Surf in Sligo

I know I said I would starting blogging right after things happened, but this will be about last weekend. Oops, there goes that resolution. Just want to say first that the weather over here is getting nicer and nicer. I can actually wear a t-shirt outside when I run! Also, the Great Limerick Run appears to be impenetrable to people trying to sneak in. Not that I would want run it officially either--$70 for a t-shirt and a "specially commissioned memento". Whatever that is. I'm guessing a bumper sticker or a cheap quality hat. But back to last weekend. While the other girls in the house were off in Belfast, I went with the UL Kayaking Club to a town outside of Sligo, northern part of Ireland, but not so far as to actually be in Northern Ireland. I was expecting early 7am mornings followed by hard half-day trips on the coast. What actually happened was slightly different. We were supposed to leave the boathouse at 6pm, but after packing a van full of kayaks and equipment, we ended up pulling out closer to 7pm. The stop for food turned into a stop for liquor. I ended up buying my first bottle of alcohol, some wine cooler that I figured would last for a good week. How wrong I was. That was empty by Sunday. It was delicious though, and don't worry parents, I didn't get buzzed or anywhere close to drunk. Most everyone else did, though. We stayed in some summer cottages that had a great view of the ocean, but not enough beds for everyone. Some of us had to make do with couch cushions on the floor. Surf kayaking turned out to be a lot harder than I expected. After you put a deck on, you really don't want to have to get out and pull your kayak further into the waves. So, you have to wait until they come to you, then alternately scoot and paddle as hard as you can until you finally reach water deep enough to float in. Then, you fight the waves to get out far enough, look for a decent one, and try your best to ride it in without capsizing. If you do capsize (which I did several times), you are punished for your failure by having to drag the kayak back into shore far enough so you can dump the water out of it without the sea pushing any more back in. Then, carry it closer to the waves, and get to ready to scoot/paddle out there to do it all over again. Having said all that, surf kayaking is awesome; I would definitely recommend doing it at least once. The first time you go under is a little scary (and if the weather was warmer, it would've definitely been a plus), but it's still pretty fun. At least with the club, there were always people on shore to help if you needed it or give some advice on how to improve. We would only go for about an hour or so at a time, too, and the second beach we went to was one that you could just sit and relax on if you needed a break. The nights were fairly memorable, except the bar we went to was inhabited by people mostly over 60, so I don't think they appreciated the crowd of college kids who'd just finished a few games of cups and beer pong (note: I wasn't involved in the drinking games, just a spectator). The Saturday lunch was wonderful. They gave us a cardboard box filled with potatos, carrots, frozen peas, two chickens and some ham. Possibly the best chicken I've had since coming to Ireland. Some guys turned on the TV to watch the Ireland v. Wales rugy match and all of a sudden it felt like a Sunday lunch in Wisconsin with a football game on. Great, great craic.