Fall is here.

I decided this morning, as I walked home from church, that autumn is a blessing. It makes the transition between summer and winter gradual, and less painful. The slowly declining temperature makes the air feel crisp and cool, rather than freezing. The greens of summer morph into yellows and oranges instead of immediately fading into the chilly grays of winter. Today, on this beautiful fall day, I am thankful.

The past week of class went quickly. I still enjoy all three of my classes. The reading for Contemporary Irish Fiction has been perhaps the most fun, but I’ve found the discussion in Literature of the American South very interesting. Last week we discussed slave narratives and the impact of the longevity of Southern slavery on the region’s literature. The Enlightenment class I’m taking is more philosophical than the other two and the readings are the most tedious to complete.

In some ways, Trinity is similar to Hope College. There is the familiar hustle and bustle of students moving about campus, usually traveling in groups to meet up with friends or attend class. There are people sprawled out on lawns eating, reading, or chatting. There are busy, important-looking professors that rush past others on sidewalks, carrying briefcases or folders. Although all of this is on a larger scale- it’s familiar. But there are many differences that stand out as well. Trinity has a much less residential feel, with the few halls (or dorms for us in the states) more segregated, or even twenty-minutes off campus. There also seems to be less of a unity amongst students, unsurprising since the school is about 5 of 6 times larger than Hope. One other difference I’ve observed is that students appear to be more engaged in class. Perhaps it’s because classes meet for far fewer hours per week than in the states, or maybe it’s because it’s only the second week of classes…

I’ve enjoyed playing basketball again. Last week forty-five girls showed up at training (practice). The coach asked for players who had played on a club team for more than five years to go to one end of the gym, and this ended up being about sixteen players, me included. Although it is much more laid back then playing for a college team in the States would be, it seems like it’ll be fairly competitive. I don’t know if I’ll actually get to do any travelling or play games with the team, because that might happen later in the year (after the first term).

Last week I made another journey to the North. On Saturday Phil took me to Portstewart, a seaside town with very scenic coastal views. Although the weather was gray and windy, it was beautiful. I have never seen such huge rolling waves. After a brief walk, we went to Morelli’s, a restaurant/café/ice cream parlour to escape the chilly sea breeze. We warmed up with hot chocolate and a Yellowman ice cream sundae. A Yellowman consists of honeycomb and vanilla ice cream, chunks of honeycomb crisp, caramel syrups, marshmallows and cream. Yes, I continue to take great delight in Irish sweets.

This past weekend I got to show off some of my favorite Dublin finds to Phil, who came to visit me in the city for a few days. We went to the Book of Kells, which I actually found even more interesting the second time around. Every day the book is turned to a different page, displaying different illustrations and intricate designed lettering. The Books of Kells is an illuminated manuscript with the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). It was transcribed in c.800 by Celtic monks. Photographs are not allowed to be taken when viewing it, so look it up online to see pictures. It really is spectacular.

We also went to a market that I really enjoy, on Saturday morning. I really like just poking around, checking out all of the stands, and soaking in the atmosphere. We bought a gigantic brownie, which we saved and consumed during a picnic in Iveagh Gardens that afternoon. A funny moment during our picnic was when these two boys, about 10 or 11, rode by on bikes. We watched them ride down and then up this large sloping hill by a field. Having noticed us watching, one of the boys shouted out (in a very thick Dublin accent): “You like that? Yeah, that’ll be 5 euro to see that!!” We got a good laugh out of that. It seems that kids learn quickly the mindset required to live in a city as expensive as Dublin.

It’s nice to know that no matter where I am in the world there are some constants. Like fines for overdue library books. After only a few weeks of school I’ve already managed to accrue a library fine. As I paid my fifty cents, I smiled thinking about how my contributions to libraries now extend across the world. Sorry, mom.