Happy Thanksgiving everyone, while I'm not in America this year for the holiday, I've definitely brought it with me to Ireland. Thanksgiving has long been one of my favorite holidays simply because of the delicious foods that are prepared for it. Potatoes, gravy, candied yams, baked macaroni, ham, carrots, and I haven't even mentioned the Turkey yet :)
In other news it seems like the Australia bug has hit 55 Holywell Way. To clarify the Australia bug is a term I just made up to describe the mass exodus of Irish people going or wanting to go to Australia. Ever since I first moved to Ireland back in 2006, people moving to Australia or talking about it has been all the rage. I know about 12 people personally that have gone already, and some of them come back, but most seem to love it there enough to set up there lives permanently. Irish citizens get visas to live in Australia very easily compared to Americans so that is one of the things that makes it appealing to them. The warm weather, the booming economy, and just in the spirit of adventure are some of the other reasons to go. I live at 55 Holywell Way with Megan, Stephanie, and Daragh, and just recently they too have begun talking about going in 2013. My personal feelings about Oz have not really changed over the years, its a place I have wanted to go visit for about a month or two, but at the end of the day I'd always want to come home to Europe.  ¶ 10:54 AM

  Today right outside of Trinity College was a student protest against tuition being raised. RTE news figures that there were 20,000 students in total that came out to support the protest. I was standing at the corner of Dame street and Nassau Street and captured the above footage.
I was thoroughly impressed with the shear numbers of students that marched, because for years in the United States tuition has been going up, and our students sit and moan about it but no one ever takes action and does anything. All it took here was one tuition increase to get the people its effecting up in arms. Well done Irish students for taking a stand!
  ¶ 1:35 PM

 
I was talking to a girl at work the other day and she stopped me mid conversation and said "How many places have you lived?" It was when I started to explain to her that I realized how weird it must have sounded, by the time I got to the part where I lived in San Diego for 3 years I think she was starting to believe I was in the International version of the witness protection program.
Dublin is the 6th place I've lived in and while its only been 6 weeks here now, I'm loving it. I kind of knew what to expect from having been here so many times before, but still there seems to be new surprises waiting around every corner. I could see myself here for a very long time, as I've stated before, I never really wanted to leave Ireland in the first place.
Antoine and Max have been here visiting for the last 10 days, and its been a lot of fun, we went to Galway over the weekend and had a blast with my friend Patrick and his cast of characters. Then they continued on to Cork City for the next 2 days while I came back to Dublin cause I had to work. No doubt Cork would have been fun, but looks like I'll have to wait to another time before I go back to visit.  ¶ 12:56 PM