You know how I have gone on and on about wanting to move to London, and how it is the perfect place for me? Forget all of it. I was born to live in Ireland.
Ok, so I didn't even spend two full days there. But the time I did spend there was nothing short of perfect. Or surreal. Really- I can't believe that I am actually living this life. And one of the best parts? For the entire trip, including travel and food, I only spent 20 euros. On a claddagh ring and some post cards. Yeah. Be jealous. Why? Because Interstudy paid for it! WIN!
So my journey to Ireland started out on Friday (April Fool's Day... yeah, it's big in the UK too.). Even though London supposedly has three airports, all these airports are at least 45 minutes outside the city by train.
Because of this, the London Interstudy kids met up at London Bridge tube station, and took a train to Gatwick Airport. After a pleasant ride full of catching up with each other, we were there, and ready to go check in and make our way through security...
...which took all of 20 minutes. I have seriously had the best luck with airports this trip. (Knock on wood.)
So what were we to do for the two hours until our plane departed? Well, turns out Gatwick is more of a mall than an airport. Because it was mid-afternoon, I decided to get a snack. Although PRET was right there, calling to me as it promised me delicious sandwiches, porridge, and coffee, something else caught my eye. A shop that specialized in milkshakes. Milkshakes that contained blended British candies. Really. ANY British candy. After contemplating which candy to choose (in a very Rebecca Black style... "Which candy should I TAAAKKKKKEEEEEEE?!?!?!?!?!") I settled with Cadbury Creme Egg. Can anyone say best milkshake ever?
Afternoon snack in hand, I then walked over to WHSmith. Although I had a book to read for the trip, it was a school book. About the history of the Victoria and Albert Museum. For a paper I had to write. SNNNOOOOZZZZEEEEE. I decided I could go for a non-academic read. However, with the selection available to me, this was a process. How could I only choose one? After debating between various titles, I settled on "Eat Pray Love". Not only have I not read this book yet, but it was the cheapest out of all my choices. Done.
With a tummy full of delicious milkshake and a book in hand, I was ready to sit and wait with my friends for the plane. Finally, our gate was displayed on the board. We were really going to Ireland!
Within an hour of take-off, we were in Ireland! Specifically, Cork, Ireland. When we arrived, we were supposed to meet an Interstudy liaison who would bring us to our hostel in Killarney (1.5 hours away), but their plane to Cork was delayed 3 hours. So instead of arriving 1 hour before us, they arrived 2 hours late.
By this time, we were all starving and tired. Cork is a small airport- 8 gates total. With only a few food places to choose from, we were happy to find that the airport had a restaurant and pub. So we made our way to it, and became what seemed to be its sole patrons for 2 hours. After selecting fish and chips from the menu, I sat with my fellow Londoners and discussed the issues in the world today... just kidding. Although a decent part of our conversation involved the horror show that is Rebecca Black's "Friday".
The most delicious airport food you will ever have.
Before we knew it, 2 hours had passed, and our liaison had touched down. After greeting her and her husband, we jumped into some vans (not the sketchy kind, unfortunately) and made our way to University College Cork (UCC) to pick up some more Interstudy kids on our way to Killarney.
1.5 hours of curvy, wet roads later (there was heavy rain that night...) we were in Killarney. By this time it was after 11pm, and everyone was exhausted. Upon arriving at the hostel, we were greeted by other Interstudy kids- coming from Galway, Dublin, and other parts of Ireland. After hanging out for a little while and introducing ourselves it was time for bed- we had a long day ahead of us tomorrow.
Saturday, April 2:
Today was going to be a long day. But a fun day!
Our day started at 8:30 am. Not usually a bad thing, but after a day full of traveling and less than 7 hours of sleep, this is early. Especially when you are looking at hiking 8 miles through an Irish National Park.
After heading down to the hostel kitchen for some breakfast, it was time to set off. The sky was blue with only a few clouds. It was perfect.
After a short walk through Killarney's main streets, we boarded a bus. Which had rainbow and leprechaun window decals. Way to play into the stereotype, guys. The bus brought us to Ross Castle, a ten minute ride away. This is where our journey began.
Ross Castle... reminds me of something out of Monty Python.
As we arrived, the clouds started to accumulate and get dark. On the mountains behind the castle, you could see the rain start to fall. And all of a sudden, even though it was sunny over us, we were hit by rain. This became a common theme throughout the day- one minute you would be dry, the next minute it was only raining on the person next to you, and then all of a sudden, we would all be enveloped.
Still, this rain/sun combo didn't bother me, since it made for some BEAUTIFUL rainbows. Seriously, I saw at least 20 today. How perfect. Too bad I didn't find any gold...
You do not find a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow... you find a swan.
As our group "OO'ed" and "AH'ed" at the rainbow, castle, and mountains, taking hundreds of pictures, our tour guide was emptying our boats.
O. I didn't mention the boats? How silly of me. Yeah, we had to take a boat on an 14 mile, hour long trip TO the place we would be hiking. Pretty intense, right? And this 14 mile trek would take place entirely in this one national park. It was that big.
