As we stood in queue for our first affordable airline
flight, I turned to Kacey and Allyson and announced that the slump Lance warned
us of was officially over… we were about to go to Ireland! Perhaps the best
part about going to Ireland was the fact that I never thought I would be able
to go to the beautiful green country this trip abroad. But I did!
Upon landing in Dublin with “kate mila falture,” “one
hundred million welcomes,” we boarded a bus which took us to the inner city of
Dublin. Tired from a long last of week of BIT with Lance, we settled into the
Avalon Youth Hostel then headed out to a top rated burger joint, BoBo’s, for
some free range, grass-fed cow beef—what we had just spent the past two week
semester learning about! Everything in Ireland is prepared up to organic
regulations. This was perfect after watching countless videos on the detriments
of CATO raised animals and thus vowing to no longer eat non-organic meats. I
hope that America can catch the train that all of Europe has long ago boarded
and start implementing harsher and stricter rules for food and meat production.
A McDonald’s billboard exemplified the difference in American and Irish food
standards as the caption next to the famous Big Mac read, “100%, 100% local.” Thanks for teaching such a relevant and applicable
course, Lance!
After sleeping an uncharacteristic six hours of sleep on
the first night of our weekend trip, Kacey, Ali, Meghan, Tiffany, Caroline,
Ali, Allyson, Alice and I made it to the bus station at 6:30 to board our tour
bus… we were going to the Cliffs of Moher! As we traveled across the beautiful
country of Ireland, our bus driver/ Irish folk singing/tour guide Bud
entertained us while making a stop a few historical and scenic stops. The ride
to the cliffs included stopping at King John’s Castle in Limmerick, where we
made sure to skip across the River Shannon for good luck and good health, then
Bunratty Castle which stood next to a pub older than our home country. 
A few hours and 166 miles later we arrived at one of the world’s
wonders. Standing at the cliffs was so surreal. I struggled with the time cap
put on our time here and again vowed, “I’m coming back here.” The un-photographable
beauty of the cliffs accented by the whispering wind induced yet another
instance of thankfulness for my time in Europe and my place in this world. Not
wanting to leave the edge of the cliffs which we edged with caution but also
curious for a 360 panorama from O’Brien’s Tower, we climbed atop the tower for
another view of Ireland’s most impressive vistas.
After an hour of gawking at
such a wonderful sight, we sauntered away from paradise back onto the tour bus.
Yet not long after the cliffs, we made another stop to smaller cliffs created by
limestone sedimentation at Burren National Park… who knew limestone could
create rock faces with so much character? Beautiful stops throughout our ride
through Ireland were complimented from a fabulous meal of lamb and vegetables
from Fitzpatrick’s Pub then two last stops at an old abbey and port near the
oldest church in Ireland. Well before rolling back into Dubliner, the name
Vikings called Dublin, I decided our day trip was the perfect way to spend one
of our three days in Ireland.
Meghan’s 21st birthday was the perfect distraction for
our ride crossing Ireland twice in one day. I loved the Temple Bar pub district
(just as you said Kelly!). Our first stop was THE Temple Bar. I could’ve spent
all night there amidst the good company of friends and awesome live music
provided by a band who played our favorites such as American Pie, Brown Eyed
Girl, and Save the Night. Did I mention in Ireland everyone speaks English? It
was so nice to talk to locals, such as women dressed as oompa loompas celebrating
a soon-to-be-married friend’s anniversary and a old man with Irish face
paintings on his cheeks. We left the loud, crowded and lively pub for another
venue with the same characteristics, just twenty years younger! At Fitsimmons
night club, we all joined the 21 year old in dancing the night away, and laughed
as she thanked the bouncer for coming to her party (a bullet on her birthday
checklist as passed down from you, Lara!).
The following morning was amazing… my breakfast consisted
of hummus, pumpkin seeds and oil, couscous (no Mom I don’t hate it anymore!),
chicken, and sautéed peppers. After breakfast, we walked down Grafton Street
and souvenir shopped at our first mall since America (sans Mendrisio mall and
its 400 Franc sweaters) then went to St. Stephens Green Park. We hit Dublin at
its peak: leaves were the colors of harvest and just falling from the trees. It
was on a bridge overlooking a pond filled with swans that I recorded a video
wishing my mom, “Happy Birthday,” in hopes she would watch it at her surprise
party that night since I couldn’t be there to celebrate it.
 |
| Pouring the perfect pint |
Leaving the park, we crossed some streets, following the
instructions on the road to “look right” instead of left, and arrived at St.
Patrick’s Cathedral. After church, we visited the polar opposite attraction in
content but equally as popular destination the Guinness Factory. As a marketing
nerd, my favorite part of the seven floors aside from the historical 9,000 year
lease was the exhibit which displayed Guinness advertising through the years. As
a part of the tour, I also learned how to pour the perfect pint of Guinness, go
ahead… test me. The end of the tour the Gravity bar at the top of the building
with a 360 view of Dublin; just to our luck, it was near sunset! Later that
night, I ate a Guinness ale beef pie, what Ireland does best, and then
revisited Temple Bar district, the Mercantile, and Dublin Bridge.
Monday morning we only had a few hours to spend before
boarding our return Ryan Air flight. With a few friends, I appreciated the time
to walk around St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The church has many unique features
including inaugural flags of knights and hand knit kneeling pads. After
spiritual reflection in a place of worship we toured a place home for the arguably
the complete opposite: Kilmainham Gaol. The old jail was eerie and cold…
thankfully I wasn’t ever locked up! I was surprised to hear that during the
potato famine, people purposely committed crimes so that they would receive
food as prisoners. At one point, the capacity of the jail was exceeded by
approximately 900 people. Luckily, the airplane we took back to Milan was not
so crowded! |
| St. Patrick's Cathedral |
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