Many things have happened yet I could not say life is easy and smooth sailing for me. Far from it. What can I say about my new found home, half a world away? A mixture of excitement and anxiety; at exactly a 1:1 ratio, that is!
When Lordson, a long-time buddy told me that homesickness will inevitably hit me hard in the first 6 months of my stay in Dublin, I just agreed unknowingly and replied confidently that I'm prepared for it. 2 months down the road and here I am typing this with a tinge of homesickness. It is really an unpredictable feeling, its magnitude varies on a daily basis but the effect is definitely overwhelming.
The first two weeks was filled with utter excitement because I was still in a 'holiday' mode. Sight seeing and trying out new food were highlights of the first fortnight. Carefree and relaxed were the only things I knew and felt. Various places were covered and I was surprised that Dublin city is not a huge city afterall. Disappointing? Not at all. But the interest dwindled as the days passed. Personally I like Dublin because it is a colourful, vibrant and multicultural city; filled with many eateries, pubs, bars, parks and old churches. Yes, there is like a church every kilometer of any street that you are travelling in, no joke, but that doesn't mean it is religious country. Far from it. I shall reserve that for another post in the near future. Haha.
The weather:- Upon arriving at Dublin Airport, I remember it was raining moderately. The only significant thing I could recall was seeing my own warm breath in 'smoky', vaporized form as I exhaled in the cold weather. It brought back a nostalgic feeling as that was only the second time I experienced it. The first was during winter in Sydney back in 2007. Smile was all I did, like a 'jakun' fella. Good thing no one noticed, I think.
It was the beginning of summer and it didn't feel that freezing cold yet it wasn't as warm as I would have liked it to be. But it got gradually warmer as the days passed, thank God. The average temperature for summer here is 18 degrees Celsius. Just nice, I'd say, as long as it doesn't pour. A layer of top or 2(shirt+hoodie) is sufficient on a warm summer day. Things to do during summer:- Pay a visit to the nearby beaches, sunbath/picnic at various parks in the city (the best is definitely St.Stephen's Green Park) or just wander about for people like me. At times, the weather here can get really blustery though. Not to my liking as it can be quite difficult to walk on the streets with heavy wind forcing you to squint to get a proper view of what's ahead. And also the unpleasant shiver as a result of the chilly, gale-like wind.
Food: Those that I've tried so far were fast food such as McDonald's, Burger King (beef patties pretty solid and fresh), kebabs, (massively huge portion of) fish n' chips, Greek food, Indian food and also Chinese food. But most of the time, due to money constraint or plain kiamsiap-ness I just rely on frozen food (Thank God for Tesco and microwave oven!) , reduced price sandwiches (some as much as 80% :D), fried chicken drumsticks (3Euros for 1 kg = 6 huge drumsticks = HALLELUJAH!) and also cereals and biscuits. So far so good, I didn't get any fatter or thinner. Still a healthy 64kg. Exactly the same when I left Malaysia.
All in all, it has been quite an experience for me so far and for that I have to thank Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment