Exploring Ireland and Northern Ireland

-
In addition to learning about peace and reconciliation, I also explored the island and made wonderful friendships along the way.

--

After landing in Dublin, I started exploring right away. First off, I went to the Christ Church Cathedral, which was originally founded in 1030 by Vikings.




Though this church has undergone construction and renovation since its establishment, it is crazy to think that it has been around for almost 1,000 years. On another note, the architecture reminded me of Prague Castle.

--

Then, I took a tour of Trinity College Dublin, which was originally founded in 1592. Scholars like Oscar Wilde and Samuel Beckett have attended this university.




Look at how beautiful the Old Library is. I got lucky because they are closing it next year for the next 10 years due to needed renovations. As a nerd, I absolutely love visiting old and breathtaking libraries.

--

At the end of the night, some friends and I went to some pubs and danced.




Even though Guinness is made in Ireland, I could not bring myself to try any.

--

The next day, I went to the Cliffs of Moher with Beth, a friend I made on the trip.



A scene from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince was filmed at these cliffs, which is super cool.



Beth and I were lucky enough to see them from the boat, as well as from land. Both views were breathtaking.

--

After Beth and I got back, we took a train to Howth, a small coastal town 30 minutes from Dublin.



It reminded me of some coastal towns in Italy.


We watched the sunset over the water and it was the perfect way to end the day.

--

After visiting Glencree, the peace center I mentioned in my first blog post, we went to Glendalough, which was absolutely stunning.




--

In Northern Ireland, we visited Giant's Causeway, which is a land mass of 40,000 basalt columns protruding from the sea.




It's quite crazy just how beautiful the island of Ireland is.

--

The peace center we were at for 5-6 days, Corrymeela, was in Ballycastle and right on the coast, so I spent a good amount of time exploring the beach.








The water was absolutely freezing because this is where the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea mixed. Needless to say, I only got into it once.

--

Some friends and I went on a hike at Fair Head, which is a cliff in Ballycastle.



We were walking on cliffs 600 feet above sea level. It was so cool.




There was a bunch of sheep, too.



I'm super grateful for the friends I made along the way.

--

In Derry, we visited the Guildhall, which is where elected members of Derry City meet.





We also saw this mural from the show Derry Girls, which was cool since this is the location of the show.

--

In Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, we visited the botanic gardens.





It was really beautiful and peaceful.

--

We also visited the Ulster Museum in Belfast.



The exhibition on the Troubles was extremely interesting.


I thought these dragons were cool.

--

In Belfast, we took a tour of Belfast City Hall, which was so pretty.





They used to have grand dances in this room.

--

Belfast is where the Titanic was made, so we went to the Titanic Museum as well.



This is a lifejacket that was recovered form an unknown victim.


This is a pocket watch owned by somebody on the Titanic. Its hands are frozen at 1:37 AM, the exact time the watch hit the water.


This was an original deck chair from the Titanic.

--

We spent our last night in Dublin, and, naturally, explored the city.


I danced a lot the last night.

--

There are never enough words I can use to express my gratitude, but thank you to the UTSA Honors College and to all of the organizers of this trip, as well as to all of the friends I made. These memories will last a lifetime.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Final Moments in Italy and Home: Week 16.5

-
Image
I can't believe my semester abroad is over. Here is what I did my couple of days in Italy. -- I had 4 finals, so I spent a good amount of time preparing for those. I missed working in the library. It was nice being back in one. This was the view I had for one of my finals. -- After finals were over, my program hosted a final gathering for everyone on our last day. I don't have many pictures from the gathering, but they gave us pandoro and panettone, which are traditional Christmas cakes from Italy. They were really good. -- After the final gathering, some friends and I went ice skating. Aubrielle, Zoe, and I were saving the last night to go ice skating together. We ran into some friends on the ice. :) Though I was not a very good ice skater, I did much better than I thought I would LOL. -- After ice skating, Aubrielle, Zoe, and I got dinner at my favorite carbonara restaurant.  I took a picture with the waitresses, as I have become quite a regular there and they knew I was lea...
Read more

Final Projects and Essays, Italian Food, and Norway: Week 16

-
Image
I can not believe I finished my last full week in Italy. I am feeling so many emotions about leaving, but, I am, most of all, incredibly grateful for this experience. So, here is what I did my last full week in Europe. -- Last week, I had 3 presentations and 2 essays due, so I spent a lot of my time working on getting those finished. I think they went well. Sometimes, I get tired of working and studying in my room, so I finished my last presentation in a cafe. After a while, I ordered some hot chocolate because it is SO good in Europe. -- I also ate out a couple of times because Italian food is delicious here (obviously), and I know I'll miss it in the states. This is the same calzone my dad got when he came to Italy and I wanted to try it. It was pretty tasty. I also got pizza with some friends, which was delicious. -- I decided to go to Tromsø, Norway for my last full weekend in Europe because I really wanted to see the Aurora Borealis, otherwise known as the Northern Lights, esp...
Read more

Nurturing Hope: The Learning Journey

-
Image
For the past 2 weeks, I have been learning about peace, hope, and reconciliation in Ireland and Northern Ireland in the context of The Troubles. The Troubles were a civil war in Northern Ireland that began in 1968 and ended with the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. The Troubles were fought between Protestant Unionists who believed that Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom - as it is today - and Catholics Nationalists who wanted a united Ireland. Over the course of The Troubles, over 3,500 people died. To put things into perspective, if America suffered the same conflict, 600,000 Americans would have died. -- As part of the journey, we visited various peace centers, with Glencree being the first peace center we visited. Glencree was first established as barracks for British soldiers, which is evidenced by the poem below. Then, it was made into the St. Kevin's Reformatory School just after the potato famine. Many boys were left as orphans, and, therefore, were sent...
Read more

