We made it to Kinsale 4 hours from Kilkenny. Pouring rain the whole time but fairly easy roads at least. I hydroplaned twice which woke me up... Then we stopped at a gas station and I bought yorkie honeycomb "not for girls" chocolate. I'm a rebel and the marketing ploy worked!! Kinsale is a great harbor town and we're looking forward to the ghost tour tonight. Tomorrow is blarney stone and cork. I will not be kissing a spit slathered rock... But I'll take photos of the fools who do!!
Cheers!!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Welcome to THE ROCK
Ireland really is green.. everywhere. I thought it was only partially true.. but no.. it is greentastic.
We arrived yesterday on time and got off the plane without a hitch. Then we stood in a massive line waiting to get through customs. As you can imagine, my patience ran thin after a disneyland-esque queue, which curved around corners, led us through narrow hallways with low ceilings and cloud wallpaper, and finally into a tiny hot room with lines that didn't make sense. After waiting and waiting, with load of people behind us to start, I ended up being the last person to get through. I'll spare you the details of my lack of patience and general crabbiness. But if you know me, you can now start feeling sorry for Lala. Public apology to her!!!
We flipped a coin and Lauryn ended up driving. She did really well. In our imaginations, Kilkenny was a small town. We were armed with two maps, a beer proof one (thanks, Kate!) and a large Lauryn sized map that I didn't even begin to mess with but figured we'd be able to find our accommodations easily. Wrong! Long story short: Kilkenny is a big place and we had no idea where our Bed and Breakfast was. We drove through town a few times before stopping at a gas station and getting directions. The man told us to turn left at the pub, and left at the roundabout. We asked which pub and he stared blankly while nibbling on his lip. Lauryn said, 'you drive..' and I did. Left at the pub, left at the roundy, and there was our B&B. I like Irish people.
After settling in, our 'brisk 15 minute walk to town' turned out to be more like an epic journey, but we needed it to stay awake. It was raining pretty hard, but most locals don't carry an umbrella and more than you could imagine didn't even have a rain coat on.. just walking through the rain like it was nothing. The kids cuss like sailors, and a lot of the shops displays are haphazard and nothing seems to have any kind of order. Kilkenny Castle is beautiful inside and out, yet the inside is so tiny because the castle walls are about 10ft thick! I am thoroughly charmed. And the food is fine! Can't complain.
Earlier today we drove out to Rock of Cashel- a rock on a hill that has been called home by royalty and later Archbishops of Munster. Highlights were: driving narrow roads in the rain, hitting a cone and hearing Lauryn say, 'oh, cone!', seeing the Lepers' squint (window into church where the Lepers of town were hidden from the audience), repeating 'welcome to THE ROCK' all day (thanks, Brad!), hearing the story of Cashel's largest Celtic cross commissioned by a man named Scully who wanted it placed atop his mausoleum- 101 years later it exploded in a lightening storm because the artist used an iron rod to support the massive cross!!, chatting with the Cashel cafe owner and telling her that a ham salad sandwich sounds really disgusting to most Americans, getting schooled that a sandwich with 'salad' in the title simply means it has lettuce and tomato... the list goes on. It was a great day!
Tomorrow we're off to Cork and Kinsale.. where most McCarthy's are from. p.s. Hortence, McCarty's do not exist here :( We were cheated of our H at Ellis Island.
Thanks for reading! I hope it has cooled down over on the Peninsula.. I was happy to leave that hotness. :)
We arrived yesterday on time and got off the plane without a hitch. Then we stood in a massive line waiting to get through customs. As you can imagine, my patience ran thin after a disneyland-esque queue, which curved around corners, led us through narrow hallways with low ceilings and cloud wallpaper, and finally into a tiny hot room with lines that didn't make sense. After waiting and waiting, with load of people behind us to start, I ended up being the last person to get through. I'll spare you the details of my lack of patience and general crabbiness. But if you know me, you can now start feeling sorry for Lala. Public apology to her!!!
We flipped a coin and Lauryn ended up driving. She did really well. In our imaginations, Kilkenny was a small town. We were armed with two maps, a beer proof one (thanks, Kate!) and a large Lauryn sized map that I didn't even begin to mess with but figured we'd be able to find our accommodations easily. Wrong! Long story short: Kilkenny is a big place and we had no idea where our Bed and Breakfast was. We drove through town a few times before stopping at a gas station and getting directions. The man told us to turn left at the pub, and left at the roundabout. We asked which pub and he stared blankly while nibbling on his lip. Lauryn said, 'you drive..' and I did. Left at the pub, left at the roundy, and there was our B&B. I like Irish people.
After settling in, our 'brisk 15 minute walk to town' turned out to be more like an epic journey, but we needed it to stay awake. It was raining pretty hard, but most locals don't carry an umbrella and more than you could imagine didn't even have a rain coat on.. just walking through the rain like it was nothing. The kids cuss like sailors, and a lot of the shops displays are haphazard and nothing seems to have any kind of order. Kilkenny Castle is beautiful inside and out, yet the inside is so tiny because the castle walls are about 10ft thick! I am thoroughly charmed. And the food is fine! Can't complain.
