As I mentioned in my previous post, Italy convinced me to quit a job I hadn’t even started. I spent at least a month pouting about what the hell I was going to do with my life. Then when I figured it out, I spent at least another month second guessing it. When I finally figured out that every scenario I could come with up landed me in the legal field, I signed up for classes to get my paralegal certificate. I wish I could tell you that I spent the next two months before my classes traveling and living life to the fullest. Instead, I spent it binge watching shows on Netflix and barely coming out of my room. I felt defeated and embarrassed that after graduating, my life still hadn’t started. One of my biggest regrets is that I wasn’t able to reflect enough to say to myself, “Stop being a cry baby. School and work will start soon enough. Go do something before it does!”
School and work did start soon enough and it was A LOT. 40 hours of work plus about 24 hours of classes a week (6-10 night class every night after work is super fun). I was dying for another trip and my friend and I really wanted to go to Ireland. My break between 8 week classes just so happened to fall over St. Patrick’s Day so it was settled. We talked another friend into going and just like that we were ready to road trip around the most amazing country!
At this point, my best friend and travel partner had gotten a job with American Airlines so hello reduced prices! This also means flying standby which is an adventure in itself. The way there worked out perfectly. It just so happened that the only seats they had left for the three of us were in first class. ARE YOU KIDDING? Someone should have filmed us because it was quite evident we did not belong. We more or less kept shouting out in glee at everything they brought us. The only downside is now I know what I’m missing on every flight I’ve taken since. The way back did not work out so perfectly, but we’ll get to that later.
When we landed in Dublin we picked up the smallest and cutest little red car. We named him Straub, and besides the time I bumped side view mirrors with another car, we managed to survive driving on the opposite side of the road.
This trip holds a special place in my heart because it was the most spontaneous! Besides being at the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Dublin, we did not plan one single thing. We didn’t even have a place to stay booked. We got in our rental and said, “I guess we’ll head north first?” We also had to use a map….how do those work? Luckily, Ireland is small and fairly easy to navigate. We headed straight for Giant’s Causeway and it did not disappoint.
We knocked on the door of a bed & breakfast in Port Rush and found our first place to sleep. The owner was a character! He gave us a nice Irish breakfast in the morning, went on a small rant about how everyone should be using pounds instead of euros and then told us about a lookout point that we wouldn’t find on a map. It was at that moment we decided we would be staying at a bed & breakfast the rest of the trip. We found the “left at the end of the hill” and followed a steep narrow road to the most amazing look out spot. It’s so awesome following recommendations from locals! We had a bit of a delay while a herd of sheep blocked the road, but then it was off to Carrick-a-Rede Bridge. The views there were incredible. The rope bridge might have been terrifying, but it was worth it!
Next it was on to Belfast, then back down to Dublin. Those three days in Belfast and Dublin are kind of blur. There were many pubs involved, countless new friends made, and it’s possible I’m being a bit over the top, but I would describe it as the best time ever! However, not even a St. Patty’s Day hangover could keep me from visiting and LOVING The Trinity College Library. It took quite a bit of whining to get everyone up that morning, but I think we’re all glad I was persistent. Up to this point, I had fallen in love with countless cities while traveling, but Dublin was the first city I was ready to up and move to. I still dream about it.
Next up was a drive straight across the country to Galway (insert Ed Sheeran song here). Another great thing about Ireland: a drive across the country takes two and a half hours. Galway is adorable. I’m talking streets that make you want to skip with joy. In fact, I probably did. We found another bed & breakfast and the owner was the sweetest. We left the next morning for the Cliffs of Moher and she packed us sandwiches for the road! The smallest gestures can also be the kindest, and those are the ones you aren’t likely to forget. The Cliffs of Moher aren’t something you’re likely to forget either. Wow!
From the Cliffs we basically drove in a u shape back up to Dublin, staying in cities along the way. We stopped at various castles, spent a night in Kinsale (the cutest), kissed the Blarney Stone and drank all the cider and Guinness along the way. By the way, Guinness really does taste better in Ireland. We had one more day in Dublin and then we were off to catch a flight to Paris and then a flight back to the US. Remember when I said we were flying standby? It just so happens that the European airlines were on strike at the time, so all the other flights were completely full, with hundreds of people rolling over on to any other flight they could catch to the US. I think we had McDonalds for four straight meals in that airport. After 36 hours, a kind stranger who was also waiting for a flight said we could stay in her hotel room with her. THANK YOU! In hindsight we should have just spent a couple days in Paris, but it was 48 straight hours of rolling over to the next flight so it didn’t exactly work out. It did, however, make for a hilarious, disaster of a story and just another memory that I’ll never forget.
I am forever grateful for the opportunity to see new places and meet new people. It has done nothing but further my belief that people are inherently good.
Thank you Ireland for the best road trip ever!
Stay tuned for my next post about climbing and camping on the top of a volcano in Guatemala. 😊
More pictures of Ireland below!
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