I don't even know where to begin! This country is so amazing, why didn't I study abroad here?! (Hehe just kidding... kind of!) I left Friday morning with my friends Hana, Veronica, and Elsa and flew RyanAir into Dublin. We arrived around 12:30 p.m., and right away stopped at an Irish Pub for a hearty meal and a beer! The food here is so delicious, meat and potatoes are so simple, yet the Irish know how to put their own unique twist on it and make it into one of the best things I've tasted!
(Hana and I in our room at the hostel)
After we checked into our hostel, we walked around the city and signed up for a bus tour for the next day that took us to the countryside. Next, we walked along the main streets and around Trinity College. After awhile, it started to get late and the pubs started to get lively. We went to The Temple Bar (one of the bars Dublin is known for) and immediately met some of the l locals! And I must say, the Irish have such a great sense of humor and are some of the nicest and friendly people that I have met! We met a group of guys that had us laughing the whole night!
The next morning, we got up early since we had to meet at a place called "Paddy Wagon's" and get onto to the bus that took us out of the city. We first stopped at a small city called Glendalough, which is about 45 minutes or so from Dublin. We got off the bus and immediately stopped for tea and fresh scones! (It was so cold out, we needed something to warm us up first before exploring!)
Enjoying Irish Breakfast Tea while waiting for the scones to come out of the oven!
Glendalough was one of the most beautiful cities that I have ever visited. I absolutely love Ireland's countryside! Our guide was really nice and knowledgeable and gave us a small history lesson on the Celtic Cross. It's symbol of Christianity (obviously) and the circle in it represents the joining together of Paganism and Christianity since Ireland was mostly Pagan before Christianity arrived. Oh and another fun little fact: 80% of the movie "Braveheart" was filmed here!
The next city we stopped at was Kilkenny, and it was just as beautiful as Glendalough. We had lunch at a place called "Paris Texas" (don't judge the name!) and had another wonderful, traditional Irish meal. We also had the "Kilkenny beer" which apparently isn't very popular in Ireland, but more so in Australia (random). I thought it was really good though. We walked around the city again and took in the breath-taking scenery. We returned to Dublin shortly after and then hit up the pubs again to go out for the drink that Ireland is famous for... Guinness! I had such blast here, I enjoyed every second of my time in Ireland (except going back to the airport), I know that I will be returning to Ireland in the near future!
Dublin at night... the picture does not do justice for how it actually looks though!
