Winter Break: Ireland

Ireland!

Characters:
Emily- The humble narrator.
Mary- The adventurous eater, hostel-friend-maker and fellow New Jerseyian.
Kara- The navigator and straight-shooter, often identified by her superior hat fashion.

Setting:
Last June, when I learned I would be moving east of the Atlantic again, I knew I'd be making a trip to back to Ireland. I waited two years for the opportunity to return to the cozy, wood paneled pubs and the eternally green fauna I remembered from my semester in Galway.

We have to rewind a little in order for me to adequately recap my journey.



Act I: Dublin
Scene I
On January 22, I met Kara and Mary at the Dublin airport. Kara was sporting her beloved Edinburgh souvenir hat (please scroll for photographic evidence), so the pair was easy to spot. After dropping our bags, we hit up two pubs to watch the American Football play-off games. Ireland would be geographically and culturally the closest I'd be to America until my return in June, so I happily sipped on my cider and cheered on the Giants.

Scene II
The next day we did the Guinness Factory tour and the Jameson Distillery tour. One-track minded, maybe. But all in the name of mutual cultural understanding!

Sampling the goods.

Kara earning her whiskey expert certification.

Scene III
After a day in Dublin, we took a day tour to Northern Ireland. Our goofy tour guide, Troy, made the long ride north entertaining with jokes and a spot-on playlist featuring some classic throwback songs from my younger years. The day's highlights included walking across the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge and checking out the Giant's Causeway. Troy (in his thick brogue) told us the Irish myth in which the Irish giant Finn McCool builds the causeway to find his true love. Thanks to Mary's background in geology, she offered some details on the homogenous basalt hexagonal columns we were walking around. Facts and fairytales made our trip to the causeway all the more interesting.

Kara (and the infamous hat!), Mary, and me.

On the bridge.

Giant's Causeway!

Me and some hexagonal columns.

Scene IV
Another day of Dublin sightseeing brought us to the Kilmainham Gaol and Trinity College. Later that evening we hopped on a bus to Galway, the place I was most excited to return to.


Act II: Galway
Scene I
A friend from my semester in Galway graciously hosted us in the Niland House, the same apartment building I stayed in in 2009. The gang headed to The King's Head to watch a football match and indulge in a few pints.

Scene II
A bus tour took us to the Cliffs of Moher.

Pre hail storm.

The day was cloudy, and as we looked out over the Atlantic, we saw an approaching storm. At first we watched it slowly creep towards us with an apprehensive sense of wonder. As the minutes passed, we considered heading back to the visitor center to seek shelter, but hesitated, captured by the sublime beauty of the distant rain. It was then the winds changed and the hail storm began. Ice pellets showered down from the steely skies. We sprinted for the visitor center's double doors, punctuating our footsteps with shrieks and laughter. Winded and red-faced, we ordered tea.

Post hail storm.

After our day tour, we cooked dinner for our host and met with some other Galway friends for some pints. It was nice to catch up after two years. Hopefully it won't be another two years before I see them again!


Act III: Cork
Scene I
An early bus took us to Cork, where a lovely bed and breakfast welcomed us with some afternoon tea and pastries.

Tea, coffee, scones.

With little time to spare in Cork, we headed straight for Blarney Castle and its beautiful grounds after dropping our bags. The weather teased us with stray rain showers, but soon cleared up (paying us back for the day before's hail storm, I suppose).

Blarney Castle.

Kissing the Blarney Stone.

Surrounding castle grounds.

Daffodils in January!

Thus concludes our time in Ireland. After our night in Cork, we headed for the Dublin Airport where we took a short flight to Barcelona. Those stories can be found in a separate post.