First, a recap: the original plan was to go to Russia for two weeks (specifically, St. Petersburg). However, Russia hates tourists and tries in as many ways as possible to keep them out of the country. This is mostly successful through the requirement for visas. In order to get a visa, you need an invitation into the country, which can be furnished by a) an actual acquaintance of yours (and by asking you’re volunteering them for their own share of Russian bureaucracy, so take heed), b)the hotel(s) you’re staying at (you need one for each place you’re staying, and you also need to account for every night you stay in the country), or c) you can buy an invitation from an organization. Classy. Long looong story short, we weren’t even going to get a yes/no on whether we were getting visas until 6/22 when we were supposed to be flying to Russia on 7/22. My mother didn’t want to buy plane tickets without the yes, so we ditched that idea after three months of prep work. The moral is go to the Ukraine, where they don’t require visas.
Or Ireland. Because, y’know, it’s basically the same country. A lot of drinking, right? The new plan: two weeks (7/11-7/24) in Ireland, starting in Dublin and doing a quick counter-clockwise circuit including Connemara, the Burren, the Dingle Peninsula, and Cashel.
The other note: I took over 800 photos in those two weeks. I edited that down to about 500, 200 of which are slowly going up on Flickr. The photos for the blog are the worst ones, usually, but they show whole buildings. Educational purpose.
July 10th, 2011 (Shot by a nine hour layover in JFK.)
The first flight (Buffalo-JFK) was at some ungodly hour like 8 in the morning. The flight to Dublin wasn’t until 6 pm. We played a lot of Bananagrams in the airport.
The Aer Lingus flight served Tillamook cheese with the dinners.
Mom filled out E’s paperwork and I told her that he got his passport at the International House of Passports. She copied it down before realizing I was joking.
July 11th, 2011 (First day in Dublin.)
Dad drove everywhere. The first challenge for him was finding reverse (all their cars are manuals) while driving on the wrong side of the road in the wrong side of the car. We ended up in a dead-end alley/car park barely bigger than our car. Three Irish gentlemen kindly helped us find reverse and guided us when we had to back up. We’ll call this checking out the locals.
We weren’t up to anything fancy that first day, so we went to the National Botanical Gardens in nearby (no driving) Glasnevin. We all fell asleep under a tree.
I attempted to shower when we got back to the B&B, only to discover that the shower is designed for someone about five feet tall and two inches wide. I suspect the bathroom of our third floor bedroom was a closet in a former life.
July 12th, 2011 (Day two of Dublin.)
Breakfast involved tea. And scones. I realized I had come to the right country. Quick intro to Dublin: no skyscrapers or subway. It’s the oldest Viking settlement outside of Scandinavia. Other major differences: two cent Euro coins (what’s the point??!) and swearing always involves God, Jesus, or Mary. The Dublin bus tour guide pointed me towards Jameson and cranberry, which is now my favorite mixed drink.
The view from O'Connell St.
Today’s agenda was the bus tour first, then Kilmainham Gaol (where the British shot/executed 14 leaders of the Easter Rebellion, which I only know about because I’m an English major and read Yeats’ poem), then a walk around St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Dublin Castle.
July 13th, 2011 (Brú na Bóinne)
First thing I did this day was fall into the rain gutter at the B&B and sprain my ankle. Classy. Eugene- proprietor of our Dublin B&B- chastised me for my terrible timing, and I was appropriately apologetic. I attempted to navigate us to Brú na Bóinne, which is a complex that includes Newgrange (the most famous Irish megalithic tomb), Knowth, and Dowth. Instead I managed to navigate us to the lovely (but off-course) peninsula of Howth. I can’t imagine how I possibly made that mistake.
Brú na Bóinne was very cool. We only went on tours of Knowth and Newgrange (Dowth hasn’t been reconstructed). At a toasty 18°C (65°F), this was our warmest day. Knowth is closed off for some reason I can’t remember, though you can climb up on top of it for an excellent view. You can go into Newgrange, however, through a decidedly claustrophobic tunnel that widens into a larger but still-very-snug-with-twenty-people chamber with a corbelled roof where starlings nest. The guide pulled us all in and then simulated the line of sunlight that hits the floor of the chamber for three days surrounding the winter solstice.
Used stickers from tours at Brú na Bóinne.
The B&B this night was in Connemara (Roundstone, to be precise). I was in raptures over the little old lady house. There was a fabric couch covering the tissue box, and a pie dish with a lid handle shaped like fruits.
July 14th, 2011 (Connemara)
Drove around Connemara; found a beach to run around on. A German couple had parked next to us; the woman gave me a slightly sheepish grin before telling her husband something about “three colors” and dumping a handful of sand in a ziplock bag. Souvenir?
More differences: fuschias grow wild into huge shrubs, and rhododendrons are invasive.
Kylemore Abbey was the major stop for today, which was mildly disappointing because we wanted OLD and this was only 19th century. To add insult to injury, it started life as a rich people playhouse made to look old. Still pretty, and we took an excellent guided hike up the mountain behind the abbey that made the drive well worth it.
A beach near Roundstone in Connemara.
July 15th, 2011 (Leaving Connemara.)
First stop: Aughnanure Castle. (Lesson one from the trip in general: nothing is pronounced the way you’d think it would be. Aaargh Irish.) This is the restored ruins of a 16th century castle; only the main tower is still standing, and a bit of the inner wall.
What used to be a guard tower at Aughnanure Castle.
Had my first experience with their public toilets this day, when we drove through Galway. You paid .20€ for the privilege of 15 minutes in the toilet. Press a button and it dispenses toilet paper from the wall. Hold your hands way under the sink for water and pull them forward to dry them. There’s a light that warns you if you’re down to two minutes, and an SOS button if you get trapped in during the subsequent cleaning cycle. (Question: who does it call? The police? And how often do they get called?)
July 16th, 2011 (The Burren.)
This is what the Burren (a region just southwest of Galway) looks like:
The Burren.
A lot of rocks. Not much else. Pretty in its way. The B&B in the Burren is called (big surprise) Rock Haven.
The sights included Ailwee Cave (for E) and Poulnabrone Dolmen, as well as many high crosses at Kilfenora, which were both varied and very cool. We tried to go to the tip of Hag’s Head for an alternative view of the Cliffs of Moher, but were foiled by the crazy winds and sheer cliff drop-off, despite not having been dissuaded by three separate paddock gates. So we gave up and went to the visitor’s center end (northern end) instead.
West Cross at Kilfenora.