Because of the intense rain the night before, the guide had to pump a foot of water out of the boats. So we all took this time to pose for pictures and play with our guide's dog, Charlie.
Me in front of the back of Ross Castle.
Soon enough, we were in the sopping wet boats, listening to our guide. He was so wonderful. Besides referring to all of us as "My Loves", and joking that it was only his 4th day on the job, (so if he managed to damage the boat, the rule was that the captain jumps out first, then Charlie, and then us, since we don't matter to him) he gave us a really good history of the area. For example, on the top of this mountain (pictured below) there is a giant lake. It is called something like, "The Devil's Drinking Bowl", and legend has it that if you swim to the bottom, you will end up in Australia.
Swim to the bottom of the lake at the top of this mountain, and end up in Australia!
Also, did you know that the 14 mile boat journey we were on only became motorized in 1980? Yeah. Up until 30 years ago, this trip was done entirely by rowing. 4 men would man each boat, row 14 miles to the hiking trail in the morning, and then 14 miles back in the late afternoon. Our guide told us that they had vigorous training for this... in the form of Guinness. (Typical...) Every night, after returning to the mainland, the rowers would go to a local pub, and each get a gallon of Guinness. They would spend all night drinking this Guinness, go home, sleep, and then do the 28 total miles of rowing. They would do this everyday. Because of this, they say that the rowers would get '28 miles to the gallon'- better than their cars.
The boat ride, although very wet (my jeans were soaked through by the end) was soooo much fun! And I couldn't believe how beautiful everything around me was.
Views on our boat ride to Dunloe's Gap
Finally we reached land. Although the boat ride was fun, it was nice to get out so I could start to dry off... and this process of drying out turned into a photo op. With our butts facing the sun, everyone got pictures. Why? Because what was behind us was so damn gorgeous. Two birds with one stone. Picture of us with gorgeous Irish countryside in the background AND we dried off. WIN.
This picture really doesn't do it justice.... everything was so incredibly green, the sky was blue, and the flowers in the field were bright yellow!!!!
Now it was time to start our 8 mile hike. I am not going to write much about this, but I will include some pictures. If you want to see more, check out my Facebook!
So when we started our hike, it was bright and sunny. This changed over the course of the hike. All of a sudden the clouds rolled in, and as we climbed the mountain you could see the rain take over the mountains in back of us, the clouds steadily moving toward us. Even when the rain overtook us, and got us wet and cold, I couldn't believe how beautiful everything was! It was exactly how I pictured Ireland. As the rain passed over us, the clouds grew thinner, and by the time we finished our hike, the sun was peeking through! Talk about coming full circle!
You could SEE the rain coming for us...
Views from the top of one of the smaller mountains.
Me in Dunloe's Gap, Co Kerry, Killarney, Ireland
Towards the end of the hike
By the time we reached the end of our hike, we were exhausted. We had stopped to eat a small packed lunch during the hike, but it was rainy and cold, and we couldn't really find shelter. Instead of hiking back to wear we started and taking the boat back to Ross Castle, a bus picked us up and drove us to our hostel. By this time it was 4pm, so with 2 hours to spare everyone took hot showers and napped. I read my schoolbook. What a nerd.
At around half seven, we headed to dinner in town. A three course dinner. On Interstudy's tab. YES. Here are the pictures of my DELICIOUS FOOD! Course 1: Fried Brie. Course 2: Roast of Lamb with mixed veggies. Course 3: A Selection of Ice Cream (Vanilla, Mint, and Strawberry).
At dinner we were a party of 27 people. In order to better accommodate us, the restaurant gave us three tables- 2 long rectangular ones, and a smaller circle one. Guess where I sat?
That's right. The "Kids" table. We were so cool. While the other tables discussed serious topics, we discussed life-changing ones. For example: Pirate or ninja? (The whole table agreed on pirate) Werewolf or Vampire? (Not the "sparkle in the sun" crap... REAL vampire. 4 out of 5 agreed on vampire) What superpower would you want? ... All of these questions were followed by intense debate. It was amazing.
After our 3 course dinner, which lasted a good 2.5 hours, we all headed to different pubs. There was a rugby match going on, and even though I don't watch rugby, or know anything about it, it was fun. After awhile though, I sat with a small group of new kids from Interstudy in the front of the pub where the game wasn't playing. Out of the 6 of us, 4 were studying in Ireland, so we talked about our study abroad experience thus far, exchanging funny stories in the process. It was a blast.
That's one thing I love about the UK and Ireland: pubs. I don't drink, but man, you can't help but love a pub. I love how everyone here just comes to relax and talk with their friends. You don't need to drink to have fun here. The goal is not to get hammered. Just to enjoy your friends.
Because I hadn't been drinking, I was getting thirsty. It was around 10:30, and we were all eager to get moving. We got up, and made our way out of the bar. Only to be greeted by a dive across the street with burgers, hot dogs, and.... MILKSHAKES!
