Goodbye Dublin and Hello Naas

Picture of Jose Banegas
Study Abroad to Internship

After spending 4 weeks in Dublin for the DCUISS 2019 program, Naas has definitely given me a different feeling on being in Ireland. If you have ever been to Dublin you know it is not smart to walk everywhere since there is a very good bus system that can take you where ever you want in the city. In Naas, you can walk everywhere. Even though Naas is fairly small it is not all that bad.

My Host Family

I got lucky with my homestay because my walk to work is only 6 minutes and I am walking right next to a canal. If you are lucky you might see a wild horse and its baby walking down on the other side. Not only is my homestay close to my internship, it is also filled with an amazing host family. I am sure they are trying to fatten me up because every meal covers the entire plate. I have eaten pork, roasted chicken, shepherds pie, trifle, and even hamburgers. One of my favorite things about this internship so far is being able to stay in an Irish household. There are so many things that I would not have in my home that they have here. For example, to turn on the shower you have to pull this string that is connected to the ceiling until the light turns on and then you have to hit the power button in the shower. I never thought showers could have power buttons!

Trail to work every morning
Canal I get to pass by everyday
Galway

After completing my 1st of 6 weeks of my internship we went to Galway to interview and meet other interns. This would officially be my 3rd time in Galway. Once with my school in 2015 and once with DCUISS. The interviews only took about an hour, so we had the rest of the day to explore and relax until heading to the Cliffs of Moher the next morning. After being dropped off in the city center we went looking for food. We eventually found Fat Freddy’s and decided this was the place. They had a variety of options to choose from and I ended up going with the Salami Sambo, which is just like a sandwich. The most amusing thing that I found on the menu was a Pint of Milk. Once satisfied we made our way to our hostel, not going to lie by saying I was a little nervous going to my first hostel. All went well though and I have no complaints besides it being 1000 degrees in that room.

Cliffs of Moher

The next morning we met up with the other interns in Galway to head for the Cliffs of Moher. The trip went well and we got to see much more of the country than I have seen all trip. Our bus driver took many back roads so the view was very different than what we saw with DCUISS. After a 2 hour trip on the bus, plus a stop for lunch we finally made it to the Cliffs of Moher. We were blessed with so much fog that you could only see portions of the cliffs at one given time. I am not surprised to hear people have fallen off the cliffs before because people were getting very close to the edge. I was not as daring but I did find a spot that if you angled your camera right it would look like you were hanging off. My parents would kill me if I fell. We finally got back to Galway and caught our train to Naas.

Cliffs of Moher
A foggy view
Standing on a big ledge trying to act I am hanging off
1st week done

Finished off the week with sleeping in until noon, watching the USA Women’s Soccer team win the world cup against Netherlands, and eating too much cheesecake.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Don't miss new updates on your email