Orientation and such.

So Tuesday was about orientation. We went down to the city centre at 9 am and listened to a powerpoint (yes, you can listen to a PPT), which was rather redundant. We had a tea break around 11:30, then more listening to PPT, and then an hour lunch break at 12:30ish. I got a sandwich (wheat, cranberry sauce, grapes, thick slice of brie), bowl of fresh fruit that was quite good, and a large glass of apple juice for 4 euro. That's a good deal. I've noticed Ireland caters well to the working class. They have a lot of lunch/meal deals, and many stores sell legitimate food, not just fast food. You can go into a convenience store, and there is a very clean, very nice and well priced deli tucked into the corner. So after that we trucked back to Santry and went out to a pub right next to where we're staying. The pub (which also publicisizes itself as a restuarant but I'm pretty sure Americans wouldn't agree because they had like 5 items on their menu) is called The Comet.

Let me just say, Irish men are not shy. Not at all. We became very well acquainted with a man named Dennis (late 40's early fifties), and Patrick (late forties) who won a bet on the derby and was very excited. Dennis had a friend, Aman (40's), and they tried to get us to smoke marijuana with them. Patrick ended up buying a girl, Emily, a drink. When he delivered it, he asked if he could give her a kiss. After she awkwardly accepted, he asked for one, which she even more hesitantly obliged. It's hard to imagine how one could not say no, but really, she could not have said no. These men are crazy! By the time we were leaving, the whole place was in chaos. They are terrible with bills ("tills" as they call them) and it took an hour to get our check, which is customary here. But, we got our check on three tickets, not split up in any fashion, missing two items which we were still charged for. You don't tip here. Anyway, when we went to pay, he rung it up differently, so we gave the waiter, Joe, 10 euro in tip-- which is crazy generous here. Poor guy was running around because someone had called in sick, and apparently his boss was being mean. He dealt with our silly American questions about ordering and our pestering about the bill, so he deserved the tip. When we left another cluster from our group had come in, and Patrick (now with another friend) had invited themselves to join the girls.

As Dennis was trying to get Kim and I to smoke with him, he asked Kim if she had a boyfriend. She said she did. Dennis said "what happens in Ireland stays in Ireland". To prove it he reached out as if to grab something and said, "If you don't get a little of this it's not worth it"-- and I'm toning the x-rating down.

Anyway, I've had a terrible cold. Better now. Yesterday I was holed up in my room forever. Today I did the same, watching LOTS of Californication, and then tonight the program had an event. It was at the Brazen Head, which is a famous and historical restaurant on the southside of the Liffey in Dublin city centre. The menu was set, complimentary, and in three courses. I had chicken salad with a pesto dressing, salmon with pesto and mashed potatoes (I have to say I like ours better!) and then a "traditional Irish apple crumble" which was applesauce, a layer of dough, then custard on top. In between each course, there was a man who told us folklore and stories about Irish history. The whole thing lasted well over 2 hours.

That's my update! Tomorrow is out to the pubs, and then this weekend is exploring Dublin. Monday I start my internship ("work experience" as they call it here.)