New goal in life: Ulysses

Since the weather was absolutely beautiful today, I decided to take the DART south to Sandycove and enjoy a walk along the beach and pay a visit to the James Joyce Tower. I even walked into town from my home; the weather was simply THAT nice.
The DART is a sweet little commuter train that drives up and down the coast of county Dublin and makes stops in even sweeter little towns along the shoreline. Sandycove is one of these little towns and lies about 30 minutes south of Dublin. It's two famous features are the Forty Foot Pool and the Martello tower which actually lies next to it, so that's very convenient. This photo shows the Martello tower as seen from the boulevard.


According to my travelguide, the Forty Foot Pool originally was a place where men could bathe in the sea naked. Nowadays, everybody is welcome unless they're naked. Times have changed. Apparently people actually go swimming here all year round and today was no exception. Although I obviously did not dare to stick my feet in the water myself, there were a few braver ones that did decide to take a dip in the ocean.
My next stop was the Martello Tower, which hosts a small museum dedicated to the Irish writer James Joyce. The reason for this is that the opening scene of his famous novel Ulysses is set in this tower. Around 28 of these towers were built along the coastline between Dublin and Bray (further south than Sandycove) to serve as a defense line in case Napoleon would try to invade the country. I don't know how many of these are still there, but Sandycove sure has the most famous one. Here's the view from the Martello tower. These were the brave people who went swimming in Forty Foot Pool.


Apparently, if Dublin should burn to the ground you would be able to rebuild it with Ulysses as your source. In the book, Leopold Bloom and his fellow-characters are followed on their activities and their ways across the city of Dublin. So, my new goal in life this year is to actually read Ulysses (I have tried before, but never succeeded) and try to sort of retrace the steps of the characters in the book. I figured this would be a great way to get to know the city. I will ofcourse keep you all posted and hope to be finished by Bloomsday on June 16th, the day that all the events in Ulysses take place (yes, a 900+ page book about just one day).
My second new goal in life is to have coffee with Bono, but I'm afraid I will have to be realistic about that not being very likely to happen....

Campus life part 6: sports and relaxation

This week I finally managed to put my society memberships to good use: I went both trampolining and swimming! Wednesday was trampolining day and I must say that although it's kind of scary, it's good fun. The trampoline itself is about 6 m2 and over 1.5 m high. So that's you starting level. You still have to bounce from there.... However after one session I could remember the jumps I used to do back in my gymnastics days (way back when I could still actually bend double) and learned a new one: the seat drop. Basically you land on your bum with your legs stretched forward. Not a big deal you'd say, but try doing that and while you jump back up do a half turn and another seat drop..... Next is The back drop, the front drop and then it will be time for the somersaults. Anyway, I'm definitely on my way to the Olympics, maybe not Beijing, since I have to row at that one with Colette, but London should definitely be manageable.
Today, Carmel (from my class) and I went swimming. Since there was no trainer today we decided to just do 200m with each stroke we knew and finish off with another 200m of breaststroke. So warming up included we swam about 1.5 km and then called it a day. Time to check out the spa facilities. Whirlpool, steamroom, sauna and tepidarium. Good times, good times....
After all of that Carmel showed me the DVD section in the library (yes, a DVD section!). They don't have a lot of new stuff (it still has to serve educational purposes I guess), but they're stocked up on many of the classics and also have the complete series of six feet under, 24, the sopranos and west wing. horray! I'll let you know when I resurface.

Campus life part 5: Guess what I found....

A computer lab filled with apples! I know they're old, but still.... At least 30 G3s hidden in a corner of my faculty building being all nice and colourful. Lovely....

Great Irish inventions part 1: Garlic and cheese fries

Yes, you read it correctly: garlic and cheese fries.... It sounds strange but it is absolutely delicious (in a fastfood kind of way ofcourse). While in Galway, Pat took my to this wonderful place called Supermacs (Irish fastfood chain that stays open until late. At least the one on O'Connell street in Dublin does...) to introduce me to the wonders of garlic and cheese fries. Imagine: ordinary French fries, covered (actually soaked) in garlic mayonnaise with grated red cheddar cheese on top. Haute Cuisine, I tell you.
I think this might be a great business opportunity to pursue in the Netherlands actually. It would at least be a great alternative to 'friet speciaal' (mayo, curry sauce and onions) or 'frietje feest' (mayo and sateh - peanut - sauce). I will upload a picture soon.

campus life part 4: starbucks!

yes, yes there's starbucks coffee on campus. Not that I drink the stuff myself, but they sell various teas too, so I'm a happy camper.
Eros the Italian however, has not found a decent coffee place in all of Dublin yet. Well, according to his standards coffee has to come from either Illy or Lavazza otherwise he won't go near it.

Short trip home for graduation

Last week I had to leave Dublin and return to Maastricht for my graduation. Graduation ceremonies are always nice. Not just for the graduates who receive their long awaited diplomas and are being praised for their thesis and characteristics they didn't know they possessed. The other spectators (be it parents, family, friends or whatever) also get rewarded for listening to all these professors and teachers talking about 'their' students. Their reward consists of either coffee, cakes and pies for the morning sessions, or wine and all sorts of yummy treats for the afternoon sessions.
This year, the food and drink had recieved an upgrade. Both the cake and pie and the other snack food were of a much more luxurious standard than in the years before. If I would still be living in Maastricht, I would make sure I went to all the ceremonies from now on, and not just to the ones of my closest friends.

Us students ofcourse always have a nose for free drinks, especially when they are organised by the university: the start of the academic year, the faculty christmas drink, and let's not forget the ones after the information fairs with their famous warm snacks. See, when they charge you all that tuition fee and you don't have classes for more than eight hours a week, you have to get you're money's worth in another way.

