Most teenagers can’t stand being on a 2 week-long vacation with their family, however, this vacation was the best one yet. Mom, Dad, Grace (my sister), Aidan (my brother), Kevin (my sister’ fiancé), and I left on June 29th of 2014 to Ireland. We were going go to visit my Dad’s side of the family, and even do a bit of sight-seeing. Before the plane took off, I was immensely eager and even a bit uneasy; but as the plane soared through the atmosphere, my thoughts of being scared drifted away and my excitement took over.  As you can imagine, Ireland’s culture is so much different from the U.S. culture in an unlimited amount of ways. From the climate and weather to the slang and speech, Irish culture thrives with unique quirks and exotic ways of living.
One of the first things I noticed as the plane descended towards Ireland was the breath-taking natural beauty: never-ending green fields of all different shades, wandering livestock, and the beautiful sunrise reflecting off the dancing waters. My eyes were glued to the plane window and my camera was snapping away. I don’t get to see that kind of beauty in the state Rhode Island. When my uncle and aunt picked us up at the airport and drove us to their house, we experienced driving on the left side of the road. It felt so strange and it is quite scary because you feel as if you’re going to crash. When we got to the house, we mostly sat and relaxed for the whole day. I went to a park and played soccer with my little Irish cousins, or as they call it, “football”.

Although Irish people speak the same language as us, their slang and use of words can be very different from Americans’. For example, they call the trunk of a car a “boot”, they call a sweater a “jumper”, and they call a field “the green”. Also, they call the bathroom “the toilet”, and French fries “chips”. There are so many more Irish slang terms but the list would go on forever.

While we were in Ireland, we got very lucky with the weather, considering how it typically is there. Although Ireland is such a happy place, the weather isn't always so cheerful. Most of the time it’s cloudy or raining, but when we arrived, it was bright and sunny for four days straight! However, even though it’s mainly cloudy, Ireland barely gets any snow in the winter, unlike snowy and frigid New England. The climate of Ireland does have a connection with Irish people’s appearances. The Irish have pale complexions with lighter eyes, usually blue or green, and typically lighter hair; this is because the sun is hardly ever out.

One of my favorite things about Ireland is the people. To me, they seem so much more friendly, social, and inviting than some of the people in the U.S. For example, they would stop in at a neighbor’s house for tea and talk with you for a while. Also, let’s just say the Irish love their drinks (beer), especially the popular Guinness, which is brewed in Dublin. In fact, my family and I took a trip to the Guinness and the Jameson (whiskey) factories during our trip to downtown Dublin.

After visiting Ireland, I have the biggest desire to live there. It is the most beautiful destination with the most astonishing landmarks and places. I got to visit the most breath-taking views and famous, cultural sites such as – the Cliffs of Moher, Bunratty Castle, the Vee, Kilmainham Gaol, and so much more.  The experiences and adventures you take in from traveling to a different country are fascinating. Discovering the different accents, customs, ways of living, and quirks is one of the most compelling things I've ever encountered. To conclude, while Ireland and the U.S. are culturally different and it can be a challenge to adapt to the Irish way of living, for me it was an exhilarating experience.