As I sit in the car quietly laughing at my parents trying to figure out how to drive on the opposite side of the road, I’m trying to find the words to describe this experience. Of course the things that come to mind are cliché: life changing, amazing, so much fun, etc., but this trip was much more than any of that. It was a bucket list, once in a lifetime experience. This trip brought me to places I never even knew existed, it brought me 8 incredible friends, it brought me an extreme amount of “craic”, it brought me reassurance, and it brought me motivation. I’ve officially been reassured that I’m in the right career path. I can now see from different perspectives (from all over the world) how important it is to help others. I’ve gained a different sense of motivation, of course motivation to pursue my dreams, but also motivation to help others pursue theirs. The conference was filled with incredible people, all striving to make a difference and I want to join them in that journey.
Aside from the growth in a professional sense, this trip allowed me to go outside of my comfort zone and fine peace in new surroundings. I was able to meet all kinds of people: some from Ireland, and some that I’ve been walking the streets of state college with for years now. These 8 girls that I’ve spent my time with are all so different, and I don’t know if I ever would’ve met them if it weren’t for this trip. Thank god I did because I never stopped laughing with them. Whether it was over Lauren attempting to Irish dance, or Grace saying one of her famous one-liners, or Megan nearly crying over monkeys at the zoo, I enjoyed every second with them. Who would’ve thought that 9 random girls could get along so well? I definitely didn’t, but I never hesitated to walk across a scary rope bridge with them, or sing along to a song at Temple Bar with them, or climb up the narrow stairs of a castle with them.
It’s sad to say goodbye to the trip of a lifetime, but I’m certain I’ll be back to Dublin some day. (Ignore the fact that I’ll still be around Ireland for a week with my parents, it’s not the same as frolicking freely with the girls).
krf5192
Day three of the International Disability Summer School and I can absolutely say this is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. Of course it is, because I’m just in the beginning stages of my career and all of the people I’m surrounded by are incredibly intelligent, experienced, and established. It’s really amazing to be here as a student learning so many things from these motivational speakers. Everyone at the conference has done so much and is doing so much to help the disability community.
One of my favorite parts of this experience so far has been listening to and talking to Tom Harkin. I was so interested to learn about how Harkin helped write the ADA and implement it. The ADA is one of the most influential pieces of legislation affecting individuals with disabilities; so being in the presence of someone who worked so closely with it was incredible. Not to mention I got to sit and chat with a retired US Senator, who I found out, after googling him, has met President Obama, former President Reagan, former President Carter, and more. Tom Harkin is a pretty big deal.
It’s a bit intimidating being around all of these important people, but it’s so amazing that we get to be thrown in the mix of people from all over the world. Here we are, a group from good old State College and we’re sitting in a room with individuals from Iceland, Denmark, Swaziland, Georgia, Colombia, Kenya, and more. I’m so excited to be getting different perspectives on disability and the CRPD. Now I can one up all of my classmates and show them all of the new information I learned from varying countries.
krf5192
Our trip to Friends of the Elderly was definitely one of my favorites so far. Their fun attitudes were contagious and I think we all left smiling ear to ear. It was great getting to sit down and chat with them and then being able to join them in their weekly singing and dancing hangouts. After an afternoon of fun with the elderly, it was off to Galway.
So far, I’m really enjoying Galway. We’ve done a bit of exploring the city and it’s so cute! It’s like a smaller Dublin, but they still have so much to do. We wasted no time to start shopping and enjoying the delicious food. Today we ventured out in the pouring rain to go to the market in the city centre. Although the rain scared away a lot of the vendors, we all still enjoyed it and purchased some cool things.
As per usual, we took a few bus tours. One bus tour was to the Cliffs of Moher, which I absolutely loved. They were incredibly beautiful and well worth the hike. It was a little bit scary standing near the edge, but I could’ve laid on my stomach overlooking the water for hours. Our second tour was to the Aran Islands, which were really incredible. It was so interesting to learn about the history of the islands while traveling throughout the entire area. I’m so happy that all of the girls are so easy going and we get to explore the country together.
krf5192
Although this week is short, and a bit bittersweet leaving Dublin, it has been really great. Our site visits on Monday and Tuesday were short, sweet, and to the point, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t great. They were both such different atmospheres and it was so interesting to learn about each of them. I love the idea of horseback riding lessons for individuals with disabilities, I’ve always heard such great therapeutic stories about horses. Also, the Deaf village was incredibly interesting to me because I have taken classes based on deafness and I could relate a lot of what she talked about to what I learned in class. I love the fact that there is a whole village for the Deaf community to share.
