We're smart and decided to take RyanAir from Stanstead dodgy Airport early in the morning...which means we had to be out of Vandon house by 5 a.m. to get a bus there.
>:(
Slept passed my alarm and woke with 10 minutes to get ready. Luckily I had packed my bags the night before. I looked like a mess...and then we scurried (cause the tube isn't open that early) to the coach station only to find that what we thought was the coach station...wasn't the coach station after all (thanks to that not-so-helpful man...arg). So we ended up running with our heavy backpacks on to find that we had missed our bus. But a helpful bus driver told us we could get on because he was the next one to the airport. We still got there with plenty of time to grab some breakfast too!
Great way to start our trip. lol! Happy April Fools indeed!
Renae, Emily, and I met Jessica at the airport in Dublin and we took a bus to the center of Dublin and walked the streets for awhile before going over to the Jameson Distillery, still carrying our bags. I didn't want to pay for the tour since it's not really my thing...and so I sat on a bench, journaled, and did Sudoku until the girls were done.
By that time we were STARVING! So we finally found a pub with some traditional food and I got an Irish Stew. Mmm...it was so filling! We then found our GlobeTrotters hostel (cozy...I was surprised at how nice it was!) to drop our stuff off and see if our Spain friends had arrived yet...which they hadn't...and then went back out to go to the Guinness factory.
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| my Irish Stew |
I decided to do the Guinness tour as well with the girls. And it was actually really cool! It took us up many levels and each level explained part of the process in the production of Guinness. On one level we each got to try a small amount of fresh Guinness...I had never tried it before and will never again...it was awful!! bleh! I couldn't even finish the couple swallows they gave me! lol, Emily on the other hand thought it was delicious! I just don't get it...it was nasty! haha!
At the very top level was the Gravity Bar and we could choose to drink a Guinness that we had poured ourselves (cause apparently that's a big deal) or we could have a coke/fanta. I had a coke. :)
The Gravity Bar had windows all the way around so we had a view over Dublin from every angle!! Totally made the tour worth it. :)
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| in front of the Gravity Bar view at the top of the Guinness factory |
It was kind of sad to me that the major attraction in Dublin was their Guinness factory though...
In fact, I wasn't too impressed with the rest of the city. Not really any architecture to boast about. It had a certain atmosphere that I kind of liked (minus the emphasis on pubs)...but the city just seemed so dirty! The smells, rubbish, and graffiti...what a shame.
We saw a sight I'll never forget on our walk back to the hostel from the factory.
There were about three or four young children outside all by themselves...no one around. they had to have been early elementary age....
...and they all had spray paint cans...
Spraying a parking sign!!
The little brats looked at us with devilish grins and one acted like he was going to spray my coat when we walked by! I was appalled!! Where are the adults here!???
That art teacher part of me was bursting to take control. I wanted to rip those cans out of their hands and scold them....that is NOT art!! Total disrespect....where are your parents!??
Our Spain friends had arrived...including Miss Mandy Trusty. :) So we all joined up for supper....a pub close to our hostel. I got fish and chips...because, of course, you HAVE to have fish and chips in Ireland. But they weren't all that great. :( I was disappointed.
Saturday, April 2nd:
A couple girls from our group went to Galway for the day...which was originally our plan until we heard there might be rain and it is a four hour bus ride or something there....um, maybe not. lol
So instead we went on the Wicklow Tours of the area around Dublin. :)
Our tour guide was just the cutest old man...very traditional ideas....thick accent (T's for "th's")...and he frequently sang to us. :) If I remember correctly, I think his name was John.
After driving through the gorgeous mountains and green hills (that we could see the sea in the distance...and even Snowdonia in Wales on the other side!) we stopped for a spot of tea at an old prison? or something like that.
I got my usual cream tea and scones with clotted cream and jam....and besides the scones I had at the tea rooms in Bangor...they were the best scones ever!
