I Found Food and Flatmates

Despite the fact that the lady at the front desk said no one would be back until Sunday, I found some people… in my dorm. I have three flatmates, one guy and two girls. The guy’s name is Eddy and he lives in the room right next to mine. He came here last night while I was cooking my Hamburger Helper. Eddy is a 20 year old Forestry major. He seems a bit on the quite side but really nice as well.
My other two flatmates live on the other side of the common area and their names are Deirdre and Sylvia. Sylvia is a 17 year old business major, Deirdre is 23 and I’m not sure what she is studying. I met them both today while I was making myself Irish bacon and eggs for lunch (I woke up in the middle of the night and then overslept as a result). They both seem very nice despite the fact that Deirdre described them both as being ‘a bit mad.’ None of them are American, they’re all Irish and have each admitted to me separately that they love to drink. They claim that the stereotype is completely justified and that drinking is just part of Irish culture. It looks like it could be an interesting semester. Hopefully not too interesting. I have a small orientation tomorrow and then classes officially start on Monday. Apparently there aren’t that many exchange students this semester so the orientation is going to be a “small informal meeting” according to the head of the international department. I haven’t been to the campus yet. Everyone says that it is about a fifteen minute walk from the dorms I’m staying in. There will be a shuttle here every morning once classes start so I don’t know how often I’ll end up walking.

On an unrelated side note: they have “Nacho Chicken” pizza here. American pizza makers take note.

Here Safe and Sound

It’s a little after 5:30pm GMT and I have finally made it to Waterford. In the past 24 hours I have only managed to sleep about 15 minutes total. Coach seats are simply not made for people 6 feet tall or taller (again, cursed by my dancer’s legs).
I actually arrived at the Waterford bus station over an hour ago but I was not sure where I would be staying tonight so I spent a large portion of time on the payphone there. Which, luckily for me, was right next to the toilets. I tried my best to appear as non-threatening as possible but bearded men standing next to the women’s toilet can’t help but appear a bit pervy. After about an hour of calling and waiting, the accommodation people at the college told me that they had a room for me. I grabbed the first cab that would take me and now, here I am. My room is actually nicer than I expected but I still have no food and no idea where to buy food. Luckily, Sarah had some foresight and packed some microwavable Hamburger Helper in my carry-on. Which now I find myself eternally grateful for. It does however leave one horrible question in mind.

How does the hamburger stay good in that bag? Or, to the point, is it really hamburger at all?