After the site visit we unfortunately got stuck in the downpour of the day as we were headed to Guinness. Unfortunately, our travels took a bit longer than expected so some of us hopped off the bus and skipped Guinness to get tattoos.
krf5192
Our site visit to St. Michael’s Raheny School on Thursday was one of my favorite visits so far. I loved getting an inside look on such a specialized school. We were given a tour of the school, which is a beautiful facility. They have so much space and such great accommodations for the students. My favorite things about the school were the sensory room and the soft-play room. The sensory room was just a small, quiet room, with cushions and different lights and calming sounds. I could’ve probably spent hours in there, but it’s amazing that they have it available to suit the students’ needs. It was so fun getting to interact with some of the students too. They seemed to really enjoy their time at the school, and they were interested to see a group of Americans walking around the halls. Everything about this school led me to wonder how it compares to schools in the United States. I’m sure we have specialized schools, but I don’t know how easily accessible they are to students, or if they are as accommodating as the Raheny School.
When we’re not at site visits, you can guarantee we are doing something else to keep busy. This week we went to the Dublin zoo, Kilmainham Gaol, the Irish Museum of Modern Art, and we took a day trip to the Blarney Castle and Cork. Kilmainham Gaol was really interesting to see. We learned a lot about this history of Ireland and what went on inside that prison. I think something that makes it even better is the fact that this is the 100-year anniversary of the Easter Rising, so a lot of the history from Kilmainham Gaol is being celebrated an extra amount.
I really enjoyed our bus trip to the Blarney Castle and Cork. Aside from the fact that I had to wake up at 5 am, it was so great to finally kiss the Blarney Stone and see another popular part of the country. Cork was really nice; it seemed like a smaller Dublin. I wish we were able to spend some more time exploring, but at least I can say I’ve been there!
krf5192
Between the site visit we had yesterday and the multi-tier visit today, we have been able to see a different side of disability culture. Yesterdays visit was really interesting and gave us an inside look to all things policy, and professional. The lady from Disability Federation of Ireland (DFI) talked a lot about how great Ireland is at policy, but how bad they are at actually carrying out the policies. If a country is so good at creating policies that will absolutely help the disability culture, it’s such a shame that they can’t be put into effect. At first I was a bit confused as to what DFI did, but I was really intrigued to hear that they work closely with a lot of other services, like many of the ones we have visited so far. It was a great way to bring together all that we have experiences thus far.
Today’s visit really allowed me to put things into perspective; we met with the disability services for Trinity College. This was really interesting to me because it has a direct relationship with those I am attending school with. I was able to compare and contrast the disability services here to those at Penn State and really get a sense for what kinds of things are working in different settings. It seems like the services here have a bit more involvement and success with their students, maybe Penn State can adopt some of their ideas.
After this we got to watch some of the students from the classes for those with disabilities at Trinity present on different topics. Some students shared stories from vacations, some shared their experiences with their job placements, and others presented us with information they found while researching. This was really great because it allowed us to see how the services are being used and how these individuals are getting involved in school. When they were done presenting we got the chance to chat with a few of the students. I was really excited to get to hear their opinions on the things they have been doing and it was fun getting to know a little bit more about them.
krf5192
This weekend has been amazing! Yesterday we took a bus tour to Northern Ireland. It was really cool to travel to a whole different part of Ireland, one that is even considered to be its own country. Our first stop on this trip was to the Titanic museum. It was really authentic and interesting because the ship was actually built right outside of where the building stood. After the museum we drove by Dunluce castle, which was awesome! Apparently it’s in Game of Thrones, but it was really beautiful. Then we went to Giant’s Causeway. We hiked a bit, climbed on some rocks, and ate lunch by the water. It was a cool place to explore. Our last stop was to the Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge. I was pretty scared to walk across, but I did it anyway and I’m so glad because the view from the other side was incredible. This was definitely my favorite part of the day; I could’ve stayed on that little island for hours.