We continued on, stopping occasionally for pictures...through the hilly green farms and sheep pastureland. Drove through the turf national park...which was very pretty as well, even though it was just brown and green swampy patches as far as the eye could see. Apparently though, this must have been the park Hilary Swank didn't realize she was in...in the movie P.S. I love You. Because our next picture point was the bridge were she meets Gerard (Jerry) Butler!!! AHH!!
so all us young girls jumped off the bus to take picture after picture...and we ended up being the last ones back on the bus. lol, they were all waiting for us. :)
It was beautiful! Even though it's not the season for the purple flowers to cover the land like in the movie...it was still very pretty and we could totally tell that it was from the scene! Sigh...wonderful. :)
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| sitting by THE bridge from the movie. The brown tuffs behind me turn purple later in the year. :) |
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| beautiful! |
Our next stop was the "Guinness Lake"...beautifully tucked in a mountain valley. The brightness of the greens and blues was breathtaking! Our tour guide told us that it was in this area that Paul McCartney wrote the lyrics for "Yesterday!" and the Beatles had stayed at the Guinness Palace in the valley at one time.
"Tat's wut he done" haha...oh John.
I don't remember the names of some of these places....but I saved the pamphlet...so if I find it I'll edit them in. haha!The next place we went had a small cemetery with and ancient "watch" tower used for protection.
Our guide led us through the remains of this graveyard giving us commentary...we didn't hear much of it though because, well, we found Edward Cullen's gravestone. lol. He's dead after all. My brother will be happy to know.
Then we had some free time to go explore the nearby lakes. We took the board walk over the river that people had thrown coins in (..magical!!), passed the sheep pastures, and to the lake. Mandy and I lost the rest of the girls in our hurry to at least see this lake...the rest of them were searching the ground for four-leaf clovers. lol, unsuccessfully. But I could have told them that before they tried.
We didn't really get far before we needed to get back to the bus to continue on.
All of the clovers they had searched so hard to find ended up being on their salad when we stopped for lunch in a small town (used for the filming of some show series that I've never heard of). haha! They weren't real of course...some sort of garnish...but they had four leaves like a clover. :)I can't remember what I ordered to eat (which is odd for me...lol) but I do remember what poor Nikki got. She ordered a cheese sandwhich...not expecting it to be the plain slice of bread with literally just a chunk of cheese on it. haha!
Before heading back we stopped a wool mill and got to walk around a little room where they weave scarves. Bright spools of color. It was neat! We walked around the gift shop for a bit and then our bus ride home. We had a sing off...sort of. Each country represented on the bus had to sing a song from their home. We sang "Don't Stop Believing"...a horrible rendition...but ah well. lol
All in all...it was a great tour! It started raining just at the end...so we had perfect timing. :)
When we got back to Dublin we went souvy shopping on the streets. I wanted some sort of Celtic jewelry. I didn't really fancy anything that I saw though.After stopping at our hostel...just before the rain turned into hail for a short time...and getting cleaned up a bit, we went back out to the Arlington Hotel. Our tour guide had told us that they have Irish River Dancing and live music for free at night...so of course we wanted to see it!! I was really excited for some Irish music.But what we got wasn't really what we expected.
It was better. :)
We walked in to a band playing familiar rock songs with an acoustic sort of twist on stage. They were good, but we thought they were just an opening act. So we waited and waited for the Irish Dancing or Music to begin...and it didn't come. But that's okay...because I kind of fell in love with this band...namely, the lead singer. :) haha!
Three person band...and they were all attractive....but it was the voice of the lead that made it all work. He partly reminded me of Jon Foreman from Switchfoot...and I love Jon...so of course, I loved this guy! :)
We sat at a table towards the back and the girls got drinks...but I was too busy watching and listening ...and I couldn't stop smiling! My face was sore by the end of the day! hah! He waved awkwardly to our table once in the middle of a song...lol, totally waving at me of course. :) ha!
Our guide led us through the remains of this graveyard giving us commentary...we didn't hear much of it though because, well, we found Edward Cullen's gravestone. lol. He's dead after all. My brother will be happy to know.
Then we had some free time to go explore the nearby lakes. We took the board walk over the river that people had thrown coins in (..magical!!), passed the sheep pastures, and to the lake. Mandy and I lost the rest of the girls in our hurry to at least see this lake...the rest of them were searching the ground for four-leaf clovers. lol, unsuccessfully. But I could have told them that before they tried.
We didn't really get far before we needed to get back to the bus to continue on.
