Cultural Comparisons

As I boarded my plane to Ireland I did not know what to expect from this place. When I arrived everything was different but in a good way of course.  The people here are absolutely the nicest people I have ever met.  They will do anything for you with a smile and their arms out.  On the bus ride to the hotel I was terrified.  I was expecting a speed limit and speed limits do not exist here.  AND they drive on the opposite side of the road which confuses me to no end. So I literally have to look both ways when I cross the road so I am not road kill.   

 The first time my roomies and I went grocery shopping, our advisors told us to bring shopping bags with us.  I did not think anything of it until we were checking out.  Ireland is big on recycling so therefore they do not give us bags to carry our things in like Wal*Mart does.  If you do want a bag it costs 20 cents.  The other day we were in Dunnes which is the grocery store in Galway and as we were checking out I was observing the other people around me and this family beside me brought in two medium size suit cases and loaded that up with milk, juice, and other foods.  It was pretty cool.  Second thing that is different than America is that their cattle is grass fed instead of corn fed.  I thought the meat would taste more gamey but it is actually really good, and I do not think there is much of a difference.  Third, some places have their own home grown vegetables and fruits that they make into delicious soup.  Soup is the best decision I can make if I go to a small café.  Fourth, Ireland has different processing laws when it comes to food.  Ranch is not a thing in stores.  Sometimes restaurants will have it for wings but it is a little watery.  They eat healthy here and it is a lot cheaper to do so.  In Dunnes you can get three kinds of meat for 10 euro or two kinds of fruit for 3 euro.  It is a great deal! 

Also, another comparison that I have noticed which makes me love Europe even more is that everyone looks well put together when they are in public.  Pajamas are not a fashion statement at all.  Europe keeps it classy. People in Ireland are very hard working and caring.  I respect that.  They also enjoy life everyday instead of being so busy that they forget to.

One last thing that I will compare are there gardas. I figured out ride alongs with gardas (police) are not a thing at all and it disappoints me.  Volunteering in the station isn’t much of a thing either.  Mostly gardas are not in a vehicle anyways, they are mostly on foot and not armed.  Which really surprises me, it is actually pretty cool to know that they feel protected enough to not have weapons on them.  If only America was like that.