Grand Adventure - Part 3 (Ireland)

After a relaxing and scenic journey by train, ferry, tram, and train again, I get to Limerick where I find my colleague Paddye, her friend Lisa, and Lisa's friend Kate just arriving at the same time I did. Perfect timing! We load my giant backpack into Lisa's car and just a few minutes later we're at her family's place. Our amazing hosts, the Buckleys, had put Paddye and I in their guesthouse for our stay. We just chatted a bit, made some dinner, then went to the bar briefly after. I passed out that evening in what probably was the comfiest bed of my month long trip. I had buried myself so well in the duvet/blanket that night that when Paddye came in she didn't even know I was in the bed!

Blarney Castle

Kissing the Blarney Stone.

The next day, Kevin (Lisa's bro) and Kate took us to see the Blarney Castle as I really wanted to kiss the Blarney Stone (nope, no gift of gab yet). The castle is pretty cool but I had no idea it was such a large ground with all sorts of gardens and other little remnants of what life was like here a few hundred years ago. I almost wish I had more time to just wander around the grounds! They were so well kept and it was so peaceful ... not a lot of people which was so unlike to what I've been accustomed to the last 4.5 months and all the sights in India.

We headed back to Limerick in the afternoon to quickly pack up our stuff and make the trip to Kilkee where the Buckleys have a weekend home right on the coastline. We went for a walk to where the cliffs were (gorgeous!), then went back where we changed into our swimsuits (yes, swimsuits in 15 degree weather) for a "dip" in the Atlantic. Little did we know on our chilly walk down that we were being brought to the diving boards at swimming spot nicknamed "Newfie". The original plan had been to go to the Pollock Holes, three "swimming pools" exposed in the rocks at low tide.

Paddye and I were definitely hesitant. Here we are, standing at the edge of the Atlantic in fall weather, with diving boards that were probably 4m above the water. Without hesitation, Kevin goes first, followed shortly by Lisa. "How is it?" Paddye and I ask. "Refreshing" they reply. They climb out so they can man the cameras for Paddye and my turn. Paddye steps on to the diving board with quite a bit of doubt ... after some self-convincing she goes for it. In she goes, and we wait for her to come back up. When she does, she exclaims that "this is NOT refreshing, it's coooold!". Now it's my turn. I step on to the diving board. It's cold under my feet. I look down ... the water is clear but it's dark. It looks really cold. I think "heck, who knows when I'll be on a coast of the Atlantic again". I look back and think, "here goes". I walk to the edge and knowing that if I stop I probably will never make the jump so I leap right off the edge. It seemed like forever before I hit the water, but when I did it was FREEZING cold. I swam as fast as I could to the surface which seemed like an endless swim. When I made it, my first words were "OH MY GOSH IT IS SO COLD" and made a beeline for the ladder out of the water.

Lisa and Kevin made a couple more jumps, then we headed back to the house where we all had warm showers then started cooking the most amazing meal ever. Fresh greens, lightly blanched broccoli (crunchy broccoli ... I get limp stuff here which I don't buy), bbq corn on the cob, bbq chicken, and mashed potatoes. Yum! It was also Lisa and Kevin's parent's anniversary so Lisa baked a cake while I made a apple crumble. We socialized a bit, watched some X-Factor, then brought the treats over to her parents who were hanging out with some of their friends. We celebrated and they took turns singing popular and Irish songs acapella (such musical people!). When it came to Paddye and I we really had nothing. We don't really sing ... and well, we both suck at memorizing lyrics. =P

The Cliffs of Moher

The next day we slept in a bit, had a really chill breakfast, then made the trip to the Cliffs of Moher. We got drenched in a downpour, but the most amazing rainbows (yes, I saw a double rainbow), Irish Stew, a half pint of Guinness and the best jam ever made it all better. We drove through The Burren, through all sorts of farm land and fields stopping at old churches and castles (and whatever looked awesome) along the way. It was one of the most scenic drives I have ever been on and was wishing I could do it on bike (although the winds would make it HARD). Eventually, we made it back to Limerick, had an easy night then got ready for our train trip next morning to Dublin.

The Temple Bar in Dublin. 

Dublin was nice ... but not as nice as Limerick and the countryside so we didn't feel too inspired to snap a lot of shots. However, like London, I loved that there were old buildings everywhere and the sites were so well preserved. Paddye and I also did a bit of shopping at Penney's which is kinda like H&M but has a way better accessories section. In the evening we met up with one of Paddye's friends who just moved from Canada to Dublin, chatted at the pub and enjoyed the live Irish music in the background.



The next morning we were ready to depart for the Isle of Man! But that alone, is a story for my next entry.

Check out my Ireland photos here. I'm too lazy to upload them to my Picasa account =P. If a pop up tells you that you need to log in, just click cancel and you can continue to view my photos!

Look closely and you'll find the double rainbow. Unfortunately this photo did not do the rainbows justice!