First week done!

Look! It's me! And if you look closely, you can see the Club Orange in my hands (with real bits of orange!) and the ferry in the background. This was taken (by Voite) in Ballycastle when we walked to town to explore. During our first visit, we all kinda fell in love with Club Orange. This was my first Club Orange since my return. I was hoping to have one on the plane, but they had Fanta instead. Check out the gorgeous weather and the sunburn on my arms. That's right. Sunburn in Ireland. I didn't even bring suncream with me.

Some things are surprisingly similar here, and some things are remarkably different. Like sinks. Some are normal-sized, but look at this one! Tiny, and the water temperatures are ALWAYS separate.

Here's some scary news for my mother (who's already worried about me returning to the states). I have been told that the long-term volunteers have a tendency to couple off while they are here. During one year, four couples met at Corrymeela and ended up getting married! Crazy! Let it be known that Marian is not here to meet her future husband. Done.

Today the groups left. We've cleaned the house and evaluated our week. Now we're off until Saturday. We'll make ourselves dinner tonight, have a pint or two at the pub, and get some good sleep.

I'm having a great time. I'm learning a lot about Irish culture, how it's different from my American upbringing, and how I can adjust to fit in but still be true to myself. I have completely exhausted myself, but I feel good. Comment, email...I'd love to hear from you! Email is mlhoman02@yahoo.com for now.