In the
six months that I’ve lived here in Europe, I’ve been blessed to be able to
travel to many beautiful places. Most of
these locations have been within Spain, except for my jaunt to Belgium and The
Netherlands over Christmas. During the
last week of February, however, my friend Becky and I once again ventured
outside our Spanish speaking world to see the green shores of Ireland.
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| pre-flight portrait |
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| first glimpse of Ireland! |
Ireland exceeded my expectations in every way imaginable. The people were friendly, the landscape was beautiful, the transportation was fast and affordable, and there was a never-ending list of cheap things to do. Becky and I arrived in Dublin via RyanAir, the notorious budget airline that is actually based in Ireland. Our plane was only an hour late though (which is a feat, believe me) so we were unfazed and excited to begin our trip. The shuttle we took to our hostel was actually a double-decker bus, which seemed luxurious compared to some of the others I’ve taken in Europe (busses smelling of feet, kidnapper vans, etc.). Above all, the most surreal part of this journey was being able to ask questions in English. This was my first time in an English speaking country since leaving the U.S. six months ago!
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| English! |
We spent our first evening at the Temple Bar District in the heart of Dublin. Though we hopped around to several different establishments, we eventually settled at the actual Temple Bar. Becky and I had hoped to avoid the tourist traps that this area is clearly all about, but the promise of hearing some Irish music got the better of us. So we grabbed ourselves a table and a couple of pints at one of the oldest bars in Dublin and enjoyed the scene. That night at Temple was amazing—full of Irish sing-alongs, flowing Guinness, and reveling in all of the English around us.
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| Dublin by night |
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| getting right down to business |
Our next day was spent at the Guinness Storehouse, where we perused old fashioned
Guinness paraphernalia and helped ourselves to the flowing supply of free
Guinness. The Storehouse is also the
world’s largest pint glass and opens up into an amazing glass-walled bar on the
top floor with some spectacular views of the city. We enjoyed the panorama and our pints while
chatting with an Irish woman who now lives in Chicago, and whose daughters live
in Washington!
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| view from the top |
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| ah, the anticipation |
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| probando |
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| happy travelers |
On our
third day, we decided to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the
city. We hopped on a train (roundtrip
tickets for only 4 euro!) to Howth, a nearby village built on a tiny peninsula
outside of Dublin. Howth was beautiful
for so many reasons—quaint little houses, a picturesque harbor, and sea cliffs
that were absolutely breathtaking. Though
we had been careful about packing sandwiches to minimize our spending, we took
a budget splurge for fish and chips on the coast. The Ireland vs. Italy Six Nations rugby match
was playing in the old man bar we chose, so we enjoyed our food and cider while
feeling very Irish. After lunch, we went
on a hike that accidentally turned into us summiting a small mountain, but the
extra time was completely worth it for the gorgeous views.
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| in the harbor |
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| our seal friend |
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| lunch |
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| the Irish Sea |
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| depth perception |
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| nearing the summit |
The
final day in Dublin was one of quiet recuperation. Becky and I took a walk at the famous Trinity
College and gathered souvenirs for our families. After our last walk around the city, we wrote
postcards over our final Irish pints and reminisced over our ridiculous
English-Spanish mix-ups. I spent most of
the weekend saying “perdón” instead of “excuse me” and
adding “por favor” instead of “please.” At least this means I’m learning Spanish,
right?
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| Molly Malone |
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| Trinity College |
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| the Georgian doors |
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| the final pint! |
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