UL Campus

Week eleven of semester starts tomorrow! Where has this semester gone? While there was a break in the rain today (Sunday 15 November) I decided to walk around the campus here at UL and take some photos and videos so the people at home can see where I studied this semester.

There are some pretty unique looking buildings at UL, particularly some of the newer buildings on the other side of the pedestrian living bridge to the main campus.

This is where I live, Plassey Village.  Plassey is one of the on campus accommodation options here at UL, located across the road from the main entrance to campus.  My house has 8 residents who have access to 2 bathroom and one kitchen/living facility.  My housemates this semester come from France, America, Canada, Germany and Finland.

The UL flag poles located at the campus entry.

The Schuman Building where I have classes for Irish Politics and Human Resource Management.

One of the walking paths located near the campus.

The Pedestrian Living Bridge.  This is the longest pedestrian bridge in Ireland.

The Health Sciences Building

The Graduate Entry Medical School where I have lectures for Irish history.

Plassey House.

The walk back to Plassey Village.

As you can see UL is a large a beautiful campus which creates a really nice study environment.

Medieval Tour

Today (Saturday 7 November) I participated in another International Society trip, this time taking in some of the medieval sites nearby including Athassel Priory and the Rock of Cashel, Co.Tipperary and Kilkenny City, Co. Kilkenny.

Athassel Priory - Ireland's largest medieval priory dates back to the 12th century.

The medieval town of Cashel is overlooked by the Rock of Cashel.  Parts of the structure atop the rock including the round tower pictured date back to the 12th century.  Other parts of the structure including the cathedral and chapel were added in subsequent centuries.  The rock was the traditional seat of the Kings of Munster for hundreds of years.

We then left co. Tipperary and travelled to Kilkenny city.

Kilkenny Castle offers an interesting and informative tour of the building which I would recommend to anyone in the area.  The castle was originally built for William Marshall, 4th Earl of Pembroke in the first decade of the thirteenth century.  Later the Butler family resided in the castle as their primary Irish resident for almost 600 years.  The property was purchased by James, 3rd Earl of Ormond in c.1391.  In 1967 Arthur, 6th Marquess of Ormonde presented the castle to the people of Kilkenny for a token payment.  It has since been in the care of the Office of Public works with many programmes of archaeological excavation, conservation and restoration taking place.

Photography is prohibited inside the castle, but the exquisite interiors are truly beautiful. The formal dining room in particular is spectacular, as is the gallery which holds the portraits of the Butler family.  The gallery room is around 45 metres in length, has intricately painted ceilings and walls lined with massive paintings.  Many of the Butler family works were sold as the family encountered financial trouble, so you can only imagine how the room once looked when entirely full of portraits.

The medieval history of Ireland is really intriguing, particularly as I am a history student.  And even more so because I come from New Zealand, a country younger then the sites I visited today.

Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry

Today I participated in an International Society trip to the Ring of Kerry and surrounding areas, taking in Kenmare, Ladies View, the Torc Waterfall and Killarney National Park.

Kenmare

Holy Cross Church, Kenmare

Scenery shots from the various lookouts

Torc Waterfall

And the All Blacks successfully qualified for the Rugby World Cup final so, great day all round.

Galway

Solo travel is fantastic.  Seeing new places is great.  Combining the two together and you're in for a wonderful time.

On Sunday I caught the train to Galway for a wee little day excursion.  I haven't seen much of Ireland despite having been here for around 7 weeks, but Galway is by far my favourite place so far.  The weather was spectacular, the cathedral is beautiful, the stores and waterfront are great areas to explore.  I even went to an aquarium which was more like a glorified pet store as it lacked turtles, sharks or anything more exciting than seahorses.  And to add to the excitement of a solo adventure to Galway, while I was there Ireland played France in their last pool match of the Rugby World Cup.  The pub I watched it in called The Skeff was packed; standing room only which made for a great viewing atmosphere.

There are a few places I want to go back to in Galway, so I will be making a return trip.  Mostly to try some more of the cafes and restaurants the city has to offer. Food will forever have my heart.

Am I still in Palmerston North?

Limerick is so similar to Palmerston North it is like being in the same city, accept the people talk funny.

The campus is outside of the central city.  The grounds are open and green with plenty of trees and outdoor spaces which leads to inevitable jogs through the rain to get from one lecture building to another.  This seems to be a slight flaw by planners when the city, like the rest of Ireland, is known for rain.

Limerick city itself doesn't really offer much in terms of entertainment besides pubs and sport.  But from Limerick it is only a short distance to a number of awesome spots.  I feel like I haven't left the Manawatu.

So far the lectures themselves have barely contained any real content because it's only the first week.  But I have successfully found every lecture building on time so that's a win!

One of the coolest things about Limerick which Massey Palmerston North doesn't really offer is a huge range of clubs and societies that people are actually passionate about.  The recruitment drive in the sports centre was really popular with clubs and societies ranging from equestrian, rugby and hockey to tea appreciation and the international society.  I'm excited to get involved in events offered by the equestrian club and international society this semester.

On Saturday 12 September I went on a trip to the Aran Island's, specifically Inis Oirr the smallest and eastern most of the islands.  The island has been inhabited for more than 5000 years so consequently has a rich natural and cultural heritage.  If you want somewhere quiet, small and beautiful to explore Inis Oirr would be perfect for you, assuming you don't mind a rollercoaster of a ferry ride to reach the island.  The photos below show some of the amazing scenery and also showcase the tendency for the island to witness 4 seasons of weather in one day.

Limerick

Hickory dickory dock,

the mouse ran up the clock;

the clock struck one

and down he run;

hickory dickory dock.

It seemed appropriate to post a limerick considering my current location.  I departed New Zealand on July 14th and have finally made it to Limerick, the original reason for coming to Europe at all.  Only took a month and a half.

Compared so some of the other vibrant cities I've encountered on this adventure Limerick is a lot quieter, smaller and due to the continuous cloud cover, a lot more dull.  However the city isn't without a certain sort of charm.

Outside the Hunt Museum are two colourful horse statues. That's a winner in my books with zero effort.

I'm pretty certain every village, town and city in this part of the world is obliged to have at least one architecturally impressive church.  Limerick is no exception.  Multiple church steeples break the landscape around various parts of the city.  I went into the St Mary's Cathedral which has beautiful stained glass windows.  The church was founded in 1168.  Considering Abel Tasman didn't sight New Zealand until 1642, and James Cook didn't visit until 1769 it puts into perspective how young New Zealand really is.

King John's Castle sits alongside the River Shannon.  The site of the castle dates back to when Vikings lived on the island, but the actual castle was built during the reign of King John in the 13th century.

This semester I am living in one of the universities residential villages, Plassey Village.  Move in day made me feel a little sad because everyone was arriving with their families and unpacking their car loads of stuff, similar to how I was in first year in Wellington.  And I arrived by myself in a taxi with my suitcase and backpack. Sigh.

My room set up, ft. NZ pride

Monday of orientation started with a coffee morning with other international students.  I met two girls from the Netherlands and a girl from Canada who I spent to remainder of the day with.  In the afternoon we took the bus provided for international students to the Parkway shopping centre where I purchased a few essential items like a pillow and duvet so I could return the ones Plassey Village had lent to me.

In the evening we went to the campus bar, The Stables Club and had a few ciders to end a good first day at UL.

Orientation week is nice and relaxed here at Limerick University.  International students are given plenty of time to make friends and find their feet in a new university environment, as well as in a new city and country.  So far I've had a great experience.  The people I've been meeting are awesome!  I have roommates from across the world (Canada, Germany, Finland, America and France).  Looking forward to attending some lectures come Monday!