Author: jshaffer@rollins.edu

This semester really flew by, my time in Ireland is one that I will remember for many years to come as it is my first experience abroad by myself. Studying abroad has been a valuable experience for my life. Adjusting back to everything back home will be a little difficult, as everything in Ireland is…

During my final two weeks in Ireland I had my finals, which are done over a much longer period than at Rollins. The finals regulations and overall atmosphere around the campus were tense and taken very seriously. Along with my finals I had a final paper for one of my classes that I was working…

Finals season has arrived here in Ireland as I wrapped up my final lectures last week, and will have my first exam tomorrow. (Exams on Saturday are very odd) The exam period stretches over a 3-week timeframe, which varies greatly with Rollins. I have 4 final exams and for the majority of my classes are factored…

Over the past few weeks, I took a few trips to the Wicklow Mountains to visit the old monastic site of Glendalough. Glendalough means “valley between the two lakes” and the view from the large lake was absolutely phenomenal. The monastic site had large historical significance as the monks used to live in the monastic…

It’s been a while since I’ve last blogged, sorry about the lapse in time. Earlier this week I took a tour out to the West Coast of Ireland to the Cliffs of Moher. The trip out to the west coast was lovely and we drove along through the valleys of the west coast along Galway…

Hey, sorry for the late blog post, the semester has hit a halfway point and the work is starting to accumulate. As of Wednesday of this past week, I have been on spring break and working on preparing for the midterm exams and assignments for my classes. Over the past few weeks, I have been…

It’s been about 4 weeks since I’ve arrived in Ireland and so far the experience has been great. I’ve finally started to understand and work with the public transportation in Ireland and took a train for the second time in my life. Getting my Leap card allowed me to better access public transportation and is…

It’s hard to believe that it’s been two weeks already, as they have completely flown by. Within the first two weeks of being in Ireland,  I have noticed the incredible hospitality of the Irish people, everyone who I’ve encountered thus far have been very helpful and courteous. During the first week here I went into…

Hello, my name is Jesse Shaffer and I’m a double major in International Business and Economics, later tonight I will be departing for my next semester at Maynooth University. Being given this opportunity is a great privilege that I will remember for the rest of my life, and I am unsure of what is to…