Galway Girl: Belles of the Ball

Last night was NUIG's 138th Rugby Ball. It took place at the Harbour Hotel right outside of the city center and after a week of paper writing, studying, and living in the library, I think it's safe to assume that a good time is what we all needed. The ball marks the official end of the season. It's kind of like a banquet, but with no awards, speeches or presentations - just good food, lots of wine, and plenty of dancing. Getting ready, I felt like I was back in high school, prepping for a semi-formal or a prom. A bunch of teammates came over and everyone pitched in their beauty talents to ensure that we all looked fabulous. I was having serious issues with getting my hair to look somewhat decent, there is really just too much of it! Actually, it took a couple of girls to work it into a mess of braids, curls, and twists, accessorized with a flower to hide the mess of bobby pins and frizzies underneath. So Maureen, my godmother and extremely patient hairdresser, I want to extend a sincere thank you for making my hair look lovely for all those proms, socials, and other occasions over the years, I know now that it must have been quite a challenge. But moving on...in the end, everyone looked great and we managed to leave only fifteen minutes later than we were supposed to, which was quite a feat. We even had time to snap a few shots out in the courtyard before leaving! The weather was a wonderful 70 and sunny, warm enough for us to go outside in our skimpy dresses without freezing.

We went to another teammates house for a pre-ball gathering and so we could all taxi to the hotel together. We made it to the hotel on time and immediately sat down to dinner, sitting boy-girl-boy-girl as requested by the men's team. Dinner was great. I had Caesar salad, a chicken dish, chocolate mousse, and even managed a glass or two of wine, even though I hate the stuff. After dinner, we hit the dance floor and danced late into the night. The DJ was playing mostly 80's stuff, despite our protests that we weren't old enough to really appreciate the tunes. But we danced anyway, kicking off our heels, taking embarrassing pictures, and enjoying our last real time together as a team. When 3AM rolled around, we were all pretty tired and decided to head home. I woke up this morning exhausted, but happy to have experienced the once in a lifetime opportunity of going to a rugby ball in Ireland.