When Irish Eyes are Smiling
Molly Briody, a sophomore at Saint Mary’s College is currently studying abroad at the National University of Ireland at Maynooth. She says she is having the time of her life and never wants to come home! Hearing all about her stories has made me so excited to hopefully study in Ireland next semester. Read about her experience in Ireland so far, and you might decide to study in Ireland too!
How did you decide to study abroad in Ireland?
Ever since I was younger it has been my dream to go to Ireland and visit the places that my family’s history had come from. My great grandmother wrote a book on my family’s history and how we came to America. Being Irish is apart of my identity and I wanted to completely immerse myself in the culture that I have always valued and taken pride in.
How has it been adjusting to a different culture?
The culture here is similar to the culture in America, but the slang is different, so I would say learning the language and slang has been the biggest adjustment so far. Also, people here go out to the bars and clubs on weeknights. The weekends are dead here. Monday nights are seriously insane, but going to the pubs can get very expensive. The people here are so sweet and nice and love the Americans so if I ever needed help or had a problem they would be so happy to help me!
What is your living situation like?
I live with four other girls, two are from America, one from Canada and another from Hong Kong. They are great girls and I am having a blast with them! I have my own room and bathroom and we all share a kitchen and living area, which is easier than I thought it would be.
What has the most exciting part of Ireland been so far?
The most exciting part has been the social life and being the foreigner for once, people are so interested in where I’m from. Other than that the Saint Mary’s program has been amazing for planning trips. I have already seen so much of Ireland that the people who actually live here have never even seen before. I have climbed a mountain, danced on the beach of the Atlantic ocean, went bogging, milked a cow, learned how to make Irish bread, learned some Irish dancing and learned how to play the Irish drums. The view is absolutely beautiful. I still have twelve more weeks and I already know I never want to leave.
What do you miss most about America?
Honestly I miss American foods a lot! I have to make do without a lot of the American brand foods I would usually buy because they don’t sell them in stores anywhere. I miss chicken fingers and Chipotle a lot, and apparently peanut butter is non-existent over here!
What do you miss most about Saint Mary’s?
I miss my Saint Mary’s girls so much! I miss the football weekends over at ND because we can’t watch American football here! I miss the teachers and the one on one work I can go to them for, when here I have classes with 250 people… and there are boys in class!
What things are you looking forward to doing while in Ireland?
I’m looking forward to making many Irish friends while I am here. I want to eat a real Irish potato and just take advantage of every single adventure this place has in store for me. I hear going to Galway is so beautiful and I cannot wait to see the cliffs or even go to the heart of Dublin and see the Molly Malone statue!
Therese Burke is a Saint Mary’s College contributor to Her Campus Notre Dame.