Submitted by Olivia Tadlock the 2024 Spring program in Limerick, Ireland…
Moving to another country comes with a lot of cultural differences and culture shock. One culture shock that I didn’t expect to experience in Ireland was the strong accents. Even though everyone in Ireland speaks English, some Irish accents are very strong which can make it difficult to understand what they are saying. I’ve had trouble understanding the accent with my professors and classmates, in stores and restaurants, and when traveling around Ireland. Some areas of Ireland have stronger accents than others. In fact, I was recently on the west coast of Ireland where their accents are very strong and it was very difficult to understand people’s accents. Even though it’s frustrating when I can’t understand someone’s accent, I try to be patient with myself and I just ask the person I’m talking with to repeat themselves. I also know that the more I hear the Irish accent, the better I get at understanding it. (Submitted on April 13,2024)