Family Time in Rome, Christmas in Reggio Emilia, and Visit from Ivliani and Irantzu: Week 14

-
Image
After classes on Thursday, I went to Rome with my family for a couple of nights before they went back to America. The Colosseum is breathtaking no matter how many times you see it. They hadn't explored the Roman Forum or Palatine Hill yet, so I went with them and got a greater understanding of various archeological wonders present. Plus, the views on Palatine Hill can't be beat. This is the Temple of Romulus, which was built in 4 AD, and has the same doors that it had when it was first constructed. This is the senate building, otherwise known as the Curia Julia, which is where Roman senators met. It was completed in 29 BC. These are the ruins of the Stadium of Domitian, completed in 92 AD. Though it's called a stadium, it was actually a private garden and exercise area for the Emperor at the time. This is within the Temple of Caesar, which is where Julius Caesar was cremated in 44 BC. Speaking of Caesar, this is where he was stabbed to death in 44 BC. More specifically, he ...
Read more

Class Visit to a Tamil Temple, Vienna, and Prague: Week 15

-
Image
I took a class visit to a Tamil Temple as part of my Intercultural Communication class to learn more about their culture and religion. They also gave us this dish, which consists of rice, milk, raisins, cinnamon, and ginger. -- On Friday, Aubrielle and I flew down to Vienna, Austria to spend a day exploring the city! Vienna was decorated for Christmas and it was so pretty! This is the Vienna City Hall building, which was completed in 1883. The main reason I wanted to go was to see Vienna's beautiful winter markets. The Christmas Market at Rathausplatz is the first winter market we went to and is actually located outside of the Vienna City Hall building. It was so magical. I had a sausage and some great hot apple punch. The Schönbrunn Palace Christmas is the second winter market we went to in Vienna.  It is held in the courtyard of the Schönbrunn Palace, which was super cool. Aubrielle and I had beef-filled dumplings at the market. They were amazing. We also went to this r...
Read more

Welcome: Part 2!

-
Image
Welcome back, everyone! I am so grateful, happy, and excited to share that I will be going back to Europe for 2 weeks for another study abroad this July. This time, I am participating in the Nurturing Hope Program with other San Antonio students and faculty. During my time in Europe, I will travel to Ireland and Northern Ireland to engage in discussions about conflict and peace reconciliation in the context of The Troubles, the civil war in Northern Ireland that ended in 1998. To do this, we are visiting various peace centers throughout these regions, participating in the The Nurturing Hope Learning Journey at Corrymeela, attending historical sites and events related to The Troubles, and learning from other organizations that focus on peace building. I've always been passionate about being active in the community, and am excited to gain an international and unique perspective on how to bring communities together in the midst of conflict. As always, thank you to the UTSA Honors Co...
Read more

Moving Into My Apartment and Exploring Italy: Week 1

-
Image
I moved into my apartment! It is right in the city, which is very nice. The kitchen/living area. My bedroom. -- We visited the Sala del Tricolore, which was the first parliament in Italy, and was one of the places that came up with the 3 colors of the Italian flag. -- We also visited the Basilica di San Prospero! It was gorgeous inside. The original version of this church was made in 997 and it was reconstructed in the 16th century. -- Grocery shopping here is a LOT different than in America (in a good way)! The food is more fresh. I will say, however, that not being able to read any of the labels can be difficult. This is the same chocolate that my grandparents from the Czech Republic bring us. I had to get some! -- Instead of shopping at the super market, you can also go to the farmers market! This happens every Saturday and a bunch of local farmers sell freshly grown produce from the mountains of Italy. The produce I bought. It was all so delicious. -- Speaking of food, it's ama...
Read more

Parma, Discussion Leading, and MAMMA MIA: Week 4

-
Image
On Monday, my study abroad group took another field trip. This time, we went to Parma, which is a 10 minute train ride from Reggio Emilia. The first place we visited the Palace of Colorno, which was where Duchess Marie Louise, the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, lived. Then, we saw the Palazzo della Pilotta, which is a grand building that was built in the 16th century. If you look closely at this picture, some of the wall is missing. This is due to the bombs from World War II. We also visited some beautiful churches. I am amazed at how many gorgeous churches are in Italy. The city center. A statue of Parmigiano. Some friends and I ended our trip by getting dinner in the city around 5 PM. If you didn't know, Italians eat dinner SUPER late. When we walked in to the restaurant, we didn't see anyone...not even a waiter. Eventually, someone found us and led us to a table. -- I led two discussions in my Intercultural Communication class this week. Here is a picture of one of the q...
Read more

Welcome!

-
Image
My name is Ricky Pagnozzi II and I am studying psychology at UTSA with the hopes of getting my Ph.D. in clinical psychology. Next semester, however, I will not be at UTSA...or San Antonio...or Texas...or America. In fact, I will be in Italy! I am SUPER excited to be in Reggio Emilia, Italy for the fall 2025 semester. I am determined to make the most of this semester abroad and will update this blog with my adventures. As always, I am extremely grateful for the Top Scholar program at UTSA for making this experience possible.
Read more