Hello friends and family!
It's been a quick first two days of the trip, and I will try to summarize a bit of what we've done so far.
We arrived in Dublin at 9AM local time, and we both had a ton of energy. I had slept almost the entire flight, and Mikey was just excited. The first thing I heard in an Irish accent was in the airport: "I need to get out of here and go have a whiskey!" I found that funny, being that it was 9AM. I guess there's nuggets of truth in all stereotypes.
We took a shuttle to the hostel and put down our belongings. Our rooms wouldn't be ready until 12:30, so we decided to go get some lunch and play it by ear from there. I had a delicious lunch of bangers and mash (sausage and mashed potatoes) and two pints of Guinness. It really does taste better in Ireland than in the US. It was odd to think that I was enjoying a pint two blocks from the brewery!
In the midst of my second pint, I realized just that! We were two blocks from the brewery. Our hostel still wasn't ready for us, so we headed over to the brewery for a tour. We poured the perfect pint, saw how Guinness was made, had a tasting in 'the perfect conditions for all of your senses to enjoy Guinness', and saw a beautiful view of the city from the Gravity Bar on the top floor of the brewery. We went back and checked into our room from there, and relaxed for a bit before going to buy groceries for our next few meals. We made burgers and fries for dinner because they were cheap, not realizing that it was the most stereotypical American meal ever. I think I saw a few snickers from our hostelmates!
After that, we did what Mikey and I do best. We borrowed the hostel's guitars and started jamming. By the time we were done, we had a crowd of about 40 people from the hostel clapping and singing along, and we had some other folks sit in and play with us drumming and guitaring! Here in Ireland, they call that sort of thing a 'session', and they often happen at pubs. People will come together in the pub, have some pints, and sit in on music jamming all night. I think I could get used to Ireland! After that, our friend Carolyn arrived at the hostel, and we spent the rest of the night catching up with her!
Today, we woke up at 6:30AM to catch a bus to Galway and the Cliffs of Moher (Alex Boesch and Nic Herrmann, if you're reading this, I have a photo to show you). We went to Galway first for a rainy walking tour. Between Dublin and Galway, it was amazing to me how much I remember from when I was here two years ago during my time abroad. Not much has changed, and I love it just as much as I did then. The hostel staff in Dublin is even the same. Very deja vu!
After Galway, we bussed to the Cliffs of Moher and fortunately, the skies cleared for a beautiful, sunny few hours. We walked 5km to the end of the cliff range and took in the breathtaking views. I had seen it before, but it was no less stunning the second time around. Absolutely gorgeous. Mikey and Carolyn were mesmerized, as it was their first time seeing it, and I enjoyed seeing them so taken aback by the beauty. Lots of photos from today to come! We rode back to Galway to drop off the people staying there for the night, and by some ridiculous stroke of chance, my friends Julia and Liam wound up on our bus back! It was a ridiculous coincidence. I knew they were in Ireland, but hadn't planned on seeing them in a few days, and then they just walked onto our bus. So strange, but such a fun time catching up with them on the way back to Dublin.
When we got back to the city, we got fish and chips for dinner, then went back to the room and did a quick workout with pushups, situps, and dips. I have a strange feeling that Mikey is going to whip me into shape this trip. Now, we're relaxing in the hostel, anticipating a walking tour tomorrow early. Not sure where the rest of the day will take us!
It's been a great start, and we're loving life. Thanks for reading, and more updates to come!
Cheers,
Ryan
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