The Home-Stay Weekend

Dia duit! So I've just returned from Gorey, Ireland in the county of Wexford, where I spent a weekend with a "homestay" family. The weekend was all organized by Arcadia, my study-abroad program. So Friday I hopped on a bus along with the rest of the Arcadia girls and went on the 1 1/2 hour drive down to Gorey. There, I met Patricia and her two daughters--Holly and Maelle. Holly is an adorable 4-year-old and Maelle is a very energetic and sociable 12-year-old. They live in a very cozy house in a neighborhood full of children that all know each other; it was pretty common for children to randomly come in to Patricia's home, and for Maelle to go over to neighboring houses to visit her friends.

Holly, age 4.

Patricia was very friendly and chatty. I learned that both her children attend an Irish school (where they speak Irish instead of English), which I thought was awesome. Apparently it's pretty common to have schools like that in Ireland, which is just neat. I thought that it was funny that, upon meeting us, Maelle and her friends immediately began asking us things about America, especially if we'd been to Hollywood or knew any famous movie stars or singers.

Saturday morning we went to the downtown part of Gorey, which is a main street similar to the one in Maynooth. Maelle and her friends were the ones to escort us around town (it was mildly amusing that Carly and I, twenty-one-year-old college students, put our lives in the hands of twelve-year-olds, ha). Maelle took us to try on perfume, and look at funny Halloween costumes, and into a sweet shop FILLED with about every kind of candy imaginable. We met up with some of the other Arcadia girls, who were coming in from their own families. It was a beautiful morning.

Gorey's Main Street. The children in blue are Maelle and her friends.

Later, in the afternoon, Carly and I went with Patricia and Holly in order to drop Holly off at the birthday party of one of her friends. While Holly was at the party, the rest of us went to a nearby very-fancy hotel and looked severely under-dressed while ordering some coffee (the hotel was hosting a wedding!). After coffee Patricia, Carly and looked at the scenery and found a secluded trail that (according to the signs) would eventually lead us to the beach. Unfortunately, the nature trail was so long that we ended up having to turn back before we actually found the beach. We went to pick Holly back up from her party but ended up staying around for nearly an hour, talking with the other parents and watching the children play. Two of the little girls even showed us some "Irish Dancing".

Sunday morning it was rainy and the wind was ferocious. Patricia treated Carly and I to an "Irish breakfast", which consisted of delicious food like eggs, sausage, beans and brown bread. I very much enjoyed it. After that, we pretty much relaxed around the house and then said our goodbyes before boarding the bus and heading back to Maynooth.

Me, Patricia, and her daughter, Holly.

I had a lot of fun with my homestay family. I thought it was a nice glimpse into the day-to-day life in Ireland. I got to meet several groups of parents at the birthday party and listen to them talk about the various happenings in Ireland. Patricia and her daughters were very welcoming and it was a great weekend, not to mention a nice break from school!

Irish Word of the Day:   family -- teaghlaigh
I stayed with a very nice family. -- D'fhan mé le teaghlach an-deas.