Anyway, here are some pics from the ceremony and the party that followed.

The lucky seven of that morning



Friends not happy yet, because of lack of coffee and cakes



Ah, problem solved



Danish and I with the supercool gift Marjon made for us. A special 'wie is het' (guess who..?) game with all our friends and thesis supervisors. thanks to the wonders of texting and the internet we can play this game while being on different sides of two seas and Britain.



Around 4.30 a.m. that night. Three of the friends whom I started out with six years ago



At 6 a.m. we finally got to bed and a great night (and along with that, my time in Maastricht) had come to an end.

Campus life part 3: Sports and Grannies

Last week I decided to put my DCU sportsclub membership to good use and try a few of the 'group fitness' classes. The first one I went for was Aqua Fit. Ofcourse I should have known (remember our attempt a few years ago, Ellen?) that this class would be filled with grannies. And not just your average grannies, no the ones that participate in these classes are the ones on kryptonite. But since I wasn't the only one who didn't already recieve a pension, I didn't feel completely out of place. And I could keep up with everyone, which always helps....
I also went for a class with the peculiar name of 'boxercise'. Half-expecting a tae bo session with some slick 'Amazing Discoveries' fitness guru, I found myself putting on boxing gloves and I was punching, jabbing, hooking and uppercutting all of the following hour. So no aerobics elements (horray!) and although I could not sit up straight or lift my arms the next day I am definitely a fan!

Galway Bay: Guinness and garlic & cheese fries

A weekend in the lovely city of Galway with my good friend Pat as my tourguide. Short overview:
First, a 3.5 hour busride with a view constisting of loads of grass, stone walls (towards the west) and sheep. Then, a tour of the city which ended with our first pint of Guinness ( ah well, what can you do...). The soccermatch Ireland-Cyprus ended in 1-0 and although the Irish goalkeeper should have been voted 'team of the match' all by himself, a won game is always good. After some Irish haute cuisine (garlic & cheese fries, more about that later), a great night of dancing and more Guinness awaited us. After a 'healthy' breakfast the next morning and a tour along the coastal road, it was time for me to return to Dublin. All in all a great weekend.
I wish I could post some photos, but I think I lost the film.... who needs old-fashioned cameras anyway. Anyway, I'm digital now, so I'll give you some visuals of my life here soon.

Campus life part 2: clubs and societies day

This week all the students had the opportunity to join the various clubs and societies on campus. For a mere 4 euros you could get a membership to for example the "murder she wrote society" - for all of you who just love a good detective, and preferably one with murder in it ofcourse. The "style soc" who publish their own magazine about, well, style - forget vogue, get 'the look'. Or maybe the "games soc" or the "snowboard club" or "paintball soc". "I am sure you want to join our American Football club". "Ehm no, I'd rather keep my collar bones in one piece, thank you."
All ofcourse very tempting, but no. Instead I went for the "film soc", since free movies all year for just 4 euros is not bad at all, the "media production society" - after this year I'll know how to edit a documentary and make radio - and the "trampoline club" (nothing beats those giant air castles you could jump around in as a kid, so why not do that on a weekly basis on a trampoline).
I thought about trying one of the typical Irish sports such as Gaelic Football or Camogie (female branch of Hurling). But since I don't know any of the rules and especially Hurling and Camogie are downright dangerous, I opted out. Think I'll just stick to watching the games.

The new office

With a bit of luck from the social welfare office (they have to decide if they want to give me a PPS/ social security number), this cute little bus will be my office soon. This is the science bus and inside it the students from my course will be teaching primary school kids about the wonders of science. So we get to play with fire and chemicals. how cool!

campus life part 1

The DCU campus lies in the north of Dublin and is not very old. Actually, I think most buildings are not much older than 10 years or so. They sure love lawns and recently built a ginormous sports centre complete with swimming pool, saunas, climbing walls, state of the art gym, indoor Football pitches and what not. The UM has a lot to learn (even with the new sportsfacilities as they are planned). Oh and I have not even mentioned the unique selling point of this sports complex: their very own beautician! "Hanz on Beauty" and this month the full body spray-on tan is only 20 euros (that's "easy bake" for you....). Besides the 5 bars/restaurants/cafeterias i have counted so far, they also have their own little SPAR. how convenient and considerate. And ofcourse there's a campus bookshop. And a really big theatre. ok. breathe now.

Since we couldn't get into the library until our registration on October 4th, I can't tell you much about that. but the building is huge.

Luckily I have all my classes in the same building, so don't think I'll get lost.

How to get your life set up in Dublin in 10 steps

1. Arrive safely
2. Ask for a different room the next day, because you didn't come to Ireland to live with Germans. Could have stayed in Maastricht for that.
3. Find out that there is no bus to campus from where you live and then start looking for a bicycle shop that sells second hand bicycles. No second hand ones? ok. then buy a new one.
4. Try to open a bank account. You can't? ok. try again in two weeks, success guaranteed.
5. Find the nearest Tesco and cherish it.
6. Keep trying your best at evading the school girls and boys in their uniforms that flock the combined foot- and bicycle paths.
7. Remember to always do the previous on the LEFT side of the road.
8. That means, you have to overtake other cyclists on their RIGHT side (god, they're slow... wonder how they actually stay on their bikes).
9. Get a campus bar membership right before you register at the university, otherwise you have to replace the student card you just got fifteen minutes before.
10. When you have done all this, you can decide on new hobbies: TRAMPOLINING! horray!