Thursday, August 30, 2012

So Guys, I'm in Ireland

If you know anything at all about Notre Dame or its athletic program, you've probably heard by now that, this Saturday, we are playing in a little football game against the Naval Academy...in Dublin, Ireland. Perhaps, dear reader, you are one of the 33,000 Americans headed over to ND's namesake country this weekend for said game. In yet another display of my life's complete ridiculousness, I am one of those people. I, along with 35 other representatives of the Folk Choir, am in Dublin for the weekend. To...sing, and stuff.

Wednesday morning, we left campus bright and early to begin our second journey this year to my (and, for this weekend at least, seemingly everyone else's) homeland. That went about as well as any trans-Atlantic flight can go, so, largely unpleasantly. During our layover in Atlanta, we led the people of Gate E26 in a rousing rendition of the Alma Mater and fight song, which earned us a pilot coming over to us and throwing a Navy Football poster into the middle of our group. (Because apparently the other team has fans, too.) Then came the Atlanta-to-Dublin flight, on which our presence was announced to the plane like we were some sort of celebrities or, like, the Glee Club or something.

We arrived this morning at some time I couldn't even begin to wrap my head around to an airport filled with ND and "Emerald Isle Classic" balloons and paraphernalia, an Irish guy on stilts in an Uncle Sam costume spouting off spirited greetings in a moderately offensive American accent, and more red, white, and blue than downtown Logansport on the Fourth of July. To say the least, it was a little strange. We sang for a mass at the insanely beautiful Gunne Chapel at Maynooth Seminary and returned to Dublin proper for a rehearsal with the director of the choir we're singing with at tomorrow's pep rally.  Here, we learned two things. Firstly, none of us has any clue how to stand. Secondly, Joe Biden - yes, that Joe Biden, the Vice President - is apparently coming to town for the Emerald Isle Classic festivities, too, including the pep rally where we're singing. So...there's that.

That's about all there is to say for now. Look forward to more posts as the weekend goes on. Go Irish. Beat Navy.

1 comment:

  1. Go Irish! With you guys in spirit. (Also, I'm currently streaming the pep rally. Besides this probably being the coolest pep rally I think Notre Dame's ever had, the Folk Choir rocked it.) Have fun tomorrow! <3

    ReplyDelete