I promised some embarrassing stories so here are a few after just 24 hours here….

1. Tried to buy beer on the plane like the rest of the Irish people….got denied. Damn you Continental.

2. I swear to god you have to know magic to get all the way to my room. We have two ID cards. One for Duncreggan Student Village (which is where I live) and one for the University of Ulster (not sure what this one does yet).  Then we have a key and an electronic thing. The electronic thing is to get us into the dorm building (it must be scanned key side up) or block as they call it here. Once through that door I have to go through another one (unlocked) and I find myself standing in a very small pace between two doors. This door must be unlocked by a suitemate (key goes in right side up). Once through that door I am in my suite. To get to my room I need to use the same key (upside down to unlock) to actually get into my room. Now I know it doesn’t sound like much, but if I’m having this much trouble getting in sober I can’t imagine what it would be like after a night out. Also, to get out of the building I have to pretty much reverse those steps and at the final door push a button (located on the nearest wall) to release that door. And yes it took a few meetings of my face and the door for me to remember that one.  I guess this is why it’s called a block. It’s like being on lockdown in a prison.  Thank god no one else has moved in to watch me try and figure out all of this.

3. Met the professor to my War and Genocide course…didn’t realize she was a professor since she looks like she could be a freshman at JC. I asked her if she really was “Dr.” hah she got a kick out of it and I felt like a retard.  Tried to save it by adding saying all the professors at JC are old (which compared to the professors here they are). This started a good conversation about how prices for US universities are ridiculous. It’s only 3,000 pound for a year here! That only covers room and board at JC I think. Also, learned that it’s a lot faster to get a PhD in Europe, which mixed with the low price of tuition, explains the young professors. 

4. Umbrellas don’t work in the wind.

5. Just about got blown over by the wind.

More stories to come. When I figure out how to walk in the wind, carry an umbrella, and handle a camera at the same time I will take some pictures. 

Also, Derry is amazing!