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| those yellow flowered shrubs were everywhere! |
Before heading back we stopped a wool mill and got to walk around a little room where they weave scarves. Bright spools of color. It was neat! We walked around the gift shop for a bit and then our bus ride home. We had a sing off...sort of. Each country represented on the bus had to sing a song from their home. We sang "Don't Stop Believing"...a horrible rendition...but ah well. lol
All in all...it was a great tour! It started raining just at the end...so we had perfect timing. :)
It was better. :)
We walked in to a band playing familiar rock songs with an acoustic sort of twist on stage. They were good, but we thought they were just an opening act. So we waited and waited for the Irish Dancing or Music to begin...and it didn't come. But that's okay...because I kind of fell in love with this band...namely, the lead singer. :) haha!
Three person band...and they were all attractive....but it was the voice of the lead that made it all work. He partly reminded me of Jon Foreman from Switchfoot...and I love Jon...so of course, I loved this guy! :)
We sat at a table towards the back and the girls got drinks...but I was too busy watching and listening ...and I couldn't stop smiling! My face was sore by the end of the day! hah! He waved awkwardly to our table once in the middle of a song...lol, totally waving at me of course. :) ha!
kept up the eye contact...even did the come hither thing with a coaster (fan language)...in the hopes that after they finished playing that they would stick around and come over to talk with us. haha! (you do know I'm not being completely serious here, right? ok...just checking...lol) But they packed up and left right after they were done. Sad. I coulda had me an Irish man like the one she meets at the pub in P.S.I Love You. Lol...oh, did I mention he was a ginger? ;)
I even found them on Facebook. The MixTape.
After the band left they played some dance music and the dance floor got busy. Music we knew! Including Gaga and the Killers. I will now always associate the song "Human" by the Killers withthat pub in Ireland.
It was so fun! We had some party ladies next to us that got the girls up to dance...including their 70-some year old mother who proclaimed that we're all her daughters. lol! They were a hoot!! I didn't dance but I had a blast watching from our table...guarding the purses. For realsies. They were very entertaining to say the least. The girls kept asking me if I was having fun since I wasn't drinking...lol...YES! I can have fun without any help from alcohol thank you very much. lol!
What a wonderful night! We didn't get our Irish dancing...but it was so worth it. :)
So we then said our goodbyes to our Spain friends and Emily, Renae, and I went to catch a bus to the airport. However I still had not found a souvenir that I liked...so everytime we walked past a shop, I ran inside frantically searching for something! I bought a necklace...but it still wasn't really what I was looking for. We got to the bus stop and our bus was going to arrive at any minute...but there was a gift shop close by. So Renae told me to run! haha!
So I did.
Quickly found the jewelry section and frantically scanned the rings...
There was a small box on the bottom shelf with a design I liked...and, amazingly, the first one I picked up fit my skinny finger...and was on SALE for 5 euro!! It was meant to be...last minute. haha!
So yea...got to our plane and back to London. :)
I even found them on Facebook. The MixTape.
It was so fun! We had some party ladies next to us that got the girls up to dance...including their 70-some year old mother who proclaimed that we're all her daughters. lol! They were a hoot!! I didn't dance but I had a blast watching from our table...guarding the purses. For realsies. They were very entertaining to say the least. The girls kept asking me if I was having fun since I wasn't drinking...lol...YES! I can have fun without any help from alcohol thank you very much. lol!
What a wonderful night! We didn't get our Irish dancing...but it was so worth it. :)
Sunday, April 3rd:
After our full Irish breakfast...provided by the hostel and very tasty,
...we went out to the National Leprechaun Museum.
Yes...that's right.
It was directed for kids and not very educational....it didn't give us the history of leprechauns and fairy stories...which I had hoped for. But we didn't really care. lol.
First we went through a shrinking room into the "giant's room" where we were made to feel like leprechauns. We all got pictures sitting on the giant furniture. hehe! After the Fairy map and umbrella room we walked through the rainbow to the pot of gold on the other side. The rainbow was layers of colors string hanging from the ceiling and the pot of gold wasn't very impressive. lol
We then listened to a little history by the gal working there and then the lame bookshop where they had each of us draw and color a picture to put on their wall and possibly website. I drew a fairy, but it wasn't my best....we didn't have much time. lol
Kind of lame. I had hoped for better Dublin. haha!
