To be honest, there have been very few nights on this trip that have lived up to my expectations of what Europe would be like, but our Thursday night in the Temple Bar of Dublin went above and beyond anything I could have ever dreamed of.  Our hostel, which was located in the Temple Bar district happened to also be located directly next to the Temple Bar, which quickly determined our location for that nights entertainment.  Upon enter this small doorway into the Temple Bar, I found myself disappointed by the size of it, being about 15 feet by 15 feet, with a single bar, something you would find in an American city like New York, but then I was quickly cheered up once I realized that this really was only acting as a foyer for the massive bar that flowed back into the building.  There were all sorts of people there singing in hundreds of languages, something that I had been hoping for this entire trip.  I wanted to see a mix of cultures different that just the Americanized versions.  I wanted to try and break through the language barrier and get real perspective on the different places around the world.
I was lucky enough to come into contact a group of French people, English people from Leeds, and Spanish, which allowed me to really get to talk to a diverse group.  I had the most fun talking to the French group because we talked about everything.  I asked what type of music they liked, what they thought of Americans, what sports they liked, everything I could.  They spoke very broken English, but that is what made it so fun.  I got to understand their perspective on America, which isn’t what most people think.  They generalize Americans as all George Bush clones, which they were happen to find out wasn’t true when talking to me, and when we became better friends they taught me all their soccer chants to sing in the bar.  I really felt like a global citizen when I was singing French songs in an Irish bar wearing an English soccer jersey, and at that moment I really started to appreciate what this trip has done for me.
That night broadened my view of the world so quickly and intensely that it was all I could think about for the next few days.  I have never felt so out of place culturally, but so at home personally in my life, and that is why these trips and experiences are so important and educational.  Sure, we learn in the class Monday through Thursday, but there is so much more to learn and take in over here, and the Temple Bar is my greatest example of what you can learn with a diverse group of people.