The Ireland Adventrue
Well I survived my week in Ireland. If I was asked to sum it up in one world it would be "AMAZING" but for those who want the longer detailed account of my journey in the Emerald Island continue reading.
Ill start from the very beginning. I had to wake up early to catch my train to Liverpool where my flight left from. Well a delay made it so I barely got to the airport in time. However on the train I saved an English girl. She screamed and said "there is something big and black in my bag!! get it out please" at which point I think its a spider and Im really not the person to ask to do that. But I brave up and look in there and there is this weird bug on her shoe in the bag. It was like a mix between a beetle and a bee. I took out her shoe and slammed i t on the ground, the bug fell off and I was going to let him be. However, the girl then screamed "KILL IT" and so I did just to make her happy. That was my excitement on the train. In Liverpool ever person I talked to called me "Love" which made me giggle. they also all sounded like the Beatles, yes I know they are from there, but I was happy with that area. There was also a Yellow Submarine in front of the John Lennon Airport. Was the last person to check into my flight to Cork but luckily did get on the plane. The flight was very rough which made me happy cause I love that stuff sadly it was only like an hour long flight.
Cork
I landed in Cork and found the bus I needed to get into the city. Cork was ok but it felt like a small Dublin and for those who know, Im not a fan of Dublin. There was an okay Cathedral and was nice to just walk around. Lots of Pubs in Cork too. Met a couple of Aussies in that hostel who I hung out with and got drinks with. I felt I saw all that needed to be seen in Cork the first day so the next day I got up to catch the train to Killarney.
Killarney
From Cork I caught a Train to Killarney. The landscape of this area was beautiful. Ireland is as green as the rumors said it was. The train was fine nothing amazing then. Got into Killarney and asked my hostel lady what I should see. she pointed it out and then told me it was all walkable. Well...that ended up being about 20KM of walking that day which is like...15miles I think..Im not sure. Anyway walked into the Killarney National Park. It was AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL. Saw the big lakes and mountains. Saw Ross Castle and fields and streams ect. I suggest looking at the pics for this area cause its too hard to describe. After the long walk there, I walked around the place, then I decided to clime a mountain cause I wanted to see the view. I was very beat at this point. Within the park there was a guy in a horse drawn carriage who was passing me and stopped and said in a thick Irish accent "do you know the time?" I said "its 5" "oh thank you, where are you headed" "killarney" "oh thats far away you wont make it before dark....how about I take you up to the Abby" (which was about half the distance) I figured there would be a price attached to this so I said "how much would that cost?" he smiled and said "Im on my way home and thats on the way so its on the house" I was very pleased so I took the offer. He was very "Irish" he had red hair, even coming out of his nose. He had on one of those plad golfer hats on and was very talkative. He saw some crows and gave me some bread to toss behind the carriage. He told me those crows are his friends and are good birds heh. Well it was a nice ride with him but then I had to walk the rest of the way. there was also a big ominous cloud right behind me which I wanted to beat. And I luckily did. got into the hostel and planned on laying down for a bit. However, I met the people in my room 2 Aussies a Kiwi and 2 Americans. They were all pretty cool so yet again I went out drinking with them. Aussies will show up again dont worry none. Next morning got up to catch my bus to Galway. I had to switch in Limerick, and so did the Aussies who were headed to Dublin. So it was nice to talk to them for half the trip.
Galway (first)
I really liked Galway. there wasnt a lot there, but it had this...feeling about it that I enjoyed. Saw the Spanish Gate, dont really know what it was for. Saw some window where the Mayor hung his own sun. Bought a sweater in the market for 20 Euros, its really nice. Met some German gilrs in my hostel room and we decided to go get some drinks. The table next to us had some part full of loud girls screaming. drove me insane. Anyway talked with them. watched them have their first pint of Guinness. They were not fans. I think they had been spoiled by thier German beer. They did however help me steel a Guinness pint glass which did make it home safely. The next morning I got up to catch my bus which would take me to the ferry to the Aran Islands.
