I apologize for the lack of updates recently, but it is the end of the term and I have had quite a bit of work to do, unfortunately. Apparently I am actually enrolled in school and this isn’t just an extended vacation! This week I had two tests, one presentation, and one paper due. But it’s all over now and it’s time to talk about Ireland, despite it having happened quite some time ago. To refresh your memory I went to Dublin with my friends Eddie and Natalie for St. Patrick’s Day.
Friday we arrived in Dublin in the early evening via ferry and checked into our hostel, which was very nice. We got free t-shirts from the company we booked through as well as visitor guides, restaurant recommendations, etc. No sooner had we turned around from checking in when a couple of Canadian guys invited us into the kitchen to hang out and gather a group before hitting the town. Once we had all been introduced we headed into the Temple Bar area, which is where many of the pubs, bars, and clubs are. We decided to hit The Temple Bar, which is really three bars that have been joined together. It was a lot of fun and of course there were tons of people. To complete the night when we walked out of the bar there were street musicians playing and lots of people dancing outside. Of course we couldn’t resist and danced a bit before heading back to the hostel.
Saturday morning we woke up early, surprisingly, and got outside to grab a spot on the road for watching the St. Patrick’s Day parade. We stood around for quite a while but the parade was well worth it! It was very long and there were lots of different cities and groups represented. There were even a couple of marching bands from the US, which was admittedly a bit strange. Tons of people were out for the parade despite somewhat gloomy weather. Our cab driver the night before estimated there would be 200 to 300 thousand people watching it! After the parade we got lunch at Apache pizza, the only Native American themed, Chinese-owned pizza restaurant in all of Dublin. Who knew the Native Americans enjoyed pizza so? We then headed appropriately to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was very nice. I bought a number of postcards that maybe one day will get sent off if I get around to it.
Saturday night we had dinner at Acapulco, a surprisingly good Mexican restaurant. At least, it was much better than anything we have in London. We then headed to Mulligan’s, a very authentic Irish pub that supposedly pours the best pint of Guinness in Dublin. Of course this is what we got, and it was good. Perhaps it helped that there were drunken Irishmen singing IRA fight songs to get everyone in the mood. The crowd was a bit older, but it was definitely nice to take a break from the tourists for a bit. After finishing our pints we left back to Temple Bar and celebrated St. Patrick’s day in style, wearing our green of course.
Sunday morning we woke up VERY early for our tour of the Wicklow Mountains and the Irish countryside. This tour was definitely the highlight of the trip. The countryside was beautiful, and it was nice as usual to get out of a major city for a bit and breathe some fresh air. We hiked up into the Wicklow Mountains past two lakes and into some monastic ruins. Despite the intermittent hale storms, it was great, as the bad weather was always broken into by bright sunshine. I think our favourite part of the trip was definitely the Rock of Dunamaise, the site of the first English castle in Ireland. Eddie, Natalie and I all laid down in the grass on the side of the hill and let the incredibly high winds blow over us. It was a moment I will certainly never forget. After the tour we got some fish and chips from supposedly the best fish and chips place in Ireland and ate them back at the hostel. We met a girl who was also in Ireland from London and hung out with her for the rest of the night. We went out but it was a bit lower key as we knew we had to be up early to catch a ferry in the morning.
The trip home on Monday was quite interesting. First of all, our fast ferry was canceled due to high winds, so we had to take a slower one that left earlier. This turned out alright because the slow ferry was much nicer and much larger. However, because of the high winds we couldn’t dock in Wales for about 3 hours once we arrived. It was the ferry equivalent of circling the airport before getting to land. We kept approaching and then turning around, all while the wind blew outside at upwards of 100 mph. Finally we did make it into port, however, and managed to get back to London only about 2 hours later than we would have otherwise.
Whenever I return from a trip I am always struck by how much I missed London while I was gone. Of course the trips are great but London has definitely become a home away from home, and a place where I feel comfortable. I got a bit emotional when I booked my flight home but I cheered up when I reassured myself that this isn’t the last time I will live in London, as it I can definitely see it being a part of my future. I imagine after my two and a half week exodus through Europe that starts on Sunday I will be missing London quite a bit, so it will be great to be here in May when we don’t have class and are just supposed to be working on essays and studying for exams. I am excited for my trip, though! It is so soon, and there are lots of preparations to be made.
Today I went on a bit of shopping spree with my friend Becky to get some new clothes and most importantly shoes for the trip. Tonight a bunch of us are celebrating the end of the term but tomorrow is all about packing and getting ready to leave very early Sunday morning. Wish me luck! I will be trying to update my blog in a bit of a different style just to chronicle my trip since there is no way I could summarize it all when I return. Look out for that! Pictures will come at the end of April, but be sure to check out the ones I posted recently from Ireland if you haven’t already.
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