Tessa and I just returned from a week-long trip to Ireland and as expected, it was amazing! Ireland has been at the top of my travel destinations list for a long time, so it was great to finally be able to visit, especially with Tessa, who has been going there for years to see family.
A visit to the Guinness Storehouse started our trip!
We started our trip in Dublin, then drove to Ballinamore in Leitram, where we stayed with Tessa's grandmother for three nights. After that, we headed to Galway for two nights, then returned to Dublin for one more. It was a packed holiday! However, getting to see so many different places and have a variety of experiences is what made it such a great trip.
The weather on our drive to Galway was incredible - what a beautiful country!
It was wonderful to spend time with family, even though it wasn't mine. Since I've been without grandparents for about a decade now, it was so nice to be around a grandma again. I was also constantly amazed at just how big Irish families tend to be. I can't imagine having 50+ cousins like Tessa does, considering I only have six! In some ways, I think it would be great to have a family that big, but at the same time, it must be overwhelming, too.
Grandma Lena and I - such a lovely lady!
One of my favorite parts of both Galway and Dublin was the music. Live music was played in just about every pub we went to! We heard a variety of traditional Irish music, cover bands, and musicians playing in the streets. It was incredible to hear such good music consistently and it was so fun! Everyone (but especially Tessa and I!) would be singing along and it created such a happy vibe.
One of many bands we saw, but these two were especially great!
In both of these cities, we also met people from all over - Italy, Denmark, South Africa - and even met Christian Bale's doppleganger (wow!). In some ways, Dublin reminded me of Barcelona - the energy was palpable, which I loved. It was also confirmed that Tessa and I seem to be magnets for older men (maybe because of our American smiles?!) - this was often a bit uncomfortable, but it also saved us some money.
I LOVED the Temple Bar area!
As I had been told, the Irish really are some of the friendliest people around. No one is a stranger and they love to tell stories. The lilting accent and way of speaking made me happy to listen to anything they had to say! As expected, I was often mistaken for being Irish and I really wished I could say that I was (not centuries removed!).
Although I definitely need a break from the food and beer (how are Irish people not more overweight?!), I can't wait to go back. I definitely see another night or two in Dublin and a trip to Northern Ireland in my future . . .
No comments:
Post a Comment