Aran Islands (Ins Mor)
The ferry boat was pretty nice. While I was outside on the top deck someone yelled "DOLPHINS" so I had to run over there and there were dolphins. I thought "thats a sign today will be good". and in fact, it was. Got to the island, checked in to drop off my bag and rented a bike. for those who know me, you will know I actually fear/hate bikes. ever since I was younger and the front wheel came off while going down a hill. still it was the best way to see the sites on the Island. And I did see everything, however it wore me out. I didnt realize the bike was in a high gear till after about an hour. Being on the island was like being on another planet. Things were just set up differently. plus there was a lack of humans which I enjoyed greatly. While biking I kept running into dead ends. I really wanted to see the cliffs so I got fed up and dropped my bike and hopped a few fences (which are just rock walls basically) this worked great cause I eventually was in my own area next to a huge cliff. I saw the Atlantic for the first time (not from a plane) and just sat for a min. On the way back to my bike I hopped over the fence again only to see cows there this time. They saw me, we stared at each other for a min....then they started running at me. this freaked me out so I started to run as fast as I could to get to the other side of the field so I could get my bike. Luckily I made it, they did get pretty close however. My guess is they thought I had food or something, but I wasnt going to find out. The Island also had the oldest and biggest Celtic fort still around. that was pretty impressive. I continued to bike till I was finally ready to pass out since my legs burned. Returned the bike and decided to get some food in a pub. Well this was around 5. The last ferry was at 5:15, this didnt worry me since i was staying the night. however it meant most people were leaving at this point. So when my food came it was just me and 3 or 4 "islanders" they spoke in their own language but then they noticed me and said "you arent from around here are you?" "no" I replied. "where are you from?" "the States, Seattle area" "Seattle...? Thats near the Pacific isnt it?" "yeah pretty close" at this point they asked me questions about boats, weather, fish, tourism, ect dealing with the Pacific. I felt I did an ok job answering their questions heh. When I got out of the pub I realized it was very windy now and a storm was coming. So I laid down in my bed which had an amazing view and watched the storm come in. I was great. Thunder and Lightning, wind, rain, it was great. Eventually went to the TV room and watche Aamelie with some other americans, thats a pretty good movie. Anywho, went to bed eventually. Got up the next day to catch the 8:30am ferry back. The storm was still going too, that made it a quite exciting and scary ferry ride.
The Burren and Galway (second)
On my first day in Galway I asked about taking a tour bus in the Burren the day I got back from the Aran Islands. The problem was that the bus for the Burren left at 10 and the bus would not make it back from the Aran islands till 10:10 at the earliest. The lady said "Ill write down in my book to have the driver wait for you, we can make this work" so I bought my ticket thinking, "well Im going to have to try and get my money back probably" So, the storm mentioned earlier made it so the ferry landed late. we pulled into Galway at 10:35 and I was amazed to see the other bus still there! I walked up to the door and said "is this the bus to the Burren" he said "yes, you Kevin Williams?" "yes" "then lets get going" I was amazed they actually waited for me! The Burren was a very cool looking area. All rocky and next to Galway Bay and the Atlantic. This is where the Cliffs of Moher are, as seen in the Princes Bride. The cliffs were very impressive, check the pics. Also saw an old grave that was supposed to be 5000 years old. That night I met yet again, and Aussie in my room. Her and i went and go food when I got back cause we were both starving. I met a girl on the bus trip who I was going to meet for drinks later that night so I invited the Aussie. I also met 2 Italians in my room and then saw and Austrian who I met on the tour and invited him. so that crew and I went and we had a few drinks and chatted and it was great times. The next morning I was talking to the Aussie girl about breakfast and she said "I wont get the free breakfast cause I have my Vegimite" I started laughing and she said "what?" to which I responded "you just fulfilled a stereotype for me haha" She also let me try the crap. it is the worse tasting stuff in the world. I dont know how Aussies it that. So that morning I also caught the bus to Dublin, the last spot on my trip.
Dublin
The Aussie girl was sick and sadly this day I felt sick too. by the time I got to Dublin I was pretty aweful feeling. Since I had seen Dublin a few months before I was in no need to see the city. I basically watched tv in the hostel then went to bed around 8. I was sweating and shivering, and was pretty sure I had a fever. During the night I had 3 pretty bad nightmares and sweated about 10 gallons of water. Luckily the next morning I woke up feeling much better. So I guess my body beat it. The trip back was LONG. getting the Dublin airport fine, getting the Robin Hood airport in Doncaster fine. HOWEVER, I had to sit though 4 canceled trains to Hull. that was an extra 2 and a half hours I did not have to be there. the train ride to Hull from there is only an hour to begin with. i was not pleased. Anyways I got home only to discover most my classes the next day were canceled. Not to shabby of a trip. it was well worth it.
