Ireland, Home Base Dublin

Well firstly, we’d like to apologize for the delay on getting this blog post out to you guys, we had planned to get it done and posted on our ferry ride back to the UK, but the wifi did not work in our favour.

Anyway...Ireland is the important topic here so lets get to that, in short: AMAZING!

We found our way from Belfast (Northern Ireland), to Dublin (Ireland) via double decker bus, we sat on the second level at the very front which was very scenic. It was a quick trip and we took in the beautiful landscape and farms around us as we went. We arrived in Dublin, got our bearings in the bus station, and started onward to find lunch. We ate at a nice little pub and then found our way along the main streets of Dublin before checking in with our Airbnb host. She was the best host we’ve had so far and had so many awesome recommendations and tips for our stay in Dublin, we actually tried most of the suggestions she made – and she wasn’t wrong.

We meandered around the city for the rest of the afternoon/evening before heading to The Church for supper – this place was the coolest. It is a cafe and restaurant that is built inside an old church, so you can still see the old organ on the second level and the building is amazing. The also had some of the best food and drinks we’ve had on our journey so far. What made it extra special was the live music and Irish dancers though, it was so cool to watch their feet and avoid being kicked ;).

Our second day in Ireland began very early as we set out on a day trip to the Cliffs of Moher which are on the other side of the country. We travelled along the Wild Atlantic Way which is a very scenic coastal road with lots of dips, twists and turns, and is very narrow in some areas. Our first stop was the Obama gas station, it got its name because Barack Obama visited there once. We saw lots of small towns, castles, and the country side as we went along, and learned lots about the history of the areas. We saw lots of stone fences along the drive and figured they were built for livestock. Turns out that during the potato famine that affected so much of Ireland (potatoes are hardy and can grow in poor conditions which is why so many people in Ireland depended on them) many people would work in the fields clearing rocks and stacking them into fences/short walls in exchange for food (Ireland has EXTREMELY rocky land). The land is now lush and vibrant green with rock walls throughout. These fences were originally just lines through the fields, but most are now pasture fences and yard enclosures. These walls are also built with no mortar, but are still standing strong today.

The main stop on our tour were the Cliffs of Moher – what can we say about this amazing place, there are really no words that do it justice, just look at the pictures!

We very much enjoyed our afternoon at the cliffs; the climbs across the tops of the cliffs were a good mix of freaky and exciting, the views were spectacular, and it was such a rush dangling our feet off the edge of the cliff at over 700ft up :). We had lots of fun taking pictures! We used some pretty sketchy paths to get around on the cliffs, no railings, mud, and odd slopes made it a good time for me when I already trip a lot. Poor Quinn had to make sure I didn’t fall off the cliffs ;).

Enjoy the pictures of this spectacular site, we took a lot, and it’s the best way to grasp just how amazing it was!

Our last stop on the tour was a town called Galway. We did a quick walking tour and took in all the street musicians. We also had lunch here, its a coastal town so we had seafood and enjoyed every bite! It was a pretty late lunch and after that we made our way back to Dublin. It was a long day of touring, but so worth it! We ended our day with some delicious donuts for a snack because we didn’t need supper.

Our final full day in Dublin was spent exploring the city with a hop-on-hop-off bus tour. Dublin wasn’t the prettiest city we’ve been to, there is lots of construction going on right now so that really changed the look of the city center. We did a loop around the city and took in the main sites. We explored Dublin Castle, Christ Church Cathedral, and Dublinia. Christ Church Cathedral was amazing, the architecture and details of the interior are exquisite. The sculptures, carvings, and stained glass windows are so beautiful. We also got to go in the crypt at this church which was a little weird, but cool. Dublinia was a very interesting Vikings exhibit that told the story of Vikings in Dublin and Ireland. It was very interactive and I even wrote Quinn and I’s name in the Viking script.

You can’t go to Dublin with out a trip to the Guinness Storehouse to see how and where its made, so we made that our last big stop for the day before supper. We learned all about the brewing process, the history of this famous beer, how to properly taste it, and even got a free pint once we were all done. I can’t say it was that bad and we both enjoyed it until we had to chug the last half of our glasses to catch our tour bus :).

We ended our last day in Dublin by visiting the popular Temple Bar area. We checked out the actual Temple Bar to say we were there, but ended up eating at a Boxty place which was delicious! They sure know a lot of ways to use potatoes here, they are literally served with every meal in some form, with the most popular being chips (chunky fries). We might need to go on a potato hiatus for a while once we’re back :).

Well that wraps up our Ireland adventures, link to the pictures is below! Its back to the UK now, but we’ll leave that for the next post.

https://goo.gl/photos/Ki9NSayVavYsr6Dq8

Quinn & Shelby