Chips, crips, and nachos

When I first decided to apply to study abroad in Ireland, many other students at The University of Texas at Austin said they would rather go somewhere more exotic. They didn’t want to spend 14 hours on a plane just to go to an English-speaking country that was exactly like America. Little did they know that Ireland actually has a very rich culture and an interesting history that differentiates the Irish from the rest of the world.

Though I didn’t have to learn a foreign language to come here, I did have some new words to learn. My first night in Dublin, I had a very confusing conversation with a local since they call fries chips, chips crisps, and Doritos nachos. (Now as a Texan, the latter just seems heinous to me!)

During the Dublin walking tour, our guide Garvan taught us how to say “cheers” in Gaelic, which is “slainte!” It sounds more like “sloncha” and technically means “health.” After practicing in the street outside of The Temple Bar, we seemed to have it down.

Garvan teaching the class how to cheers outside of The Temple Bar
(Video by Sapna Patel)
The next day though, a local asked us if we had learned any Irish yet. We fought hard to try and recall the strange word Garvan had taught us and came up with “sonshi” and “slonsh” amongst a few others. Needless to say, she looked at us and said, “I guess not…”

I definitely have a ways to go before I master “Irish English” and since I have the luck of the Irish, surely I’ll master it before I have to leave this cultural playground. For now, I’m off to have more craic (that’s fun for all you Yanks)!

Cheers!