Today we took another bus tour but this one was to the Wicklow Mountains. We stopped at Guinness Lake, which was my favorite part because the scene was unreal. I probably took about 30 pictures of the same thing because it was so beautiful. Then we stopped at the bridge from the movie P.S I Love You. I prepared myself for this by watching the movie last night, and I was disappointed to find out it was only actually in the movie for about 2 minutes, it was still cool though! We also spent some time in Glendalough looking at the monastic city and the lake. All in all it was a really good weekend, it was great to get the chance to explore a bit outside of Dublin.
krf5192
We’ve been in Dublin not even a week and I’m already having the time of my life. I’m having so much fun exploring the area and getting to know everyone I’m with. Our first two site visits, Fighting Blindness and the Templeogue Day Program (St. Michael’s House) have set the bar pretty high. Both of them have been inspiring, interesting, and all around great to experience. At Fighting Blindness we heard from a man named John who has lost his vision and works very closely with the cause. John was incredible to listen to and his words will stay with me throughout my career and my life. He spoke highly about what he does, how he remained positive through different hardships and how he spreads positivity. Something he emphasized was the power or relationships: relationships with family, yourself, school, work, etc. He went into detail about how important healthy relationships are and how they can make or break ones attitude and views.
Our second site visit was to St. Michael’s House where we learned a lot about what they do, how they do it, and more. It was so interesting to learn about how this facility supports and cares for individuals with intellectual disabilities. After learning about their history, objective, and activities, we took a tour of the facility. It was during this tour that I really got a sense of how St. Michael’s House helps people with intellectual disabilities get a sense of community while learning some life skills and having fun. They have games, pool tables, TVs, arts and crafts, a dinning area and more. Overall, it was a really interesting place with a great mission. They have been operating with success for 57 years and will continue to do great work in the future.
krf5192
There are two things that have always been on my bucket list: going to Ireland and studying abroad, so once I found this program I was sold. Aside from the fact that I get to live my lifelong dream of traveling to a place where everyone is as fair skinned as I am, I get to continue to follow my passion for helping others. It was only within the last few years that I realized I absolutely love helping others in any way possible and that I want to follow a career path where I can do just that. I plan to become a speech pathologist in the future, where I can implement my passion for serving others.
I chose this program because it will allow me to experience a brand new culture and it will show me a different point of view regarding disabilities. Visiting the different sites and interacting with individuals with varying disabilities will allow me to broaden my perspective and, in turn, help me to become a better professional in the future. I have already learned so much through my classes at Penn State, but none of that will ever compare to the first hand contact I will experience while in Ireland.
During this month in Ireland, I expect to make lasting friendships and memories, as well as experience once in a lifetime opportunities. I will be entered into new and exciting settings where I can learn a lot about others and myself. This program seems nothing short of inspiring and I hope to walk away with new insight that will stick with me forever. I’m so excited to be a part of this trip and leave my mark in Ireland.
As I sit in the car quietly laughing at my parents trying to figure out how to drive on the opposite side of the road, I’m trying to find the words to describe this experience. Of course the things that come to mind are cliché: life changing, amazing, so much fun, etc., but this trip was much more than any of that. It was a bucket list, once in a lifetime experience. This trip brought me to places I never even knew existed, it brought me 8 incredible friends, it brought me an extreme amount of “craic”, it brought me reassurance, and it brought me motivation. I’ve officially been reassured that I’m in the right career path. I can now see from different perspectives (from all over the world) how important it is to help others. I’ve gained a different sense of motivation, of course motivation to pursue my dreams, but also motivation to help others pursue theirs. The conference was filled with incredible people, all striving to make a difference and I want to join them in that journey.
Aside from the growth in a professional sense, this trip allowed me to go outside of my comfort zone and fine peace in new surroundings. I was able to meet all kinds of people: some from Ireland, and some that I’ve been walking the streets of state college with for years now. These 8 girls that I’ve spent my time with are all so different, and I don’t know if I ever would’ve met them if it weren’t for this trip. Thank god I did because I never stopped laughing with them. Whether it was over Lauren attempting to Irish dance, or Grace saying one of her famous one-liners, or Megan nearly crying over monkeys at the zoo, I enjoyed every second with them. Who would’ve thought that 9 random girls could get along so well? I definitely didn’t, but I never hesitated to walk across a scary rope bridge with them, or sing along to a song at Temple Bar with them, or climb up the narrow stairs of a castle with them.
It’s sad to say goodbye to the trip of a lifetime, but I’m certain I’ll be back to Dublin some day. (Ignore the fact that I’ll still be around Ireland for a week with my parents, it’s not the same as frolicking freely with the girls).
Day three of the International Disability Summer School and I can absolutely say this is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. Of course it is, because I’m just in the beginning stages of my career and all of the people I’m surrounded by are incredibly intelligent, experienced, and established. It’s really amazing to be here as a student learning so many things from these motivational speakers. Everyone at the conference has done so much and is doing so much to help the disability community.
