Inis Oírr (Inisheer - "East Island")

This weekend was the second field trip with my early start and after a 6 hour bus ride and 2 hour ferry ride we arrived on the small island, where our class made up about 10% of the population(approx. 300). We stayed in a small hostel which had no locks, but our window faced out to the ocean, which was only about 100 feet away. Due to a water shortage the whole island basically turns off the water from 8 pm to 8 am. It was fascinating really. I don't know if they have a small reservoir, or bring in water, or if they just purify the ocean water or what, but it all tasted like minerals and chlorine. It's got the feel of a tiny town in Wyoming where everyone knows everyone, because I legitimately think that everyone does know everyone so we stuck out like 34 sore thumbs. My friends and I stuck out less than everyone else because apparently we were the only ones who had ever heard the term "ugly Americans." 90% of the rest of the group were exactly that. Loud, obnoxious, comparing everything to the U.S., telling Irish people they couldn't understand what they were trying to say through their accents. It infuriated me. I actually found myself reminding some of them that we're the one with accents here, which they didn't seem to comprehend, because they all just sat there and stared back with confused looks.

The whole of the Island is covered in these rock walls that really aren't used for anything. Occasionally you'll come across a cow or a horse inside one of the walls with no gate and wonder A. how they got in there and B. how the owners get them out. and when I say covered, I mean covered. with the exception of along the coast there's a stone wall about every 25 feet, if not less. The walls are pretty cool too, they're awkwardly stacked rocks, that some how manage to stay up, and along with the stone castles, I have no idea where they got all these rocks. Seriously, there's an unfathomably HUGE number of rocks put into these walls. No... seriously I can confidently say without even exaggerating, many hundreds of thousands if not millions. Below that is a picture of the walls a bit closer up so you can see how I'm not pulling your leg or any other appendage by using numbers that big. Another thing is that people here become maniacs when they board any vehicle. In cars they drive fast and terrifying and on bikes they weave in and out of these crazy drivers. I don't ever want to hear anyone complaining that people who bike on the roads in the U.S. are annoying, cause over here they become a hazard. In Cork there are plenty of roads that go from two lane two way roads to one lane two way roads without any notice other than the fact that the lines are gone. Either that or people just choose to drive the wrong way on one way roads. I'm really not sure.

 One of the big things to see in Inis Oírr is the shipwreck. I can't tell you a whole lot about it because this place isn't really touristy at all. There are no signs at the sights, and the road signs and maps are all in Irish. In fact, most people on the island speak Irish instead of English, which is really cool aside from the fact that the 2 pubs on the island were full (10 or so) of Irish people quite blatantly talking about us in Irish. Anyways, back to the ship. It's big, it's old and it's tetanus just waiting to happen. I don't think you're supposed to go inside... but we did anyways. There wasn't a whole lot to it other than the fact that it was rusty and dripping everywhere. Also, the back wall of the interior has become a canvas for spray painters. On the right is a picture of what we got to wake up to. That's the view from our hostel room, and it was amazing. Unfortunately it only happened on Saturday, because Friday morning was cloudy and it rained the rest of the day.

Quick quiz. Ireland is associated with what?
a. Beer
b. Potatoes
c. The Irish
d. Shamrocks
e. All of the above but it should also be known for the hilarious warning signs everywhere.

Answer: e
Seriously. This is the only funny sign I have a picture of so far, but I'm really tempted to make a completely separate page just for all the comical warning signs I see.

That's right by the dock, in front of parking spaces.