Last week I had my first long-study break or long-study tour where I was able to travel to Ireland and explore quite a bit. This type of travel break is a special feature of DIS as it allows you (either now, or later in the semester) to take a week to go with your core course to another part of Europe in connection with your studies, or just have a week to travel or relax. This week, was my free travel week.
Being the ambitious person I am, I decided to go all over Ireland for the week. I started by visiting family friends who live in Dublin and hang out with them for a couple days. They showed me some of the city, and went for a hike in some beautiful mountains. It was the most relaxing and refreshing part of my trip, as well as just lovely to catch up with them after such a long time.
Matthew and I
Trinity College Library (inspiration for Hogwarts Library)
Howth Head with Tom, Conor and Ian
Hay Penny Bridge (used to cost a hay-penny to cross)
The next city I gallivanted on to was Galway. I got to explore all over the city for a day, which ended up being very wet and got to see quite a lot of street art and eat some delicious (VERY fresh) fish and chips.
Mc Donagh’s Authentic Fish and Chips
The next day, I caught a tour company bus to explore the Cliffs of Mohr as well as half a dozen other sites as well. I could talk about the breathtaking views for days, but I’ll just post some of my favorite pictures below.
getting my butt muddy
this man braved the wind&rain to play accordian to the cliff-goers
selfie with a castle
celebrating Leo’s Oscar win
the wind was pretty strong
Next, I was able to make a pit stop at Bunratty Castle, which is near Limerick. This was an extremely cool place to explore as it is a castle with most of its furnishings still in tact and on display. The castle is free to creep through however one pleases and apparently still holds Medieval dinners every so often. As a fan of the show Reign on the CW, this was right up my alley and I wish I could’ve attended such a dinner, next time I guess!
Bunratty Castle
Along with Bunratty Castle, I was able to stop by Durty Nelly’s which is a pub right next door to the Castle’s village set-up. My Grandfather spoke of that pub from his days working for President Nixon, so it was fun to relax there for a bit and feel connected to him even so far away. Unfortunately, the best picture I have, is a selfie of the old man I asked to take a picture for me (see below).
My last city of exploration, which I was probably most excited about was Dingle, Ireland. This is a cute little town on the Dingle Peninsula is a very difficult area to get to, as it is not a major tourist destination especially not this time of year.
new friends, who I saw in Galway, at the Cliffs of Mohr and then Dingle!
best ice cream, fresh everyday (even in the off season)
black cats are supposedly unlucky?
I had a ton of fun just exploring the streets and observing the cute store fronts. The main reason I wanted to go to Dingle was to see my parent’s names in the church marriage book. 30 years ago, my parents got married in St. Mary’s Church. I really just wanted to see the history, or see with my own eyes the full record of my parent’s union– and yes it was there, but no pictures were allowed.
Despite the crazy amount of bus rides and people deciding to scare me about catching flights, I was early for every flight I had and didn’t miss any connections, buses or planes. So what I learned from this Irish journey is, follow your heart and listen to your own instinct over the pub owner’s, or the taxi driver’s, or really anyone else’s. And a little Irish music, can really make a huge difference in rejuvenating your spirits.
rain and wind can still = loads of fun