Before London and Spain had to go our separate ways, we walked over to St. Patrick's Cathedral to get pictures of the architecture and see the nearby garden.
I didn't really understand why, but I had a weird feeling in my gut about leaving Ireland. I didn't feel like I had had enough of the countryside...our time had been so limited.
But from what we had seen...I was kind of disappointed. Especially by Dublin.
I realized the expectations and stereotypes that I came with...and they weren't met.
Maybe someday I'll get to come back to Ireland to get the full experience rather than just a tempting whiff. But as of now...I'll add it as another "lesson learned" to my book.
One of the biggest things I have learned in Study Abroad is to not have expectations.
Easier said than done.
A really good friend of mine gave me the advice to "not have expectations" before I came...and I thought I had taken it to heart and was just going to ride the wind when I came here. But each time I visit a new place...I have found that I have expectations and stereotypes of people and places that I didn't realize I even had!
I have been disappointed by things I didn't think would let me down...the only reason being that I had a preconceived idea that wasn't fulfilled. It's a dangerous thing and we all do it...without realizing it.
It was directed for kids and not very educational....it didn't give us the history of leprechauns and fairy stories...which I had hoped for. But we didn't really care. lol.
First we went through a shrinking room into the "giant's room" where we were made to feel like leprechauns. We all got pictures sitting on the giant furniture. hehe! After the Fairy map and umbrella room we walked through the rainbow to the pot of gold on the other side. The rainbow was layers of colors string hanging from the ceiling and the pot of gold wasn't very impressive. lol
We then listened to a little history by the gal working there and then the lame bookshop where they had each of us draw and color a picture to put on their wall and possibly website. I drew a fairy, but it wasn't my best....we didn't have much time. lol
Kind of lame. I had hoped for better Dublin. haha!
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| sitting in the Giant's chair |
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| the rainbow. lol |
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| St. Patrick's Cathedral |
Before London and Spain had to go our separate ways, we walked over to St. Patrick's Cathedral to get pictures of the architecture and see the nearby garden.
I didn't really understand why, but I had a weird feeling in my gut about leaving Ireland. I didn't feel like I had had enough of the countryside...our time had been so limited.
But from what we had seen...I was kind of disappointed. Especially by Dublin.
I realized the expectations and stereotypes that I came with...and they weren't met.
Maybe someday I'll get to come back to Ireland to get the full experience rather than just a tempting whiff. But as of now...I'll add it as another "lesson learned" to my book.
One of the biggest things I have learned in Study Abroad is to not have expectations.
Easier said than done.
A really good friend of mine gave me the advice to "not have expectations" before I came...and I thought I had taken it to heart and was just going to ride the wind when I came here. But each time I visit a new place...I have found that I have expectations and stereotypes of people and places that I didn't realize I even had!
I have been disappointed by things I didn't think would let me down...the only reason being that I had a preconceived idea that wasn't fulfilled. It's a dangerous thing and we all do it...without realizing it.
So we then said our goodbyes to our Spain friends and Emily, Renae, and I went to catch a bus to the airport. However I still had not found a souvenir that I liked...so everytime we walked past a shop, I ran inside frantically searching for something! I bought a necklace...but it still wasn't really what I was looking for. We got to the bus stop and our bus was going to arrive at any minute...but there was a gift shop close by. So Renae told me to run! haha!
So I did.
Quickly found the jewelry section and frantically scanned the rings...
There was a small box on the bottom shelf with a design I liked...and, amazingly, the first one I picked up fit my skinny finger...and was on SALE for 5 euro!! It was meant to be...last minute. haha!
So yea...got to our plane and back to London. :)
I'll leave you with an Irish Blessing:
Go n-éirí an bóthar leat
Go raibh an ghaoth go brách ag do chúl
Go lonraí an ghrian go te ar d'aghaidh
Go dtite an bháisteach go mín ar do pháirceanna
Agus go mbuailimid le chéile arís,
Go gcoinní Dia i mbos A láimhe thú.
May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.
Go dtite an bháisteach go mín ar do pháirceanna
Agus go mbuailimid le chéile arís,
Go gcoinní Dia i mbos A láimhe thú.
May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.
~Merely Mortal~
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