Kinsale

Alright, so we went to Kinsale on Sunday, and while we ended up not doing the harbor cruise, it was immensely fun. Instead of going on the cruise, we wandered around the actual town and went to an old battle fort which was fantastic. It's right on the coast and when you are at the top of it you can see all of Kinsale and the surrounding countryside, which, of course, is gorgeous. Here are some pictures.










Ok, well I've been told that I never actually disclosed which classes I am registered for here, I thought I had, but since I haven't, here they are. I am taking Irish Traditional Music, Modern Music in Ireland, Irish History, Celtic Literature, Intro to Modern Irish(Gaelic), Irish Harp, and Step Dancing. I would list Janelle's classes too, but I am not sure exactly what all of them are. I LOVE all my classes. In my traditional music class, my instructor actually plays alot of the Irish instruments, so she demonstrates them to us, which is fascinating to watch. She played the Uilean Pipes the other day, which are the Irish version of the bagpipes, invented during the time when the Irish weren't allowed to do anything Irish, including playing music, so they invented a version of the pipes that are alot quieter so they could play them indoors to hide it.

I really like my Irish language class too. Here is a sample of what I learned the first day. Is mise Jennifer, is as Oregon me. Translation: I am Jennifer, I am from Oregon. If you want to know how to pronounce it, I'll try and write it phonetically. Es misha Jennifer, es ahs Oregon meh. Hmm...what else? Oh, my harp class. I really like it so far, but I am struggling because in Ireland they play the harp differently, they position their hands much closer to the harp and do not move there arms as much, which is very awkward to me. I am having to unlearn everything my harp teacher taught me in the states and learn it a different way. But, it's alright, I suppose since I do have an Irish harp, I should learn to play it as the Irish do.

Well, that's all for now. I'll write again soon.