A lesson in history

 

 I recently took a tour to Northern Ireland, which included a Historical/Political walking tour of Derry, the site of the infamous Bloody Sunday Massacre. It was fascinating to hear the stories of Northern Ireland's troubles from someone who lived through that era. It's one thing to read and research this information, but quite another to walk the streets where the events took place. The grafitti is on neighborhood buildings in the area known as 'Free Derry' which depicts various aspects of the troubles from social activism to molotov cocktails. Very powerful.

Howth

   

A few snapshots from the town Howth, a peaceful coastal community a short train ride outside of Dublin City Center. The weather was gorgeous that day, so I decided to soak up the sunshine and hike along the coast, where I met a friendly sea lion who was posing for pictures up and down the dock.



It's my last week???

A funny thing happens when you’re enjoying every single day…time flies! I looked at the calendar to plan my week and realized that I only have 1 week left of this amazing journey I’ve been on. It’s hard to believe my time in Ireland is coming to an end, after months of anticipation and planning. Everything about this trip, the people, the work, the scenery, has exceeded my expectations in the best possible way. It’s strange to think that just a few weeks ago, this city was unfamiliar, and this trip was just a date on my calendar. In a short time, this place has begun to feel like home – with friends, work and a routine that has become as comfortable and familiar as my life at home. I don’t want it to sound like my experience has become mundane by saying I have a comfortable routine. I just have settled into the country in a way that I didn’t expect to. I expected to feel like a tourist the entire time, but after learning how to navigate my way around, make new friends and get down to work, I feel at home.

Reflecting

Throughout my internship with YAP, I’ve been given the chance to do some one on one work with a few young people in Dublin around anger management. This area of counseling is something I’ve fallen into over the past few years of working with young people, and I have found I really enjoy it. I was a bit nervous when given the opportunity to do some one to one work with youth here because I didn’t know how receptive the young people would be to work with me. My experience in working with young people has taught me that being a new face is always a difficult barrier to get over. A lot of teens involved with programs such as YAP have had so many people in and out of their lives that a new face can often be ignored or resisted. Not only am I a new face to these young people, but I’m a social worker (in training) and not from the country.

I’ve also been able to attend some groups focused on youth participation, and have had some great conversations with young people around how they feel they’re being heard in a few aspects of their lives. Young people never cease to surprise me with how insightful they can be in coming up with solutions for their own problems. I think a lot of times, especially in social services, their voices are overlooked when it’s their opinion that usually matters the most. That’s what I appreciate the most about YAP is that the agency and the people that work for it really live the mission, and give young people an opportunity to be heard.



Greetings from Northern Ireland! This weekend I took a trip up to Belfast, Derry, the Giants Causeway and the Carrick-a-rede Rope Bridge. This photo was taken on a small rocky cliff after crossing the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge (which was only slightly terrifying). The views were magnificent, and the water was beautiful. I never cease to be amazed by the scenery here. I was recently talking with one of my roommates about this, and she related it to living in a fairy tale, and you know what, she's right.


Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, not the best activity for a windy day
but well worth the trip.



What's in a name?

Since arriving in Ireland, I've been asked many times if I have Irish descent because of my last name (Mahon), and I do. Then comes the next question: where is your family from? To be honest, I don't know. I never knew much about my family's heritage other than the fact that we had Irish relatives, and that's an embarassing answer. People here seem to have a very close connection to their family name and where their roots are, and while I've always been proud of my family and who we are, I didn't know much about where we came from. So when the opportunity arose to visit a heritage center came about, I jumped at the chance to learn more about my Mahon clan.

So a few things I learned about my family name. Mahon is one of the best known and most distinguished names in Ireland, and there's many variations of the name itself. The name itself comes from the older Gaelic word for bear (mathuin) and my family originates from County Clare and Ulster. I also found that our family motto is "Fortitude Preserved Me From Danger." Aside from this brief summary of my family history, I was able to get a more detailed version along with our family coat of arms. I feel really fortunate to have had the opportunity to not just learn where my family came from, but to have traveled through the area as well.

Bus-t a move

The past two weeks have been a whirlwind indeed! After a fantastic weeek working in the YAP Ireland office in Galway, I hopped a bus back to my home sweet hostel in Dublin to catch up with friends, unwind and prepare for my Spring Break plans. Being a first tkime solo traveler, I was back and forth on how to tackle my time off. should i try to hop around Europe? should I rent a car and try to make it on my own through Ireland? (difficult decisions, really). In the end I decided to book a 4 day bus tour of the Southwest region of Ireland, which is rumored to be some of the most beautiful landscape around.

County Clare
(Home of the Mahon clan)




'Beautiful' doesn't do this region justice. Enchanting and majical were the sweeping hills lined with rock walls, wild horses and waterfront views. The tour explored the cities of Galway, Killarney and Dublin with stops to charming villages along the Dingle peninsula. Fishing villages and quaint towns, with a stop in a small beachside town were all destinations along the tour. It's nice to step outside of the city and be in such peaceful, natural surroundings. Aside from gorgeous scenery, the tour was a great way to learn about Irish history and infromation about the towns we passed through. Our tour guide peppered in historical and comical stories of Ireland's history along the way, making for a truly enjoyable getaway.

Famine House
During the famine, houses like this were built for families in the area to get meager amounts of food in exchange for their 1 cent a day earnings.

Just hanging out with some horned sheep.

Kylemore Abbey
The photo doesn't do this place justice. Absolutely breathtaking Abbey that pops up out of its surroundings