Homestay Weekend

This weekend I had my homestay in Tuam, County Galway. I had a great time, though I wish it had been longer. I didn't do anything spectacular, just spend a few typical days with an Irish family, which is what I wanted. Another girl from IFSA Butler, Gabby, and I stayed in the house of a woman named Mary. She's either widowed or divorced (I wasn't quite sure) and has two daughters slightly older than I am. One of them, who just finished third level (college) and had a job in Cork, was home for the weekend. They live in a small two-story townhouse in the city of Tuam. It was very cozy in the living room where we spent most of our time, which had a little stove fed by bricks of peat. We were warned ahead of time that Irish people always shut doors behind them in order to keep in the heat.
The main thing we did the whole weekend was eat. Mary was always concerned that we weren't eating enough, offering us soup and scones between meals and making five more pieces of toast for each one we ate. She accused us of breaking her heart by not eating her cooking, even after Gabby and I polished off a whole chicken between us Saturday night. Potatoes played a big role, of course, as did cabbage and turnips. I liked turnips more than I was expecting, and I might actually try them again. The most foreign food for us was the boiled egg in the egg cup. I actually knew what an egg cup was, unlike most Americans who wondered at the flower motifs on the strangely shaped shot glasses in their apartments' kitchens. However, I still had difficulty figuring out how to break open the egg.
On Saturday morning, we drove out into the country (lots of stone walls and sheep) to visit a man who sold used cars that were parked all around his farmhouse. Mairead, Mary's daughter, was thinking about buying a car, so we test drove one of them on the narrow, one-lane roads.
Afterwards, Mary took us on a brief walking tour of Tuam. Gabby and I met up with some other IFSA people in the afternoon before returning for dinner and mass that evening. I have only been to Catholic mass once before, and it struck me how similar it was to Episcopal services. The liturgy was almost exactly the same, with the exceptions that they didn't do a group confession and they recited what I assume was the Lord's Prayer in Irish/Gaelic. That night we went with Mairead and more Butler people to a pub in town. We left the next day after breakfast, two lunches, and the Women's World Cup Soccer game. Soccer isn't as big here as are rugby, Gaelic football, and hurling/camogie, but there's still more interest than there is in the US.
This weekend was a lot of fun, and it was interesting to see Mary and Mairead interacting, and to note all of the differences and similarities between Irish and American culture. In going to a place that speaks the same language, one doesn't expect quite the culture shock, but it's still there. On campus, I'm mostly independent, and I still haven't spent much time with Irish students, but with a family I've gotten to experience Ireland more. I'm really glad that I ended us doing a program with a homestay, and I wish that I could have had more than a couple of days there.