Notre Dame & Navy

The marching band was playing, the beer was flowing, the sun was shining: IT'S GAME DAY!!

We woke up bright and early on Saturday morning, ready for the only chance of a college football/fall experience we're gonna get here.  We accidentally missed the mass offered at Dublin Castle by the Archbishop of Dublin for the Notre Dame fans, but we met up with all of them as they filtered out of the Castle and followed the marching band down the street towards Temple Bar, parade style.  

Cute Notre Dame cheerleader.

Here they come!

The Notre Dame Drum Majors

The band!

Drum line!  I love drum lines.  What is it about them??

Massive crowd heading into Temple Bar.

We all went to THE actual Temple Bar (it's a bar, and also a general area) for some scoops (beers) and we drank them in plastic cups in the street, people watching mostly.  It was packed but also a really fun atmosphere!  We walked to another bar for a few more drinks and then headed to the stadium.

All the girls!  Autumn, Missy, Tracy, me, and Kelly (in town from England).  Friends!!

Tailgating in Temple Bar!

Evidently you're not allowed to drink on the streets here in Ireland, though they were relatively lenient on this rule for the game.  Not wanting to risk it, we bought huge beers from a convenience store outside of Temple Bar and poured them into coffee cups with the lid on.  It made me feel like a young girl of 19 again.  Ahh.  Memories.

Aviva Stadium with Missy, showing off her newly purchased Navy scarf.

Drew and Tom, each doing their college symbols.

Aviva!

Cool stadium.

Gettin' ready for kickoff.

Oh hey!

The fans were flinging this poor kid up in the air counting every point Notre Dame scored, after each point scored.  Kinda funny.

Look!  The Navy band made a shamrock at halftime!

Drew was interviewed after the game by some group with a Naval affiliation.  I think they picked up on his shirt color that was completely out of place.  But appreciated nonetheless.

The guy standing next to me watching this interview asked "Does he always talk with his hands?"  Answer: Yes.

Hook em

Chillin' after the game at one of our favorite pubs!

We hung out at a few more pubs, went and tried to get some pizza with our pals but couldn't get a table due to one of our acquaintance's drunkenness, and finally settled on Thai food.  We were all exhausted from our valiant efforts of drinking beer all day and were home and in bed by 11pm!  It was a great day with friends and I think we all felt like it was a little taste of home, even though we were far from it.  American football teams should do this in Dublin EVERY year!  I'm just sayin'.