PHOTOS
Cork - Burren
Cliffs of Moher and on
Tomorrow I start my journey to Santiago De Compestella in Spain, Ill let you know how it goes.
Ill start from the very beginning. I had to wake up early to catch my train to Liverpool where my flight left from. Well a delay made it so I barely got to the airport in time. However on the train I saved an English girl. She screamed and said "there is something big and black in my bag!! get it out please" at which point I think its a spider and Im really not the person to ask to do that. But I brave up and look in there and there is this weird bug on her shoe in the bag. It was like a mix between a beetle and a bee. I took out her shoe and slammed i t on the ground, the bug fell off and I was going to let him be. However, the girl then screamed "KILL IT" and so I did just to make her happy. That was my excitement on the train. In Liverpool ever person I talked to called me "Love" which made me giggle. they also all sounded like the Beatles, yes I know they are from there, but I was happy with that area. There was also a Yellow Submarine in front of the John Lennon Airport. Was the last person to check into my flight to Cork but luckily did get on the plane. The flight was very rough which made me happy cause I love that stuff sadly it was only like an hour long flight.
Cork
I landed in Cork and found the bus I needed to get into the city. Cork was ok but it felt like a small Dublin and for those who know, Im not a fan of Dublin. There was an okay Cathedral and was nice to just walk around. Lots of Pubs in Cork too. Met a couple of Aussies in that hostel who I hung out with and got drinks with. I felt I saw all that needed to be seen in Cork the first day so the next day I got up to catch the train to Killarney.
Killarney
From Cork I caught a Train to Killarney. The landscape of this area was beautiful. Ireland is as green as the rumors said it was. The train was fine nothing amazing then. Got into Killarney and asked my hostel lady what I should see. she pointed it out and then told me it was all walkable. Well...that ended up being about 20KM of walking that day which is like...15miles I think..Im not sure. Anyway walked into the Killarney National Park. It was AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL. Saw the big lakes and mountains. Saw Ross Castle and fields and streams ect. I suggest looking at the pics for this area cause its too hard to describe. After the long walk there, I walked around the place, then I decided to clime a mountain cause I wanted to see the view. I was very beat at this point. Within the park there was a guy in a horse drawn carriage who was passing me and stopped and said in a thick Irish accent "do you know the time?" I said "its 5" "oh thank you, where are you headed" "killarney" "oh thats far away you wont make it before dark....how about I take you up to the Abby" (which was about half the distance) I figured there would be a price attached to this so I said "how much would that cost?" he smiled and said "Im on my way home and thats on the way so its on the house" I was very pleased so I took the offer. He was very "Irish" he had red hair, even coming out of his nose. He had on one of those plad golfer hats on and was very talkative. He saw some crows and gave me some bread to toss behind the carriage. He told me those crows are his friends and are good birds heh. Well it was a nice ride with him but then I had to walk the rest of the way. there was also a big ominous cloud right behind me which I wanted to beat. And I luckily did. got into the hostel and planned on laying down for a bit. However, I met the people in my room 2 Aussies a Kiwi and 2 Americans. They were all pretty cool so yet again I went out drinking with them. Aussies will show up again dont worry none. Next morning got up to catch my bus to Galway. I had to switch in Limerick, and so did the Aussies who were headed to Dublin. So it was nice to talk to them for half the trip.
Galway (first)
I really liked Galway. there wasnt a lot there, but it had this...feeling about it that I enjoyed. Saw the Spanish Gate, dont really know what it was for. Saw some window where the Mayor hung his own sun. Bought a sweater in the market for 20 Euros, its really nice. Met some German gilrs in my hostel room and we decided to go get some drinks. The table next to us had some part full of loud girls screaming. drove me insane. Anyway talked with them. watched them have their first pint of Guinness. They were not fans. I think they had been spoiled by thier German beer. They did however help me steel a Guinness pint glass which did make it home safely. The next morning I got up to catch my bus which would take me to the ferry to the Aran Islands.
