Another day in the life of Mickey

            PLEASE ACCEPT MY APOLOGIES FOR THE DELAY

LAST NIGHT WAS HALLOWEEN… A little early right?

Well next week we are starting exams so they wanted to do Halloween early to make sure everyone got the chance to dress up and enjoy. Sonya and I dressed up as cowgirls, Brig was a creepy zombie. Niklas was a pirate and all the Spanish girls were vampires. It was kind of early for Halloween to be happening but at the same time it was fun to get dressed up. Nights like this are good because I have been getting very home sick lately and having things to do makes it easier to keep my mind off missing home. I am looking forward to a lot of things coming up in the future.  As well please note some of the other costumes J

Next week I have my only 2 exams ( I am not looking forward to those ) but I am happy that I only have two. After exams I am heading to Germany to spend some time with family I have out there. From there I meeting Sonya in Germany for a day where we will tour around with her family. Then comes the good stuff, Oct 24^th Niklas, Brig, Sonya and I are flying out to Milan Italy where we are going to start our weeks journey. We are going from Milan, to Venice, Bologna, Pisa, Florence, Tuscany and finishing our journeys in Rome Italy. I am so looking forward to this week because I LOVE ITALIAN FOOD. If I love Italian food in Canada I am so looking forward to having it in its homeland country Italy. And of course I am extremely looking forward to the amazing scenery that is going to be out there. Italy is the one place in the world I have always wanted to go and it is finally happening. Not only am I seeing Rome I am seeing a whole span of Italy it is going to be amazing. From there Sonya and I have more time off due to not having exams so we are planning on flying to Greece. As of right now we are sticking with this plan but we are keeping a close eye on what’s going on over there and if we can fly into the country as well if it is safe for us to fly into the country. I will be very disappointed if we cannot go because I have always wanted to go there as well but the danger is not worth it I can always come back so we will see how that works out.

As well something I just know you have all been waiting for…My flight home has been booked. You can all be graced with my presence soon after December 16^th 2011 as I will be coming back into town than. You are all so excited right, I know J

Anyways enough about that… the stuff you want to hear about

School

As much as I complain about being frustrated with the school system, people out here would love it. I have 4 classed which count as 5, the teachers are very understanding, classes are generally straightforward and easy, people are nice and its very relaxed. As well people looking for a challenge you will defiantly get it as well. Things are so broad that you really need to be independent to go on your own to understand what is being looked for, as well we have all worked in diverse groups but working in diverse groups in a foreign country is something new all in its own.

Updated news

I have two exams next week in business too business marketing and Dutch project economy. I am a little worried because I have never taken an exam out here and don’t really know what to expect but at the same time I am hoping to do well because I pay attention in class sand have been studying. That being said I cannot wait.. The school system out here as much as I hate it sometimes it does work in somewhat of my benefit. So the way it works is last week was my last week of classes was last week and now this week is study week (so only some people have classes), I do not have classes and thus have time to actually study. Next week I have 2 exams; Monday and Wednesday and then I am done. That means after exams on Wednesday I go to Germany, come home, Got to Italy for a week (week break for all students) and then exam week again but I have no exams so thus I will hopefully be in Greece. I than start school again Nov 8^th and really only have one month left. I do want to warn people thinking of coming here to please look into the semester time changes and make sure it can somehow work for you, but if you can do it very worth it trust me.

Alright enough about school right..

I know you guys all want to hear about Ireland.

Travelling every weekend has been so amazing. It has allowed me to meet new people, really get to know new people, see so many different places and learn about their history and experience things you just can’t experience by just reading. We have been going to the capitals of cities because they are usually best known and have the most tourist stuff to see. In Ireland we did something a little different, we went to the capital Dublin and we as well made our way out o the country and a seaside town called Greystones. Dublin in my mind honestly was nothing special. It had everything you expect in a city. What I did like about Dublin was the pub atmosphere. When we arrived on Saturday night we did a pub crawl with Tom from the Odette school of business and that was very fun. We went to all different types of clubs and pubs. We did about 4 or 5 anywhere in-between a pub and a club. The clubs were the same in Ireland as they are all over the world and in Canada. But the pubs in Ireland I found had such a great atmosphere. They played live music and they were crowded (which I don’t like ) but at the same time the happy feeling you got there was great. That is definitely an experience worth having. As well the funniest thing about that night would have to be how many Canadians I met. On our pub crawl the dominant culture was definitely Canada as every other person I met was from a different part of Canada. J We had Ontario, BC, Saskatchewan, Quebec it was fun and exciting 
to meet other Canadians.

The other thing that was cool to see in Dublin would have to be the Guinness house. I had never tried Guinness before and for that reason it was so cool to have my first real Guinness experience in its home country. I am sad to say that even being in its home country the beer did not taste any better. The experience was cool and interesting to learn about but the beer did not do it for me. We walked around the city like always; saw all the major buildings there is to see attempted to see all monuments and churches and all the average stuff they say you need to see while being in Dublin. Definitely the best and most interesting thing done in Dublin would have to be the Kilmainham Gaol (Jail). This is where all the prisoners used to be kept until it was shut down for being to many bad memories and inhumane. We learned a lot about Ireland’s history within the wars, with England, their own riots and how Ireland really became who they are today. We saw where famous prisoners were kept and learned how they handled people back then. It was probably one of the most interesting history lessons I have ever learned and as well it was amazing to see up close and first hand.

Now moving on to the real Ireland I loved. Although we didn’t get much time we did make our way out for a day to the country side. This is the Ireland I definitely want to go back to and spend time really exploring and enjoying. It was beautiful, the hills, and houses, water and rocks just the whole scenery was so beautiful and exactly what I wanted to see that I loved it. I will definitely be making my way back to Ireland sometime in my life (well I hope) and spending the time out in the country.

This is an experience of a lifetime.
Although I am home sick every single day and I am counting down the days to be with family and friends again I cannot deny for any second that the experience and learning’s I am gaining are beyond words. Or if I were a MasterCard commercial
Flight 2000 dollars
Trips 5000 dollars
Shopping 2000 dollars
Memories, friends and experience; PRICELESS

(Please not these numbers are made up)

If anyone reading this is thinking about doing an exchange please do it. It’s something I promise you won’t regret

Oh and how can I forget.... As anyone who knows me or you have all learned quickly throughout this blog I love to eat food. Unfortunately this year I was very sad I was missing thanksgiving and turkey dinner. Luckily fellow Canadian and Holiday fanatic Sonya insisted we make our own thanksgiving dinner. Man am I happy she was. So they do not have turkey out here so we made chicken instead, but chicken potatoes corn, friends and a really good time. If I couldn't be home for thanksgiving I am sure thankful for having a small celebration here. (As well it was Niklas Birthday)

As well I am thankful for;

My Boyfriend who is the most amazing person ever

My friends ( all the old and all the new )

My family because without family I would be very sad and they have all been so supportive throughout this

Love you MOM AND DAD... and yes Sue this includes you :) 

This experience, and the Odette School of Business and University of Windsor for really allowing me to take advantage of the opportunities

Pretty much everyone in my life and all the things I have done I am thankful for because with out each and every single one I wouldn't be who I am today and right now

THANK YOU ALL FOR MAKING MY LIFE INCREDIBLE