The Ireland Collection

Address: Somewhere in Wales

Yo ho, yo ho,
Our epic trip to Ireland started out not so epically. We missed our very first train and therefore had to play catch-up the whole way to Holyhead, Wales. We arrived in Wales four minutes after our ferry left for ye ol' green land! It was frustrating at first, but then we decided to just laugh about it and have a good time where we were stranded...which was the middle of nowhere. The town was very small, but hosted a lovely, garage-like "Bargains Galore," several consignment shops, and a Turkish pizza place. With our bellies full of Turkish pizza, and a few random purchases in hand, we proudly boarded the last ferry of the day at 5:30. The ferry was much nicer than I assumed it would be. There were a few places to get food, a gift shop, and a theater area (playing a rugby match). Since the ride was a bit choppy, I sat for most of it. Upon arriving in Dublin, we had to ask for directions several times before finding our hostel, but it isn't too bad so I think we're ok : ).
May the luck of the Irish be with you,
Amanda

Address: Mountains outside of Dublin

Thanks to Sandy, our English Mum, we had booked a day tour before coming to Ireland. The tour was definitely a trip highlight. We boarded a bus at 9 am and it took us into the Wicklow mountains, which are gorgeous! The pics don't really do it justice, but it really was a lovely area. We stopped at spots where "PS. I love you" and "Braveheart" were filmed (awesome!!). It was really neat to step outside of the beaten path and explore the countryside. We also saw Glendalough Monastery, which is so old it dates back to around the 900s or so! Many of the original walls are still standing, even though they were constructed without cement or any sort of sealing agent. They don't make things like they used to.
I'm just going to go pretend that I'm meeting Gerald Butler randomly on the road, like the movie...If you'll excuse me : ).
~Glenda Lough

Address: Dublin at Night

I honestly think that Dublin has been my favorite city that I've visited so far. The people are so friendly and helpful, the weather was nice during our trip (which I realize is a miracle), and the city itself is just great. After our tour, we went to the Leprechaun Museum, which is brand new and totally worth the 7 euros we spent to tour it. Most of it was interactive, we could climb huge pieces of furniture, explore a wooden version of Giant's Causeway, and walk through a rainbow. We also lucked out with a hilarious tour guide, which made everything that much better. Afterwards, we ate at a church that had been converted to a pub. Ironically enough, it was the same church that Arthur Guinness was married in! We spent the rest of the night walking around the city and enjoying the city lights.
I should write a song about Dublin city lights....
~Cold in Dublin (but it's not raining)

Address: Ferry Port

Sadly, Saturday to Monday was our limited time in Dublin. On our last day, we got up early and walked to the Guinness Warehouse/Museum...it seemed appropriate. However, after we walked all the way there, it was too expensive for us to deem worthy of our time so we just shopped around before heading to our ferry port. Unfortunately, we grossly misjudged the distance to the port. We thought that we were almost there when a well-meaning taxi driver pulled over and told us that we still had about 2 miles to go (after we'd already been walking about 40 minutes). He willingly gave us a ride (that's probably how he makes most of his money, picking up stupid tourists trying to get to their ferry) and we made it just in time.
All in all, a great trip. How many times in your life can you say you were in 3 countries in one day? or walked on the same road as Gerald Butler? or pretended to be a leprechaun? I <3 Ireland...and should have bought a t-shirt that said so : ).
Be ye Blessed,
~Maggie O'Donnell (hmmm)