Ireland

Still reeling from my trips to Iceland and NYC, I decided to take one last trip before busy season starts in Florida to Ireland.  My original trip to Thailand had been moved seven times due to Covid and I was just sick of it and decided to see what other trips were going.  Ireland seemed like the only interesting option for a winter trip for my time frame.  Although Ireland has not been at the top of list to visit, it was definitely on it.  I have to admit as much fun as I had exploring a new country, this was a one and done for me.  

I used the company EF, like I did with Japan and Iceland, to see Ireland.  I love traveling to a new place with random people who have also never been there.  You always have the best time and make some pretty awesome friends.  Our first stop was Dublin.  It was smaller than I thought and although I saw a good chunk of it, I feel I didn't see as much as I wanted.  But we did the highlights.  Tasting at Jameson and a tour of the Guinness Storehouse which I highly recommend even if you don't like beer.  Went to the famous Temple Bar and had dinner at the oldest bar in Dublin, The Brazen Head.  Another treat Dublin graced me with was seeing my first drag show.  Absolutely loved it and the club it was held at called The George.  We saw a beautiful park, the River Liffy and a cathedral in the middle of town.  We also walked Grafton Street which is a very popular street in Dublin.  

Then off to a small town called Kilkenny.  This was my least favorite of the four cities we saw.  But I did enjoy some of the best chicken wings I've ever eaten in this city and we saw a castle.  Also the squirrel cats and the doors in this small town were quite fascinating.  But if I asked anyone about it, they didn't know what I was talking about.  I found that a bit odd.

Then we drove over to Killarney but stopped at the Blarney Castle on the way.  This was a true irish castle that we got to climb to the top.  I did not however kiss the Blarney stone.  The whole estate is gorgeous.  Killarney was another small town but it had my favorite bar.  Reidy's was a surprising treat and a must if you're in the area.  I noticed that the pubs in Ireland are like mazes with so many rooms and bars, makes american bars look boring.  We also did a jaunting ride which was very nice and I also recommend it.

Another highlight was driving through the Ring of Kerry.  Seeing the overlooks, the cliffs, the views of the ocean and stopping at a nearby beach was my favorite thing.  I love seeing how different beaches are around the world. Waterville was the town we stopped at for lunch and got to walk the beach.  I brought home a couple small stones from there like I did from Iceland.

Our final city was Galway and I think it was my favorite.  More pubs and shopping and didn't feel touristy.  But before we got there, we stopped at Ireland's most famous spot, the Cliffs of Moher.  They are beyond beautiful but extremely windy.  I have never experienced wind like that in my life.  I got stuck a couple times just trying to walk back so be prepared.  I also had my second favorite meal of the trip there which was the vegetable soup.  So delicious!  So chicken wings and veggie soup is what Ireland should be known for!  Our final night we decided to just stay up the whole night because our bus was leaving at 5am.  We went to a couple of pubs that Ed Sheeran apparently sings about.  We met some friendly irish men hanging out at a stag party (bachelor party).  Great way to end the trip.

Overall another successful EF trip!  My next trip is to Spain in June and then hopefully an EF trip to Bali later in the year!  I definitely recommend visiting Ireland but I did like Iceland way more.  Enjoy some photos from Ireland...