Earlier today we drove out to Rock of Cashel- a rock on a hill that has been called home by royalty and later Archbishops of Munster. Highlights were: driving narrow roads in the rain, hitting a cone and hearing Lauryn say, 'oh, cone!', seeing the Lepers' squint (window into church where the Lepers of town were hidden from the audience), repeating 'welcome to THE ROCK' all day (thanks, Brad!), hearing the story of Cashel's largest Celtic cross commissioned by a man named Scully who wanted it placed atop his mausoleum- 101 years later it exploded in a lightening storm because the artist used an iron rod to support the massive cross!!, chatting with the Cashel cafe owner and telling her that a ham salad sandwich sounds really disgusting to most Americans, getting schooled that a sandwich with 'salad' in the title simply means it has lettuce and tomato... the list goes on. It was a great day!
Tomorrow we're off to Cork and Kinsale.. where most McCarthy's are from. p.s. Hortence, McCarty's do not exist here :( We were cheated of our H at Ellis Island.
Thanks for reading! I hope it has cooled down over on the Peninsula.. I was happy to leave that hotness. :)
Monday, August 31, 2009
Our first day: Green, rainy,
Our first day: Green, rainy, castle roaming goodness. We'll talk driving later. Time to eat then finally.. SLEEP!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
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Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Less than a month!!!
Lala and I had to change our plans a bit after she figured out that the Waterford Crystal Factory was closed indefinitely. So we cut out Waterford and shifted our trip by adding an extra day in The Burren area near the Cliffs of Moher. New itinerary below.
Went out to see the Perseid meteor shower in the mountains last night and realized something while sitting in the backseat driving up through La Honda, over to Portola Valley, and back down via Page Mill Road: hairpin turns are no joke. Add to that driving on the other side of the road, and you have an anxiety attack waiting to happen!! Lala and I already agreed that we're flipping a coin to see who drives first in Ireland. We also agreed that if somebody proves to be a better driver, that person will be driving more. In addition, either one of us will be active side-seat drivers / navigators at all times while the other person is driving to ensure full awareness of the road. No naps! Plus, who could sleep through the Irish countryside, anyway? Holy sheeeeeep!
Need: raincoat, waterproof shoes, long sleeve shirts, maps of Ireland.
Want: lots of euros, fearless attitude, time to go by faster.
Have: amazing travel companion, supportive friends, family, and boyfriend, lots of excitement!!!
Kilkenny
Monday, Tuesday 8/31-9/2
Kinsale
Wednesday, Thursday 9/2-9/4
Dingle
Friday, Saturday 9/4-9/6
Cliffs of Moher
Sunday, Monday 9/6-9/8
Dublin
Tuesday, Wednesday 9/8-9/10
Went out to see the Perseid meteor shower in the mountains last night and realized something while sitting in the backseat driving up through La Honda, over to Portola Valley, and back down via Page Mill Road: hairpin turns are no joke. Add to that driving on the other side of the road, and you have an anxiety attack waiting to happen!! Lala and I already agreed that we're flipping a coin to see who drives first in Ireland. We also agreed that if somebody proves to be a better driver, that person will be driving more. In addition, either one of us will be active side-seat drivers / navigators at all times while the other person is driving to ensure full awareness of the road. No naps! Plus, who could sleep through the Irish countryside, anyway? Holy sheeeeeep!
Need: raincoat, waterproof shoes, long sleeve shirts, maps of Ireland.
Want: lots of euros, fearless attitude, time to go by faster.
Have: amazing travel companion, supportive friends, family, and boyfriend, lots of excitement!!!
Kilkenny
Monday, Tuesday 8/31-9/2
Kinsale
Wednesday, Thursday 9/2-9/4
Dingle
Friday, Saturday 9/4-9/6
Cliffs of Moher
Sunday, Monday 9/6-9/8
Dublin
Tuesday, Wednesday 9/8-9/10
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Bookin' It!!
Wow.. time is going by really fast. It's been over a year since Lauryn and I wrapped up our Europe trip and dreamed up the next trip to Ireland. We bought cheap flights a couple of months ago, reserved a rental car this week, and within the next week or two, all our rooms will be booked. With less than two months to go, we're literally bookin' it!!
Itinerary:
8/30- Depart SFO
8/31- Arrive Dublin, immediately drive to Kilkenny
9/1- Tour Kilkenny
9/2- Early day trip to Armore, followed by a night in Waterford (crystal!!)
9/3- Tour Kinsale, spend the night
9/4- Day trip to Cork, night in Kinsale
9/5- Drive to Dingle, get Dingy with it
9/6- More Dingle
9/7- Cliffs of Moher, overnight
9/8- Dublin sightseeing
9/9- More Dubby
9/10- Fly home :(
Our trip is a bit ambitious for what amounts to 10 days of travel after flights, but Lala and I love a challenge. With her red hair and my Irish names, we're hoping to get by pretty easy in the land of happydrunks people.
Stay posted for updates and a full on blog beginning 8/30!
Colleen
Itinerary:
8/30- Depart SFO
8/31- Arrive Dublin, immediately drive to Kilkenny
9/1- Tour Kilkenny
9/2- Early day trip to Armore, followed by a night in Waterford (crystal!!)
9/3- Tour Kinsale, spend the night
9/4- Day trip to Cork, night in Kinsale
9/5- Drive to Dingle, get Dingy with it
9/6- More Dingle
9/7- Cliffs of Moher, overnight
9/8- Dublin sightseeing
9/9- More Dubby
9/10- Fly home :(
Our trip is a bit ambitious for what amounts to 10 days of travel after flights, but Lala and I love a challenge. With her red hair and my Irish names, we're hoping to get by pretty easy in the land of happy
Stay posted for updates and a full on blog beginning 8/30!
Colleen
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