Welcome!

Welcome to my blog! My name is Kylee and I am absolutely ecstatic to be heading to Ireland soon to study abroad. I’m currently sitting in my house in Maxwell, NE with my family and I don’t think the idea of living in another country for 3 months has fully set in. 

When creating my blog, I wanted to make it personal. My family is a huge part of my life and leaving them for 3 months is not a happy thought. So, I incorporated them into my blog title thanks to my grandma. 

This was on the front of the most recent birthday card I received from her. She’s always been supportive of my adventures; often the first to ask for pictures and itineraries. She pushes me to continue to travel, even when I’m scared to take the leap or the idea seems out of reach. So, this is for you Grandma Meyer. Though I like to go everywhere, home is where my family is. 

A little about me before we dive into how I’ve been preparing for the trip. I am a senior studying Recreation Management at UNK and will graduate in July! It was a wild ride with about 6 changes to my major before finding one that I truly love. After college, I plan to work for the National Park Service or in community recreation. In addition to enjoying the outdoors, I’m an artist and avid animal lover. I love traveling; mostly hiking and camping across the country. So far, I’ve visited 9 National Parks and have plans to get to 3-4 more this year still! Despite my experience traveling across the U.S., Ireland will be my first time going out of the country.

With that being said, the things I’ve done to prepare might be a little overboard. I’m not entirely sure what to expect so I want to be ready for anything. Here are a few things I did to make myself feel as ready as possible:

Items I’ve Bought

I’ve been told Ireland has a much slower pace of life; something I’m truly looking forward to having. I feel that life is a mad rush and slowing down sounds so appealing. I’d like to do more journaling to document my time in Ireland and try a couple new things. 

Converter: Your U.S. power cords won’t fit in the outlets in Ireland. I bought my converter from Amazon and it has multiple outlets as well as USB ports so I can read on my phone or go through pictures.

Cards: I’ve never been much of a card player, but I’m willing to learn!  

Embroidery: I bought a couple embroidery kits to learn how to embroider. 

Bible Study: My mom bought me a new Bible study for Christmas that I intend to complete while overseas.

First Aid Kit: I made a mini first aid kit with cough drops, Tylenol, Midol, Suphedrine, bandaids, and Neosporin. I’m hoping all these things help me get a jump on whatever may be ailing me until I can get to a doctor. 

What I’ve Done

Waterproofing: Ireland is wet and rainy quite often. I’ve waterproofed my tennis shoes, backpack, and coat rather than buying new, waterproof stuff. Just one can of aerosolized spray covered all of them really well.

Reading Area Newspapers

I’ve been trying to read the Connacht Tribune Newspaper out of Galway and The Irish Times Newspaper out of Dublin 2-3 times a week to keep up to date on what’s happening in the country (Brexit is really big right now).

Doctor Visits

I met with my general doctor to talk about the trip. While there, she prescribed 4 months of my regular medications. Additionally, she is aware of my frequent sinus infections, so she prescribed an antibiotic to be used in case of emergency.

It was also perfectly timed that my yearly eye doctor appointment takes place in January. I exclusively wear glasses, so I made sure to get my prescription information from my doctor and I’m taking an extra pair of old glasses with me in case something happens to my current pair. 

The Folder of Important Documents

Ann Marie, the UNK Study Abroad Coordinator, gave us some papers intended for Customs Officials to explain why we’re in Ireland as well as information about our insurance while abroad. I also put passport copies, my flight information, emergency contacts, medications, prescriptions, and medical history in the folder as well. 

Randoms

I’ve been looking into activities to do while in Spiddal. A great resource I’ve found for things to do is The Park Lodge Hotel website. A couple funs things I’ve found thus far include windsurfing and a few National Parks nearby. Stay tuned to see if we have time for them!

A big part of the program is our community connection program. This is intended to help us make a connection with the community we live in rather than just performing community service. The Spiddal Craft Village is looking like a fantastic option!

As I said before, the people in my life are amazing and I know I’m going to miss them dearly. So I’ve printed a few pictures of my family, boyfriend, and friends to take with me. It’s one thing to have them on your phone but having physical pictures makes them more prominent.

And remember to be adaptable. This is not something I’m good at applying to myself. I’m a planner; I prefer to have everything in order and have about 5 different back up plans. But for right now, I’ve done what I can but I’m keeping in mind that plans change. I often have to remind myself that I can buy any forgotten or random items in Ireland or have my family send what I need. 

It’s crazy to think that the next time I write, I’ll be sitting in Ireland! Between now and then, myself and 4 other study abroad pals will be heading to Iceland for a week and then onto Dublin for our own tour before we go as a class. I’ll be sure to fill you in on all things Iceland and Ireland! Until next time,

                                                                         Kylee