Christ Church Cathedral was by far the most spectacular thing I've seen yet. I'm enamored with the age of everything in the city. I'm generally someone who's into that sort of stuff anyway - I read historical nonfiction, I like antique stores, I buy retro furniture for my apartment, I'm never technologically up to date. To my delight, age and history are incorporated into everyday life here. Christ Church Cathedral is almost 1,000 years old. Originally built in 1030, it is directly descended from both celtic and medieval Christianity. Henry VIII took Christ Church Cathedral with him when he broke from Rome in the 1530s and the church passed through the Reformation. But people still celebrate mass in it today. In fact, townhouses are seated right next door. There's a parking garage across the street for nearby office buildings. I love that this much history is encountered - and utilized - everyday here. The States don't do that; young couples need to build new houses in new subdivisions; shopping malls are torn down and replaced with new strip malls; old cars are scrapped for the latest models; gentrification plagues most major cities. Not that I'm so naive as to think that Dubliners don't embrace the new as well, but, let's be serious: my dorm room has a fireplace in it. There's a clear appreciation for antiquity here.
Of course, being law students we also visited a few pubs this weekend and had the opportunity to chat with some locals (and partake in a few rounds of Guinness). The accent is becoming clearer to me, which is a relief - classes start tomorrow and I was afraid my professors' lectures would be lost on me.
Yes, that's right, classes start tomorrow. We are here to study, after all. Media Regulation, Food and Drug in the WTO, and Intro to Common Law are all on the slate for me (can you guess which class is undergraduate level?). My hopes are high for Food and Drug Law. From the syllabus it appears that a case study on genetically modified foods might be in store for us, and I'm looking forward to it.
Cheers!
- CAC
Of course, being law students we also visited a few pubs this weekend and had the opportunity to chat with some locals (and partake in a few rounds of Guinness). The accent is becoming clearer to me, which is a relief - classes start tomorrow and I was afraid my professors' lectures would be lost on me.
Yes, that's right, classes start tomorrow. We are here to study, after all. Media Regulation, Food and Drug in the WTO, and Intro to Common Law are all on the slate for me (can you guess which class is undergraduate level?). My hopes are high for Food and Drug Law. From the syllabus it appears that a case study on genetically modified foods might be in store for us, and I'm looking forward to it.
Cheers!
- CAC
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