All my life I've dreamed of coming to Ireland. It's top of my list for places to see in the world so when I saw fliers for this trip I suppressed the urge to be cheap and signed up. I'm so glad I did!
The first day in Ireland was probably my favorite so far. Luckily I was able to sleep on the plane so I was hanging in there pretty good except for the need for a shower.
Our first stop was the Guinness Storehouse. The information was pretty cool. The beer was super gross! It was my first taste of beer ever and yuck! The view from the top was my favorite thing about the place. It reminded me of what I think London might look like from a view like that. After the Storehouse we checked into our hotel and we all got showers. We felt so much better afterward! We ate at a pub that night. After dinner the girls and I went to Temple Bar (which is like this huge area in Dublin with shops and pubs and stuff) which is where our tour guide/bus driver recommended we go. When we first got there (around 8PM) it wasn't too crazy. We met some boys from England who were amazed by us because they had never talked to American girls. They were really funny and knew a lot about American culture. They asked us about songs and movies. One told me I look just like the girl from Ten Things I Hate About You, Julia Stiles. I laughed because I get that all the time. Dublin started to get a little scary around ten which is when a friend and I headed back to our hotel. There were people everywhere with cups asking for change. Street performers seemed to be around every corner. We stopped to listen to one sing "Wonderwall" and they sang it very well! Luckily we made it back without any issues.
Yesterday we went to the Rock of Cashel and Blarney Castle. Cashel was super gorgeous and I learned a lot about religious history there. We were all so pumped to kiss the stone that has given eloquence to millions before us. The castle was gorgeous! Going up the staircase was super long and scary! It was spiraled and narrowed pretty heavily in some places. I didn't think we'd ever reach the top. When we did I was the first to plant my kiss. I laid on a plastic mat, grabbed hold of the metal bar, and bent backward. The man held me tight while I kissed the stone and counted to three, hoping the longer kiss would provide me with extra eloquence. Surprisingly the exit staircase was a lot wider and felt shorter. I wonder if they try to weed out the weak before they get to the top? We drove to Kilarney after that.
Our hotel here is a lot nicer than the first one. It's much cosier. The town is really cute. Night life isn't as happening but there are a lot of cute stores. It reminds us of Gatlinburg. There is a surprisingly large amount of Americans in this area. I had my first taste of fish n chips last night with sticky toffee pudding for desert and it was amazing!
Today we toured the Ring of Kerry. We were halfway through the ride before I realized we weren't going to a certain destination, we were driving around the ring. The countryside was gorgeous! It was so breathtaking! We stopped at the beach and took a bunch of pictures. I was in total awe of God's beautiful creation! A bunch of people on the bus got car sick because the roads were windy and really bumpy. We stopped at a place called Sneem for lunch. It was a really cute little town.
It's been a fantastic trip so far! I've learned a lot about Ireland thanks to our quite knowledgeable driver. I can't wait to see what adventures await us in the next week!
Favorite quotes so far:
"Pointy hair and no sense. They're the same the world round." -Our bus driver, Con about boys.
"I sneem, you sneem, we all sneem for ice sneem"
"The tribes would fight each other for cattle, women, you know...the usual stuff" -Con
"We've no leprechauns left in Ireland since the Japanese found out they taste like chicken" -Con
-LG
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