there is no place like Dublin

So, while I'm sitting here tonight listening to the first Husker game of the season (that's a big sad-face right there), I figure I could at least delineate some of the things I have learned about Dublin in the last week.

• According to the Irish, this is one of the coldest, wettest, and generally worst summers on record. Other than it being overcast all the time, it's been fine with me; when I tell them that it is generally over 30° C (86° F) in Nebraska in the summer, they usually respond with something like "Oh, Jay-sus!".


• The Irish are pretty keen on their bureaucracy, especially when it comes to banking. In an effort to prevent money laundering, I had to provide proof-of-residence to get a bank account. For me, since I'm a student at Trinity College, the easiest accepted proof would be a letter from Trinity stating that I'm a student and listing both my address back home and my address here in Dublin. However, since I'm not registered yet (and can't register until late September), Trinity College policy wouldn't allow them to provide such a letter. So, what it came down to was that I couldn't get an account until I registered, couldn't register until I paid my fees, and couldn't pay my fees until I had a bank account. It sounds bad, I know, but the key to any bureaucracy is to find the person who's far enough from the center that they don't really care about policy yet still is close enough to have appropriate authority. It only took me a couple of days to track that down, so huzzah for a new, Irish bank account!


• In St. Stephen's Green park, just south of Trinity's campus, they have a little photo exhibit thing titled "Wild Poland" showing pictures of Polish wildlife and natural parks. Apparently, there's a pretty sizable Polish presence in Dublin, which is fun.


• There's a place on Grafton Street (which is a pedestrian-only shopping area/tourist trap) called "Capt. America's". Despite their claims to have brought over Ireland's first American-style burger, the burgers aren't very good. It's not that the beef here is bad, per se, but the hamburger is just off somehow. Also, I was told that they don't really pluck their chickens all that well, so the chicken wings you buy at the grocery stores sometimes still have bits of feather. I'll have to check the butcher down the street to see if it's the same there.


• Living with an Italian (my Dutch roommate is in San Francisco right now, and is subletting his room) leads to good dinners. Apparently, Irish food is not up to the standards of southern Europe, which is fine with me--I like pasta!


• When it comes to Gaelic football (which I have yet to experience), the Cork vs. Kerry match is about as heated as it gets. The whole city center was covered with fans last weekend. Not quite like downtown Lincoln on a game day, but still...

Anyway, that's pretty much all I can tell you so far. I'll learn more as I go, I expect, and hopefully I'll be able to head out to the rest of the island soon. I think tomorrow I might brave the bus system to get to a BBQ/college football watch party with some other American ex-patriots. Wish me luck...