The Bothers of Being Abroad (Or, The Post I Never Thought I'd Write)

It's almost been a month since we arrived in Dublin and I've already seen and done so much! It's stopped feeling like a really long vacation and is starting to become my temporary home. Even though I'm not in a country like Ghana, like my friend Hannah from WB is, there is still an element of culture shock as we try every day to adjust to being in a new country. But that's one of the reasons I came to Dublin, to get out of my comfort zone and experience things I've never encountered before.

That said, sometimes I do get homesick. Despite the fact that I went to sleep away camp when I was 9 and go to school in Vermont while my family lives in Massachusetts, I've never really gotten homesick. I've always embraced new experiences and thrown myself into my new surroundings instead of dwelling on what I left behind. But here, just knowing that I'm across the Atlantic Ocean from the things and people I love instead of across a few state borders makes me miss the comfort of a place where I know how everything works. It helps that I have a lot of friends here, but sometimes I still wish I could close my eyes and be at home.

But this is my home for now, and I will continue to see and do as much as I can while I'm here. Still, though, I can't help but notice some, shall we say, cultural annoyances that haven't quite been able to disappear. They're not big things, just little  things I can't get over about Dubliners:

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• Everyone dresses the same. At least the girls do. All of the girls around my age I've seen all wear, it seems, the exact same basic outfit. The staples are black leggings, skirts, black boots, and fancy coats, especially pea coats. They also love wearing a ton of makeup and putting their hair in messy buns on the tops of their heads. A lot of the Champlain girls have bought boots to try and fit in, because that is definitely the dominant footwear here. Although that doesn't really make sense because of all the cobblestones. 
• An obsession with cheese and onion-flavored crisps. Chips are crisps. Fries are chips. Something to remember when ordering in restaurants. But what the hell do Irish people love so much about cheese and onion crisps!? You can't escape them. They are the most popular flavor by far. The vending machine at school has three rows of them. But no plain. I don't gt it. I mean, they're good. It just seems like a weird flavor to be the national favorite. 
• People don't know how to walk or drive. I almost get killed at least 70% of the time I leave the apartment, and not always by cars. I'm not dumb, I know how to walk in a city. But people here are just maniacs. Crosswalks and street signs are mere suggestions, no one really follows them. And people walking down the street seriously need to learn how to pick a side. People strut down the sidewalks like they own them and don't move if they see a person coming, so you have to play chicken with them until one of you darts aside and crashes into a pole. Not that I did that today or anything. 
• Everyone smokes. It's disgusting. My lungs will be significantly blacker when I get back just from being outside. I've seen everyone from high schoolers to old men smoking. I know people smoke in America, but here it seems like everyone does it. I inhale secondhand smoke regularly. 

Those are just a couple of the things I've noticed in my first month that have bugged me about Dublin.  There are certainly other cultural differences, both good and bad, but it's all part of the experience. If I didn't notice these things then I wouldn't feel as though I'm really experiencing the culture!