We arrived in the heart of the city and walked to O’Connell House, where the Notre Dame program is headquartered. Stepping through the big blue door and then up some stairs I could immediately sense the aura of Notre Dame, and pretty sure I felt the ‘dome sickness’ coming on. We were served a dinner of shepherd’s pie in a cup along with pringles and some fruit. It was a joy to not have to cook my own dinner or have friends cook dinner.

Once dinner had concluded, and we had mingled with the other students, the guest speaker, Johnny Walker, took the stage and talked on how he was successful in his career and how we can apply that to our time studying abroad. He was a small Australian with a big heart and a fast mouth, but he was entertaining to watch! Afterwards, we paused for a tea and dessert break before having to sit through another lecture on the effects of the potato famine. Although, what the lecturer was saying was interesting I had already heard two lectures on the famine this week alone and was not enthused about another one. After having to sit through an hour of the Irish misery of the past, it was time for mass. Mass was held in a dorm style, and it was nice to be able to hold hands for the “Our Father” and to sing throughout the mass. Once the mass concluded, we were off and on our way back home. The journey home was long, and I was ready to get home, because I had early class in the morning. However, Kathleen wouldn’t let me go to bed without eating some ice cream first, such a good friend!

The ice cream was so hard she accidentally bent the spoon!