One of my favorite parts of this experience so far has been listening to and talking to Tom Harkin. I was so interested to learn about how Harkin helped write the ADA and implement it. The ADA is one of the most influential pieces of legislation affecting individuals with disabilities; so being in the presence of someone who worked so closely with it was incredible. Not to mention I got to sit and chat with a retired US Senator, who I found out, after googling him, has met President Obama, former President Reagan, former President Carter, and more. Tom Harkin is a pretty big deal.
It’s a bit intimidating being around all of these important people, but it’s so amazing that we get to be thrown in the mix of people from all over the world. Here we are, a group from good old State College and we’re sitting in a room with individuals from Iceland, Denmark, Swaziland, Georgia, Colombia, Kenya, and more. I’m so excited to be getting different perspectives on disability and the CRPD. Now I can one up all of my classmates and show them all of the new information I learned from varying countries.
Our trip to Friends of the Elderly was definitely one of my favorites so far. Their fun attitudes were contagious and I think we all left smiling ear to ear. It was great getting to sit down and chat with them and then being able to join them in their weekly singing and dancing hangouts. After an afternoon of fun with the elderly, it was off to Galway.
So far, I’m really enjoying Galway. We’ve done a bit of exploring the city and it’s so cute! It’s like a smaller Dublin, but they still have so much to do. We wasted no time to start shopping and enjoying the delicious food. Today we ventured out in the pouring rain to go to the market in the city centre. Although the rain scared away a lot of the vendors, we all still enjoyed it and purchased some cool things.
As per usual, we took a few bus tours. One bus tour was to the Cliffs of Moher, which I absolutely loved. They were incredibly beautiful and well worth the hike. It was a little bit scary standing near the edge, but I could’ve laid on my stomach overlooking the water for hours. Our second tour was to the Aran Islands, which were really incredible. It was so interesting to learn about the history of the islands while traveling throughout the entire area. I’m so happy that all of the girls are so easy going and we get to explore the country together.
Although this week is short, and a bit bittersweet leaving Dublin, it has been really great. Our site visits on Monday and Tuesday were short, sweet, and to the point, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t great. They were both such different atmospheres and it was so interesting to learn about each of them. I love the idea of horseback riding lessons for individuals with disabilities, I’ve always heard such great therapeutic stories about horses. Also, the Deaf village was incredibly interesting to me because I have taken classes based on deafness and I could relate a lot of what she talked about to what I learned in class. I love the fact that there is a whole village for the Deaf community to share.
After the site visit we unfortunately got stuck in the downpour of the day as we were headed to Guinness. Unfortunately, our travels took a bit longer than expected so some of us hopped off the bus and skipped Guinness to get tattoos.
Our site visit to St. Michael’s Raheny School on Thursday was one of my favorite visits so far. I loved getting an inside look on such a specialized school. We were given a tour of the school, which is a beautiful facility. They have so much space and such great accommodations for the students. My favorite things about the school were the sensory room and the soft-play room. The sensory room was just a small, quiet room, with cushions and different lights and calming sounds. I could’ve probably spent hours in there, but it’s amazing that they have it available to suit the students’ needs. It was so fun getting to interact with some of the students too. They seemed to really enjoy their time at the school, and they were interested to see a group of Americans walking around the halls. Everything about this school led me to wonder how it compares to schools in the United States. I’m sure we have specialized schools, but I don’t know how easily accessible they are to students, or if they are as accommodating as the Raheny School.
When we’re not at site visits, you can guarantee we are doing something else to keep busy. This week we went to the Dublin zoo, Kilmainham Gaol, the Irish Museum of Modern Art, and we took a day trip to the Blarney Castle and Cork. Kilmainham Gaol was really interesting to see. We learned a lot about this history of Ireland and what went on inside that prison. I think something that makes it even better is the fact that this is the 100-year anniversary of the Easter Rising, so a lot of the history from Kilmainham Gaol is being celebrated an extra amount.
I really enjoyed our bus trip to the Blarney Castle and Cork. Aside from the fact that I had to wake up at 5 am, it was so great to finally kiss the Blarney Stone and see another popular part of the country. Cork was really nice; it seemed like a smaller Dublin. I wish we were able to spend some more time exploring, but at least I can say I’ve been there!
Between the site visit we had yesterday and the multi-tier visit today, we have been able to see a different side of disability culture. Yesterdays visit was really interesting and gave us an inside look to all things policy, and professional. The lady from Disability Federation of Ireland (DFI) talked a lot about how great Ireland is at policy, but how bad they are at actually carrying out the policies. If a country is so good at creating policies that will absolutely help the disability culture, it’s such a shame that they can’t be put into effect. At first I was a bit confused as to what DFI did, but I was really intrigued to hear that they work closely with a lot of other services, like many of the ones we have visited so far. It was a great way to bring together all that we have experiences thus far.