Aran Islands (Ins Mor)
The ferry boat was pretty nice. While I was outside on the top deck someone yelled "DOLPHINS" so I had to run over there and there were dolphins. I thought "thats a sign today will be good". and in fact, it was. Got to the island, checked in to drop off my bag and rented a bike. for those who know me, you will know I actually fear/hate bikes. ever since I was younger and the front wheel came off while going down a hill. still it was the best way to see the sites on the Island. And I did see everything, however it wore me out. I didnt realize the bike was in a high gear till after about an hour. Being on the island was like being on another planet. Things were just set up differently. plus there was a lack of humans which I enjoyed greatly. While biking I kept running into dead ends. I really wanted to see the cliffs so I got fed up and dropped my bike and hopped a few fences (which are just rock walls basically) this worked great cause I eventually was in my own area next to a huge cliff. I saw the Atlantic for the first time (not from a plane) and just sat for a min. On the way back to my bike I hopped over the fence again only to see cows there this time. They saw me, we stared at each other for a min....then they started running at me. this freaked me out so I started to run as fast as I could to get to the other side of the field so I could get my bike. Luckily I made it, they did get pretty close however. My guess is they thought I had food or something, but I wasnt going to find out. The Island also had the oldest and biggest Celtic fort still around. that was pretty impressive. I continued to bike till I was finally ready to pass out since my legs burned. Returned the bike and decided to get some food in a pub. Well this was around 5. The last ferry was at 5:15, this didnt worry me since i was staying the night. however it meant most people were leaving at this point. So when my food came it was just me and 3 or 4 "islanders" they spoke in their own language but then they noticed me and said "you arent from around here are you?" "no" I replied. "where are you from?" "the States, Seattle area" "Seattle...? Thats near the Pacific isnt it?" "yeah pretty close" at this point they asked me questions about boats, weather, fish, tourism, ect dealing with the Pacific. I felt I did an ok job answering their questions heh. When I got out of the pub I realized it was very windy now and a storm was coming. So I laid down in my bed which had an amazing view and watched the storm come in. I was great. Thunder and Lightning, wind, rain, it was great. Eventually went to the TV room and watche Aamelie with some other americans, thats a pretty good movie. Anywho, went to bed eventually. Got up the next day to catch the 8:30am ferry back. The storm was still going too, that made it a quite exciting and scary ferry ride.
The Burren and Galway (second)
On my first day in Galway I asked about taking a tour bus in the Burren the day I got back from the Aran Islands. The problem was that the bus for the Burren left at 10 and the bus would not make it back from the Aran islands till 10:10 at the earliest. The lady said "Ill write down in my book to have the driver wait for you, we can make this work" so I bought my ticket thinking, "well Im going to have to try and get my money back probably" So, the storm mentioned earlier made it so the ferry landed late. we pulled into Galway at 10:35 and I was amazed to see the other bus still there! I walked up to the door and said "is this the bus to the Burren" he said "yes, you Kevin Williams?" "yes" "then lets get going" I was amazed they actually waited for me! The Burren was a very cool looking area. All rocky and next to Galway Bay and the Atlantic. This is where the Cliffs of Moher are, as seen in the Princes Bride. The cliffs were very impressive, check the pics. Also saw an old grave that was supposed to be 5000 years old. That night I met yet again, and Aussie in my room. Her and i went and go food when I got back cause we were both starving. I met a girl on the bus trip who I was going to meet for drinks later that night so I invited the Aussie. I also met 2 Italians in my room and then saw and Austrian who I met on the tour and invited him. so that crew and I went and we had a few drinks and chatted and it was great times. The next morning I was talking to the Aussie girl about breakfast and she said "I wont get the free breakfast cause I have my Vegimite" I started laughing and she said "what?" to which I responded "you just fulfilled a stereotype for me haha" She also let me try the crap. it is the worse tasting stuff in the world. I dont know how Aussies it that. So that morning I also caught the bus to Dublin, the last spot on my trip.
Dublin
The Aussie girl was sick and sadly this day I felt sick too. by the time I got to Dublin I was pretty aweful feeling. Since I had seen Dublin a few months before I was in no need to see the city. I basically watched tv in the hostel then went to bed around 8. I was sweating and shivering, and was pretty sure I had a fever. During the night I had 3 pretty bad nightmares and sweated about 10 gallons of water. Luckily the next morning I woke up feeling much better. So I guess my body beat it. The trip back was LONG. getting the Dublin airport fine, getting the Robin Hood airport in Doncaster fine. HOWEVER, I had to sit though 4 canceled trains to Hull. that was an extra 2 and a half hours I did not have to be there. the train ride to Hull from there is only an hour to begin with. i was not pleased. Anyways I got home only to discover most my classes the next day were canceled. Not to shabby of a trip. it was well worth it.
PHOTOS
Cork - Burren
Cliffs of Moher and on
Tomorrow I start my journey to Santiago De Compestella in Spain, Ill let you know how it goes.