So, on my trip I went to Ireland, London, and Normandy. I had a great time at all 3 places, but Ireland was absolutely my favorite. After some VERY last minute travel stress (Jason's flight out of NY was cancelled and he had to catch the train to Philly to make his connector) I arrived in London and met Jason (who thankfully made it to Philly in time) outside of baggage claim. From there we took a bus to the train station and a train to Thurles, where we were picked up by some of Jason's distant relatives. We stayed with his family for 4 nights in a small town called Cahir and it was so wonderful. They were so generous and welcoming. Even though I'm not a part of the family, I instantly felt at home thanks to their hospitality.
The night we arrived, we went to a little bar called Jim O' the Mills, which is actually someone's home that they open up on Thursday nights for the community to come have a drink and socialize. This was one of the coolest places I've ever been. There were 3 different rooms and each one was full of people of every age. There wasn't a TV in sight. There was no loud techno music blasting from speakers. There were just people talking to each other. Young people, old people; those in between. The only music there was the music being played by the locals who brought their own fiddles and accordions and guitars. There were people of all ages singing traditional Irish songs. It was something I've never seen before and I don't know if I'll ever see it anywhere else.
Everywhere we went and with each person we met, we were offered tea and/or whiskey. It wasn't only the drinks though. With the drinks came biscuits and sweets and cakes that were never ending- no matter what time it was.
It goes without saying that Ireland is absolutely stunning. I am so happy that I was able to go see the "real" Ireland and hear the local folklore associated with the area. We were lucky enough to have really knowledgeable and willing "tour guides" readily available to take us to some incredible places.
We went to:
-the Rock of Cashel
-Cahir Castel
- the Cliffs of Moher
-more churches; abbeys; and monasteries than I can mention
-tea shops
-local pubs
-family parties
-incredibly old cemeteries
and all of it was just unbelievable. I'm using a school computer right now, so I can't put up any of my pictures, but when I get home later I'll try to add some so you can see what I mean. But, if you're feeling impatient, the pictures are on my Facebook!
HERE YOU GO!
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| Rock of Cashel |
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| Cliffs of Moher |
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| Cahir Castle |
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| Christ Church |
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| St. Patrick's Cathedral |
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| Guinness Storehouse |
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| dessert at the Farm restaurant! |
After a wonderful time at the Peters', Jason and I made our way to Dublin. Like I said earlier; I'm really glad that we got to spend time in the "real" Ireland, because Dublin is quite touristy. That being said, I had so much freaking fun!! We stayed at Jury's Inn; which is a great location if you're ever in Dublin. We had a great view of Christ's Church and we were a 2 minute walk from Temple bar. The first night we were there, we didn't to too much sight seeing, as it was New Year's Eve. We got some food, got ready, and headed to Temple bar to celebrate the incoming year.
Temple Bar is awesome. There are so many different bars and they each have their own individual atmosphere. They all had live bands and great beer and were full of fun people. Even when we went back the next night; it was still a really fun place to be.
On January 1st, we made sure to see as much as we could since we were leaving early in the morning. First we went inside Christ's Church, which was beautiful. We got some chips (and skipped the fish) from Leo Burdock's and walked down to St. Patrick's Cathedral. It was lovely, but we didn't go inside. It was a really nice day, so we sat in the park outside the Cathedral and finished our chips before heading to the Guinness Storehouse. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it was really cool! It's a bit expensive, but there is a lot to see and a nice cold Guinness is included in the price. The top floor of the Storehouse is this big, circular room with windows instead of walls, where you can see all of Dublin. Not a bad place to drink a Guinness.
After that, we mostly just walked around and did a bit of shopping, but we walked A LOT and saw so many cool things. Jason had a guide book from Rick Steve's that I highly recommend to anyone going to Dublin. It was so full of useful information and it showed us where to find a restaurant called The Farm where we had a delicious (and organic) meal! We used his London guide book as well and it was also VERY helpful.
We left bright and early to head to London, but I would have loved to stay and explore some more. I don't know what my plans for the future are, but I'll definitely be making my way back to Ireland for more!
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