Today’s visit really allowed me to put things into perspective; we met with the disability services for Trinity College. This was really interesting to me because it has a direct relationship with those I am attending school with. I was able to compare and contrast the disability services here to those at Penn State and really get a sense for what kinds of things are working in different settings. It seems like the services here have a bit more involvement and success with their students, maybe Penn State can adopt some of their ideas.
After this we got to watch some of the students from the classes for those with disabilities at Trinity present on different topics. Some students shared stories from vacations, some shared their experiences with their job placements, and others presented us with information they found while researching. This was really great because it allowed us to see how the services are being used and how these individuals are getting involved in school. When they were done presenting we got the chance to chat with a few of the students. I was really excited to get to hear their opinions on the things they have been doing and it was fun getting to know a little bit more about them.
This weekend has been amazing! Yesterday we took a bus tour to Northern Ireland. It was really cool to travel to a whole different part of Ireland, one that is even considered to be its own country. Our first stop on this trip was to the Titanic museum. It was really authentic and interesting because the ship was actually built right outside of where the building stood. After the museum we drove by Dunluce castle, which was awesome! Apparently it’s in Game of Thrones, but it was really beautiful. Then we went to Giant’s Causeway. We hiked a bit, climbed on some rocks, and ate lunch by the water. It was a cool place to explore. Our last stop was to the Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge. I was pretty scared to walk across, but I did it anyway and I’m so glad because the view from the other side was incredible. This was definitely my favorite part of the day; I could’ve stayed on that little island for hours.
Today we took another bus tour but this one was to the Wicklow Mountains. We stopped at Guinness Lake, which was my favorite part because the scene was unreal. I probably took about 30 pictures of the same thing because it was so beautiful. Then we stopped at the bridge from the movie P.S I Love You. I prepared myself for this by watching the movie last night, and I was disappointed to find out it was only actually in the movie for about 2 minutes, it was still cool though! We also spent some time in Glendalough looking at the monastic city and the lake. All in all it was a really good weekend, it was great to get the chance to explore a bit outside of Dublin.
We’ve been in Dublin not even a week and I’m already having the time of my life. I’m having so much fun exploring the area and getting to know everyone I’m with. Our first two site visits, Fighting Blindness and the Templeogue Day Program (St. Michael’s House) have set the bar pretty high. Both of them have been inspiring, interesting, and all around great to experience. At Fighting Blindness we heard from a man named John who has lost his vision and works very closely with the cause. John was incredible to listen to and his words will stay with me throughout my career and my life. He spoke highly about what he does, how he remained positive through different hardships and how he spreads positivity. Something he emphasized was the power or relationships: relationships with family, yourself, school, work, etc. He went into detail about how important healthy relationships are and how they can make or break ones attitude and views.
Our second site visit was to St. Michael’s House where we learned a lot about what they do, how they do it, and more. It was so interesting to learn about how this facility supports and cares for individuals with intellectual disabilities. After learning about their history, objective, and activities, we took a tour of the facility. It was during this tour that I really got a sense of how St. Michael’s House helps people with intellectual disabilities get a sense of community while learning some life skills and having fun. They have games, pool tables, TVs, arts and crafts, a dinning area and more. Overall, it was a really interesting place with a great mission. They have been operating with success for 57 years and will continue to do great work in the future.
There are two things that have always been on my bucket list: going to Ireland and studying abroad, so once I found this program I was sold. Aside from the fact that I get to live my lifelong dream of traveling to a place where everyone is as fair skinned as I am, I get to continue to follow my passion for helping others. It was only within the last few years that I realized I absolutely love helping others in any way possible and that I want to follow a career path where I can do just that. I plan to become a speech pathologist in the future, where I can implement my passion for serving others.
I chose this program because it will allow me to experience a brand new culture and it will show me a different point of view regarding disabilities. Visiting the different sites and interacting with individuals with varying disabilities will allow me to broaden my perspective and, in turn, help me to become a better professional in the future. I have already learned so much through my classes at Penn State, but none of that will ever compare to the first hand contact I will experience while in Ireland.
During this month in Ireland, I expect to make lasting friendships and memories, as well as experience once in a lifetime opportunities. I will be entered into new and exciting settings where I can learn a lot about others and myself. This program seems nothing short of inspiring and I hope to walk away with new insight that will stick with me forever. I’m so excited to be a part of this trip and leave my mark in Ireland.