It didn't take much convincing on my part before we headed into this little joint. After ordering our milkshakes, we decided to make our way back to the hostel. Once there, we hung out in the lobby, sipping our milkshakes and talking late into the night. Finally, it was time to go to bed. After all, all 6 of us had to be up for 8am the next morning. Why? PONIES.
Sunday, April 3:
GOOD MORNING IRELAND!
The sky was blue, it was warm out, and it was going to be a great day.
After a quick breakfast we were off to go ride some ponies through the Irish countryside! About half of the Interstudy kids went at 8:30, and the other half went at 10:30. Although at first I wasn't thrilled about having to get up so early, it ended up working out great!
The stables we went to were a 5 minute ride from our hostel. Look how gorgeous it was out!!
How quintessentially Irish...
Upon entering the stables, we were matched up with horses based on our riding experience. I have only ridden a horse once in my life, so I was paired up with Monty. Yes. As in Monty Python. Needless to say I was very excited. In my opinion, I was only outdone by Julie's horse, Leroy. As in LEROOOYYYYYY JENKINS!!!!! The fact that we both shouted it when we heard her horse's name kinda made my day....
Don't you wish your girlfriend was HOT like me? ... You don't? :(
Once on our horses, we walked and trotted through the countryside. It was so much fun, and the wonderful weather held out! Not a raindrop to be had! I took a ton of pictures- everything was so gorgeous! (I feel like I say that a lot. But it's true)
One of the amazing views we got on our horseback ride through Killarney
As we went along, I started to have trouble with Monty. No, he did not try to kick me off. He just kept trying to eat. I WOULD GET THE HORSE THAT ALWAYS WANTS TO EAT! Although most of the time a quick pull on the reins would get him to behave, there was one time that no matter how hard I tried, he wouldn't lift his head. I pulled with all my weight on the reins, and even gave him a few kicks to get him to get moving. Nothing. What's worse? I was near the beginning of the line, so I held everyone up. Luckily, this proved to not only be hilarious, but a good photo op:
Me and Monty... I WOULD get the fat-ass horse!
After our ride was over, a group of us went to St. Mary's, the cathedral in Killarney. It is a relatively new Cathedral, finished in the 20th century. However, it was still beautiful.
Me in front of St. Mary's Cathedral in Killarney
By the time we were done with that, we walked through the town towards the restaurant we had to meet at for lunch. After stopping in a couple shops, it was time to head to the restaurant, where all the Interstudy kids and our guides gathered for the last time. After eating some great Chicken Cordon Bleu, it was time to go. Already.
Chicken Cordon Bleu at Scott's Hotel
After bidding adieu to our new friends, the Cork and London kids got back in the vans that brought us to Killarney, and the other Ireland kids got on trains and buses. And just like that, we left Killarney.
This time though, it wasn't night time, so I got to see the countryside as we passed along... it was amazing. Seriously, I could live here.
One of the prettiest pictures I got on our drive to Cork
Before I knew it, 1.5 hours had passed and we were in Cork. We dropped off the Cork kids, and then realized that we had 3 hours before we had to be at the airport.
Because of this, our Interstudy guides decided to bring the remaining Londoners and I to Blarney, home of Blarney Castle and the Blarney Stone. Apparently when you kiss it, you get "the gift of Gab".
... no one told me that this stone was 5 stories in the air, over a gap, and when you kissed it, you had to be lying down, grab two poles, and go UPSIDE DOWN to kiss it. 5 STORIES OVER THE GROUND!
I am so afraid of heights, but I had to do it. So I did:
Me kissing the Blarney Stone
After, we walked the grounds of the castle. We explored the Poison Garden, which held poisonous species and narcotics, and then all got photos taken in front of the castle. See that gap at the very top? Right above that top window? THAT is where the Blarney Stone is, and you have to kiss the bottom. Hence the laying down, upside down. FRICKEN SCARY.
Me in front of Blarney Castle. The Blarney stone is at the top, in that gap facing the front of the castle where you can see the sky. I kissed it. And almost had a heart attack.
We ventured further into the Castle grounds, and came upon the Wishing Steps. Apparently, if you go up and down the stairs BACKWARDS with your eyes closed, and only think of your wish for the entire time, your wish will come true in 1 year. No one wanted to do it, so I finally did. And I did it without falling! ... and no, I'm not telling you what I wished for. And no, it wasn't marriage, like Mark said. haha!
The Wishing Steps
Before we knew it, it was time to go to the airport. And just like that, our trip was over.
My last view of Ireland... :(
Is it possible to be homesick for a place that ISN'T my home? And that I only visited for 2 days? Because that is exactly what I felt when I took the above picture. All I can think of is how much I want to go back to this beautiful country. The people here are so friendly, the country is beautiful, and there is so much to do! The city is all well and good, but I think that as much as I LOVE London, I love the Irish countryside even more. I guess I am just a country-livin' kind of girl. I am kinda sad I can't make it again on this trip...
... O well! One more reason to have to come back!!!!
Cheers!
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