mm. Sunday morning.

Okay, so I broke down and created a blog. Mostly for you, Alyssa and Margie. :)

I've spent the last 3 weeks in Coleraine, UK (aka small, university city, where people from Northern Ireland take off on nights and weekends), and now I'm sitting in my room at Queen's University in Belfast. I start my internship tomorrow, and I'm slightly nervous, but when I met the people on Wednesday they kinda seemed like crazy fucks like me. So I think I'll fit in.

So far, Belfast has given me mixed feelings. Friday night was a wash. I don't know if anything has ever intimidated me more than the square mile I walked on Friday night. I'll try to expain, here goes:

1. Indian food. We weren't very hungry so we ducked into an Indian restaurant to grab some appetizers. I'd never eaten Indian food, so it was all a new experience for me. We ordered water, they brought us bottles of water. Because we're living on a tight budget, we weren't exactly happy about that. But whatever. Then we ordered appetizers and the guy got angry at us. It's not like they were busy, the only other people in the restaurant were a group of 40-something women at a hen party (bachelorette party), so we weren't taking up a precious table. When he got mad, Ira just suggested to him that we pay for the water and leave, but he wouldn't let us do that either. After that encounter, the mood had sobered. As if we weren't already exhausted from the move. Every few minutes they came to take something away from our table. First silverware, then plates. It was the weirdest fucking thing ever. We felt so awkward. The awkwardness lasted through the meal, which we were sure they had spit in, and we left to find a pub to drown our awkward sorrows.

2. Pub. Our adventure down the road lasted forever. I don't know where the hell we were walking, but I was in heels that hadn't been broken in yet, and I'm pretty sure we walked about a mile from our village and turned around. People lead the group, but are never quite sure where they're leading us to. Friday night, we were led to homeless men, racist shouting, loud pubs, bar whores, and toes with blisters. We went into a couple pubs that weren't what we were looking for and they all got a pint. Figures that the ONE pub that we didn't go into was probably the best fit, and Alisha and Jake were inside having a pint. The streets of Belfast on a Friday night are dark, dirty, and full of wasted people (no matter what time) and kebab shops. Not my ideal city. When we were waiting for a stoplight to change, a homeless man with no teeth came up to me, got really really close, and asked me a question. I think it was something like, "Do you know where I can get a good pint?" Considering there are about 360 pubs per square inch in the United Kingdom, not to mention liquor stores, I just stared at him. When he got more forceful I just said, "I'm not from here" and ignored him. Sometimes here the "American" accent can get you more attention and trouble than you want, but thank God the light changed and we crossed the street. While this was going down, there was an Irish man on the street corner shouting racist comments at and spitting on a Somali man. I think that shook me more than the homeless man with no teeth. I didn't know what to do. I certainly couldn't get between the two. Irish men are scary when they're drunk, which, in my experience, is about 98% of the time.


People here are crazy fucks. Seriously. And not the good kind of crazy fuck. Last night was much better because Alisha and Jake were here. I was super tired, but Ariel, Jake, Alisha and I got Chinese food and went to Lavery's for some rugby and a pint. There were old men, piss drunk, grabbing Ariel's knee. This man didn't have any of the top joints on the fingers of his right hand. Honestly, men that age with injuries like that scare me because it pretty much signals an act of retribution from paramilitaries. Here is a little equation that illustrates the issue at hand (no pun intended):

Rugby+alcohol+camaraderie+man with no fingers(violent past) = UNCOMFORTABLE AMERICAN GIRLS IN THE CORNER

Okay, I'm done complaining. It's not as bad as it sounds, but it's not the opposite either.

Summation:

1. BELFAST IS NOT SUNSHINE AND BUTTERFLIES
2. DO NOT EAT AT CAFE INDIA ON MALONE ROAD
3. DON'T MAKE EYE CONTACT. STARE STRAIGHT AHEAD WHEN PASSING GROUPS.
4. IRISH MEN ARE THE WEIRDEST SOLICITORS EVER (MORE ON THAT LATER)
5. DON'T TALK TOO LOUDLY. YOU NEVER KNOW WHO "HATES AMERICANS"