Different

This morning I was sitting at the kitchen table in our dorm and eating a bowl of Cheerios. As I slowly chewed the cereal, slowly waking up, I started thinking of how a lot of things are different here in Ireland versus America, but are also very much the same. My box of Cheerios for instance is Nestle brand, not General Mills. I had no idea that Nestle owned General Mills. Another different thing just about my Cheerios is the fact that they are not Cheerios as I know them. They are not my tasty oat o’s; they are several different grains – wheat, oat, rice, corn – all shaped like o’s. It’s a little different, and kind of strange, but I have to say, they are quite tastey.

I should also point out how people drive on the other side of the road here. I will not go into too much detail since I wrote an entire submission about that fact earlier, but it is worth noting. I have even seen signs that say “No Left Turn on Red,” just like our “No Right Turn on Red” signs. The roads are set up in an exact mirror of our road system. It makes me smile sometimes, but it sure makes me have to think when I cross the street.

Another different thing the Irish have is the metric system. I realize that in theory the metric system is better, since it is all about using multiples of ten, but it sure confuses me. It makes me really have to think when I want to make Ramen (or Tesco brand noodles) and have to add two hundred milliliters of water. I have no idea how much two hundred milliliters is. I have not had a lab science since senior year of high school. The metric system is completely foreign to me. Yet the Irish, and the vast majority of world, seem to have no trouble using it. I know that America tried to convert to the metric system at some point in time, but failed. I guess it does not really matter, but it sure would make it easier to measure water for my dinner in other countries.

Some things are the same here in Ireland however. The television stations show a lot of American television shows. The stores sell a lot of American movies. The radio plays a lot of bad American music. It is almost just like home. It is also a little disappointing to me. I was excited to come to a different country and experience new things. I complain about the difference and the inconveniences that they cause me, but I love them. Anytime I walk into a store and here Ke$ha playing on the radio I frown, both because Ke$ha has some of the worst music ever, but also because I would much rather hear the music of Ireland, not America.

Ireland is different. It can be a real inconvenience for me, but mostly just makes me think. There are a lot of differences between America and Ireland, but both groups of people seem to function just fine with different kinds of cereals, roadways, and measuring systems. Differences really are not that important.