Pre-Flight. Once I made the choice to study abroad in Ireland, and was accepted into the program, I began making small lists for myself of things I needed to accomplish before I left. I found that this helped motivate and remind me of things that I needed to take care of. To book my flight I used Kayak.com to compare prices from different airlines and my parents helped me book my final tickets. My pre-Ireland check list: I saw my doctor to get a 3 months supply of my prescriptions. I talked to my car insurance company and froze my insurance until May so I could save money. I also talked to my phone company and decided to freeze my phone account to save money until I got back. I'm waiting to purchase a cheap track phone in Ireland before I do that and because I have an iphone I can still face-time and use imessage. Also something that my mom pushed for, and I'm glad I did, was to change US currency into Euros while I was still in the states so I wouldn't have to worry about finding a bank here to exchange money right off the bat. I went to Wells Fargo and Converted 300$ into euro which ended up being around 250 Euros. It was super helpful when we landed and took our first trips into town that I didn't have to stress about having some cash. I also set up a travel account with a temporary credit card through my bank. It is basically a secondary account that I can transfer money from my checking account into but if for some reason my card was lost or stolen, they wouldn't be able to use that card to access all of my information. I also talked with my attorney and signed papers making sure I had a declared power of attorney. Just in case something happened I wanted to make sure i wouldn't have to worry about what would happen or who would be in charge of my things.
Once all the big things were handled I started to make a packing list. Ireland has different outlets so I invested in a couple converters before I left as well as a small portable battery charger incase i didn't have access to an outlet. I made sure to pack some rainy weather stuff like a rain coat, hat and gloves. As well and fingernail clippers, make-up remover and other random stuff. Having a checklist made packing much smoother so i didn't feel like I was forgetting something. On the flight you are allowed 1 checked bag that is 50 lbs or less, One carry on that has to fit above your head in the compartment and a backpack or backpack sized personal item that has to go under the seat in front of you. I wish I would have double checked my large bag on a scale at home before I went to the airport. It ended up being only a few pounds over but I still had to check a second bag which cost around 100$.
Flight
The flight we booked did have a lot of layover time. I packed a few books which helped pass the extra time on the flight and while waiting. I wish I would have packed snacks in my carry on tho so I wouldn't have had to buy food in the airport. It was crazy expensive. The first two flights were relatively short but the final flight from Newark to Ireland was around 6 hours. When we flew it was dark so we couldn't see a whole lot. I tried to sleep as much as I could on this flight.
1st Impressions:
Once we landed in Shannon airport we had to go through customs so you will need to have your passport handy when you land. Then it was around an hour and a half long bus trip to get to Park Lodge where we are staying. Inside the cottage there is limited storage space. Our room has one small closed that is wide enough for around 15 hangers worth of stuff. It would have been beneficial to bring small pop up boxes or something to store extra stuff in or clothing items that can't be hung but as for now we are both still using our suit cases for that stuff. We have been fortunate that it hasn't been raining but at night it does get very dark walking back from town wouldn't have been easier if we had brought a flashlight. I also wish I had brought thicker socks and gloves. It hasn't been terribly cold during the day but when we've been outside at night it has been fairly cold. My first impression it that it is a beautiful country thus far. Im excited to continue to explore further.
Once all the big things were handled I started to make a packing list. Ireland has different outlets so I invested in a couple converters before I left as well as a small portable battery charger incase i didn't have access to an outlet. I made sure to pack some rainy weather stuff like a rain coat, hat and gloves. As well and fingernail clippers, make-up remover and other random stuff. Having a checklist made packing much smoother so i didn't feel like I was forgetting something. On the flight you are allowed 1 checked bag that is 50 lbs or less, One carry on that has to fit above your head in the compartment and a backpack or backpack sized personal item that has to go under the seat in front of you. I wish I would have double checked my large bag on a scale at home before I went to the airport. It ended up being only a few pounds over but I still had to check a second bag which cost around 100$.
Flight
The flight we booked did have a lot of layover time. I packed a few books which helped pass the extra time on the flight and while waiting. I wish I would have packed snacks in my carry on tho so I wouldn't have had to buy food in the airport. It was crazy expensive. The first two flights were relatively short but the final flight from Newark to Ireland was around 6 hours. When we flew it was dark so we couldn't see a whole lot. I tried to sleep as much as I could on this flight.
1st Impressions:
Once we landed in Shannon airport we had to go through customs so you will need to have your passport handy when you land. Then it was around an hour and a half long bus trip to get to Park Lodge where we are staying. Inside the cottage there is limited storage space. Our room has one small closed that is wide enough for around 15 hangers worth of stuff. It would have been beneficial to bring small pop up boxes or something to store extra stuff in or clothing items that can't be hung but as for now we are both still using our suit cases for that stuff. We have been fortunate that it hasn't been raining but at night it does get very dark walking back from town wouldn't have been easier if we had brought a flashlight. I also wish I had brought thicker socks and gloves. It hasn't been terribly cold during the day but when we've been outside at night it has been fairly cold. My first impression it that it is a beautiful country thus far. Im excited to continue to explore further.