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Writer's pictureSam

EXPLORING IRELAND


So as I alluded in my last post, Exploring Copenhagen, we thought we had a 4 p.m. flight to catch. As we effortlessly arrived at the airport and made it through TSA, we discovered our flight was delayed 8 hours. Horrible news considering we would be missing an enitre evening in Ireland and would miss our car rental pick-up.


With our pivot we got to enjoy lots of airport food and little naps on uncomfortable chairs. I was again, craving fresh food so I scrounged together a green juice, chicken caesar salad, and a banana bread for a breakfast snack the next morning. We also got to enjoy some sour beers from Mikkeller!


Somehow, we almost missed our flight, which we totally called would happen because this airport was massive. The good food was all the way at the opposite side of the airport than, what we had already assumed, the budget airlines gates would be in. Luckily we made it to our flight in time but once we arrived in Ireland we had a 3 hours of waiting for the car rental to open up. Rough, to say the least.


DAY ONE



So we arrived in Dublin at 2 a.m. but had to wait until 5 a.m. for the car rental to open up. Once we were able to get our car we were off! Luckily, our dear friend Katie was so kind to hold the burden of driving (on the left side of the road and drivers seat on the right side of the car).


Our first stop was Galway at a stunning Airbnb tucked into an adorable street. I would honestly kill to stay at this exact Airbnb again, and actually get to stay the whole time! With that being said, we arrived around 8 a.m. and went straight to bed to try and get some sleep for the day ahead.



After getting some sleep we hit the road to visit Kylemore Abbey. We sadly only had an hour or two to see things before they closed but it was beautiful! We also had a nice time in the gift shop, so definitely stop in there.



For dinner we ate at Veldons Seafarer and the stew was so good. Our waiter was so cheeky and sweet, we really enjoyed the service as well as the food! I highly recommend if you want somewhere to eat after leaving Kylemore Abbey.


DAY TWO



We woke up early to make the most of our last day near Galway before heading to Dublin that night. We went to the store before heading out so we could make an early breakfast in our kitchen!


We made pancakes, scrambled eggs, and sausages. Honestly 10/10, really enjoyed it. They claimed to be Irish pancakes but I think they were a little thicker, nonetheless, delicious.



Next we drove over to Doolin Caves, with Europe's largest stalactite. This was a cool experience and definitely fascinating to think about 20 year old men climbing through that tiny hole to discover this cave. I also found it so weird that this cave was privately owned... just a thought lol.



After visitng Doolin Caves we went to McDermott's Bar in Doolin. Again, we ordered the stew (being sick was rough). Thank goodness Ireland is known for their stew because it was so good and hearty, just what we needed. Katie and I ordered an Irish coffee for the rest of our long day we had ahead of us.



The final stop of the day was the beautiful Cliffs of Moher. If you're in Ireland it would be SILLY to not stop here. Unfortunately for us, we went on a windy day and being sick it was rough on my little sensitive ears. Katie let me borrow her scarf and my ears were all good again.


We didn't walk to the building on the other end of the cliffs but we walked on the opposite end and spent lots of money in the gift shop.


After the cliffs we made the drive to our Airbnb in Dublin. It was giving Airbnb that men put together but alas it was a safe place to sleep.



DAY THREE



This day happened to be the day before Maria's birthday and we figured we should go all out, considering the next day was a travel day. We decorated the Airbnb a little and all put on our party hats for the day.


Our morning started with a visit to Guinness Storehouse Museum. I was thoroughly impressed with how beautiful and thoughtful every exhibit was. I had no expectations for this visit, as I thought it was just something we had to do while in Ireland.


We honestly we might have ended up here for hours if the fire alarm had not gone off. We were collecting drink tickets left and right (because of the party hats). Our first Guinness we had to "split the G" and somehow I managed to do it, even for my dislike of beer. I will also say Guinness got rid of my headache, so that was magical. I wish we had been able to stay longer, as we met some friends but the alarm was our sign to go!


We had wanted to visit Trinity College and see the Book of Kells Library but didn't realize we needed tickets. So instead we decided to get ready for our dinner and night out.



We wanted to take Maria somewhere cute for her birthday but reservations were nearly impossible to come by. We ended up at The Market Bar, a tapas place that was good but not toooo special. The place we wanted to try was Mama Yo, so definitely make a reservation if you can!


After dinner we drove to Temple Bar and then bar hopped around Grafton Street. We were recommended Jimmy Rabbitee's was a good place to go but we didn't make it out there. Our friends from Guinness storehouse had great luck going there though, so I would definitely go next time.


We popped into different bars and had drinks at each one, they were all such fun ambiances, if we weren't all sick I think we would have lasted much longer. The people in Ireland were truly so sweet and incredibly conversational. People sang Maria happy birthday and offered birthday shots and free drinks. It was really such a fun experience and I wish we had more nights there.


In next weeks blog post, I will detail our last stop, London, for one day! Stay tuned and subscribe to my newsletter below so you never miss a post!


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