Ireland: Allie Bacholl (Daily Life in Limerick)

Since arriving in Ireland three weeks ago, my daily schedule and habits have changed more than I thought they would. The food that I eat daily has not changed much, but I have been drinking much more tea and coffee. I think this is mostly due to the electric kettle that the apartment was provided with which makes these beverages quicker to make.

Back home, I enjoy doing some amateur bird watching, so being able to see all the different kinds of birds over here has been exciting, especially since many of the birds do not migrate in the winter like they do in Wisconsin. So far I have seen a lot of Rooks and White Wagtails on campus, and, in my opinion, the Eurasian Bullfinch is the prettiest bird I have seen so far.

When I first arrived, I was amazed by the number of structures made from stone from King John’s Castle in the center of Limerick to the miles of stone walls. There is a walking path on campus that follows the Shannon River and eventually reaches Limerick City. Just a short way down the path, there are these old stone ruins that I unintentionally happened upon. It is a nice spot to stop and relax since you have the stone ruins on one side, and the river on the other where there are a lot of birds you can watch, especially ducks and swans. I looked up the place on Google and it turns out to be the ruins of an old mill. A few times a week, I take a walk along this path, and each time I take a break here to admire the stone and vines.

 

Allie Bacholl

Hometown: Chili, Wisconsin

Major: Computer Engineering

Program: University of Limerick

While at Madison, I took folklore classes along with my computer engineering classes that I thoroughly enjoyed, so I decided to pursue a certificate in folklore. The University of Limerick offers various classes about Irish folklore and folk music that I look forward to taking and which allow me to finish the folklore certificate.