Week 13: Hikes and hangovers

 

The week started with a typical Sunday morning in Kilmurry 43…

The morning started slowly, as the roommates partied the previous night and returned at various times between 3:00 and 6:30 am. After making coffee and drinking it in the sunny kitchen, Emily and I started to watch an online church service before the others began to emerge. The first came in, bleary-eyed, afraid she was the last and we'd left for the weekend's adventure without her. Then the second arrived, informing us he couldn't remember what happened last night but must have puked because it was on his face this morning (charming). Finally, they woke up our driver, who had gotten a whopping 2.5 hours of sleep (all during daylight hours). Somehow, she was miraculously alert and perky, exhibiting truly remarkable resilience.

No hangover can stop these hikers

After the rough start, our crew managed to collect themselves and head out for the day's enticing adventure. The first stop was Burren National Park, a beautiful limestone grassland that is Ireland's fifth (of six) and smallest national park. The "hangover hike" was a moderate, do-able intensity that was studded with sporadic naps in the scattered sunshine.

Finally, the destination I'd been waiting for… After 14 months of thwarted plans to visit Ireland's most iconic coastline, we finally went to the Cliffs of Moher! Since the *barely perceptible* ease in restrictions, in-county travel is now legal. It seemed everyone we know- neighbors, acquaintances, and Instagram followers- took the soonest opportunity to visit the famous attraction. The tourist shops were obviously closed and the site was eerily empty, but the experience was probably even better due to the relative lack of sight-seers. Although it looked like an abandoned tourist attraction, it felt like less of a hotspot and more like an intimate encounter with the breathtakingly beautiful landscape.

From the pictures, the view is obviously amazing, but in person, it was vividly dramatic. The blue, green, and gray colors were starkly juxtaposed in the landscape that spread farther than you could see from a single vantage point. Crystal clear waves relentlessly yet futilely bashed the bottoms of steep rocky walls below. We walked along the upper coastline, while the wind intensified and abated at intermittent intervals due to the irregular rocky landscape.

The clear weather was conducive to seeing across the ocean in all directions. The mountains of Connemara loomed distantly in the north; the Aran Islands lay immediately ahead; and Killarney sprawled across the south. It felt like seeing an actual map of Ireland's western coast while literally standing on it. We hiked along the cliffs for several hours, stopping regularly to soak in the stunning view as it shifted every few cliff faces. The drive back was dishearteningly longer than the GPS promised, but entirely worth the fulfillment of my dream destination.

The high of the weekend was necessary to brace for a long week of work. With the semester quickly coming to a close, individual assignments and group projects are all coinciding in the last couple weeks. Unlike college at NWC, where regular busy work assignments buffer the final exam results, the final projects here constitute the majority of our total grade. For Exercise Psychology, 45% of the semester is scored on our group presentation (due Monday); for Clinical Applications of Exercise, 100% of our grade comes from one systematic literature review. Needless to say, much of the days were spent sedentary, inside, on a screen (slowing sucking my sunny spirit) (ok, slightly dramatic).

A few fun events brightened the week, however. Emily and I both received haircuts from our German friends, Stephanie and Anna-Lena. They've recently begun cutting hair for male friends/roommates, and expanded their repertoire on us. If their international business degrees don't work out, we think they have promising prospects as future beauticians!

When hair salons are closed

On Wednesday, we celebrated the 21st birthday of our fellow American friend. (The party was a much-need reprieve after a full day of physics.) Her mom sent cute pictures and party favors, her roommates planned a *surprise!* trips to the Cliffs of Moher, and her friends celebrated to end the day. It was a memorable night with memorable people (and memorable pants). 

"Wait, we can take our masks off..."

Saturday was a pleasant wrap to the week, with another trip to Limerick's vibrant milk market (classic). As the season fully transitions to spring, more vendors are appearing, bringing new produce, products, and culinary phenomena. The friends (and food) make the trip worthwhile. I'm cringing to count the end of these wonderful weekend excursions, and striving to make the most of the few remaining!