Study Abroad, Day 5

Today was another great day. We got up at about 8am, ate breakfast, & then had a lecture at 10am. We had three sessions in a row that were held upstairs in Inch House. It was so handy! There is a classroom upstairs here that we are able to use & we fit perfectly. We first heard from Tony, the owner of Inch House. He began by talking about the Queen visiting Ireland & the feelings he & others had about it. He then gave us a brief overview of Ireland's history. Next, we heard from a man named William, who is a professor at the University of Ulster. He also spoke about Ireland's history. Lastly, John spoke.

John Gunthy (?) has been with us since the beginning. He took us on the tour of Belfast, & rides along with us. He is such a nice guy & you can tell he has lived an interesting life. He spoke about the more recent history in Ireland & also about his experiences during the Troubles. He was assaulted when he was 12 & later was falsely accused of murder 9 people in a bar. The most amazing part is that after having so many bad experiences, he is still positive & wants peace. It was such a powerful talk!

We had soup for lunch that was delicious. It didn't have meat, which was so nice for me & Ang. They have been so great about having a vegetarian option for us each meal. I really appreciate how accommodating they have been. We played some Phase 10 during a break, went & visited some sheep, & just had a great day. We ate dinner at 6pm & then some of us went on the bus for a little journey. We first stopped at a market to pick up some snacks & then we headed to a concert about thirty minutes away. Tony's son is in a band & they were playing nearby next to a bridge. It was so much fun! It was a charity fashion show & the music was great. It was a fun little trip to take.

Tomorrow we have a super long day. The bus is leaving at 6:30am & we probably wont get home till like 10pm. Crazy! I'll be so tired! Me & Ang called my momma tonight & it was so great to hear her voice! She had to head to a meeting, but we were able to talk for a few minutes. I miss her! Love you momma! (She reads my blog... In case you were wondering...)