Giants Causeway

Okay, so I have an excuse for the lack of posts. The wifi. Wouldn't. Post. My. Blogs. So it's not my fault, but unfortunately for us all that means one big wrap up Ireland summary. Better late than never, right? :)

The Giants Causeway trip was about as perfect of a travel day as you can get. 

We were staying in Derry, a small town in Northern Ireland known for its dark history; its brick wall boundaries and "peace" bridge. 

Northern Ireland is completely different from the Republic of Ireland. Don't call "Northern Ireland" just "Ireland" because you're sure to offend the citizens who are of English descent and are proud to be part of the Uk. Northern Ireland doesn't use the Euro, they use the pound, so along with crossing a boarder, we had to switch currency's and budget more because almost everything is more expensive.

Northern Ireland also seems more rainy, they have more mountains, and it's quite a bit colder than our Republic travels. Here people seem much more laid back and aren't so concerned about looking stylish. I also learned that there is a purpose for the skinny jeans that are often seen - they easily fit into shoes and boots and so when it rains, they don't soak up all the rain water. They also wear layers, hats, scarves, sweatpants and boots almost constantly. Anything to stay warm in the damp, 30 degree windy, rainy weather. It doesn't help that a lot of the hostels have seemingly little to no heat for us. 

The folks here talk soo different as well. It's hilarious to try to understand their deep (and much stronger) Irish accent and their phrases such as, "give way," "eat in or take away," "wee bit," "to let," etc. I also get a kick out of their road signs...

Anyway, early in the morning, Lauren and I hopped on a train with a crazy Georgian girl named Courtney. Courtney is probably one of the most outgoing and adventurous people I have ever met, and she was 90% of the reasons for our "perfect" day. :)

We rode in the train along the northern coast of Northern Ireland, looking out at the deep blue water bordered by steep bluffs and surrounded by fields of not sheep, but swans. 

I know they look like sheep, but I promise if you look closely you can see their giraffe-like necks. :)

As we drove, the weather turned from scattered rain, to intense sun, to pouring rain and dark clouds, and back to sun about six times in our 40 minute journey.

In Wisconsin we like to say we can see four different seasons in one week, but that is nothing compared to Ireland and their eight seasons in one day. I have never put on and taken off layers/gotten out and put away my umbrella so many times in one day...

Anyway, we were lucky enough to say goodbye to the rain by the time we arrived at our destination: Giant's Causeway. 

We had gotten off the train in Coleraine to catch a bus to the causeway, but after realizing that the next bus didn't go for three hours, and there is NOTHING open on Sundays in Ireland aside from a few pubs, we hailed a cab and enjoyed our first ride in an opposite driving car.

When we arrived in Giant's Causeway, I was pretty much in heaven. 

There were miles of walking trails along the rocky coast cliffs, waves crashing up on the rocks leaving thick white foam, deep green grass, and enough sun and warmth to convince someone to go tanning on the rocks.

The main attraction though, were the countless pentagon shaped rocks, lined up in steps forming giant towers.

No one knows exactly how something like this was formed, but they were so cool!

 You could climb up them, and on the top were little pools of water from where the waves and rain had left their marks.

(To be continued)

Rain. And cold. And other Irish things...

It's sunny, but as an Irishman said, "Thats not a sun! Its a shiny ice ball!" In other words, I can't remember the last time it was this cold when there was green grass. 

(Feeding birds. My favorite hobby...)

Our hostel had three, huge, single paned windows and no heat. Luckily, Lauren, my cousin (visiting from France,) and I were the only ones in the room so we borrowed the giant comforters from the other beds and were toasty warm.

The wifi in Ireland is worse than anywhere I've ever been; its worse than Central America, and our barn wifi is even better than here. Everywhere you go offers wifi, but you either have to pay for it or it cuts out every few minutes or just won't connect. Of all the places we have visited in Ireland, I think the buses have the best connections. Every time one drives by our devices connect to them, but a minute later they drive away. Luckily, there are a ton of them.

All of the travelers we meet here are so dependent on wifi. Even while hanging out, everyone is on their phone. They give you 1/4 their attention and the person online 3/4. It's ridiculous, annoying, and rude. This has made me vow to never be on my phone/online while around people. People are too valuable to ignore while you're with them. Then again, sometimes making friends with people you will never see again seems pointless.

Ireland is so similar to America, yet so different from other places I have traveled. Not only is the landscape and culture different, the mentality of the travelers is different. Here, most people are studying abroad and are only in Ireland for a few days or a weekend from other European countries, so they have no advice on where to go or stay, whereas in Central America, people were there to backpack; they had traveled everywhere (or were starting to) and you could always find good places to visit from word of mouth.

And Europeans are so well dressed. If you go out at night, everyone is dressed like they're going to weddings. My nicest outfit doesn't come close. People are here to experience the city; the food, the music, the night life. Not so much to climb mountains and live cheaply. 

Definitely different than what i am used to, but Dublin is a beautiful city as far as cities go. It's hard for me to adjust to city life from the country, the cold, the price, and the craziness all at once, but Dublin is so beautiful.

A river runs through it with several walking and driving bridges and random structures and statues decorating the streets. The buildings have archaic but ornate façades that prove to be a sharp but flattering contrast with the modern glass fronted buildings. While the dark stone is often streaked and weather worn, it remains distinguished and representative of a bygone era that is accentuated by the cobblestone alleys and bustling streets.

From above, the city is even more beautiful. Church steeples rise above the buildings poking the sky, and cathedrals proudly show their distinct stone bodies, taking the attention away from all the surrounding stone structures.

The weather in Dublin can never make up its mind; one minute it's sunny and warm, the next it's pouring, windy rain, and the next your breath is freezing and being outside is not a feasible option. 

Every day, it rains, then gets sunny, then rains... But the people pop out their umbrellas and go on without a thought, making their way across the rain-soaked stones.

Besides just seeing the city and taking pictures, Friday we visited the Guinness (black Irish beer) storehouse.

 I wasn't especially interested in how the beer was made, but once we got inside, it was pretty neat to see the step-by-step process of making beer, from the barley field, to the brewery, to the consumer, and an intense history.

At the end we got a "free" pint of the black stuff to try - we poured it ourselves after a short lesson on how to perfectly pour it to get just enough foam on the top. 

That's a skill I will never need to use again, because Guiness is absolutely disgusting and a few sips was more than enough for me.

Later we went to dinner with a few students studying in England, and we spent some time looking for traditional Irish music, but were disappointed to learn that weekends are reserved for American pop music and nightclubs with people on street corners advertising lap dances. We spent the night hanging out in the hostel instead.

Saturday we visited Gaol prison. The prison is one of the most popular prisons in Ireland (the world?) known for the  facilities and the fewest escapes.

Only 12 escapes in almost 140 years. It was a dark and sad tour, learning about criminals and how they were dealt with, but a valuable learning experience anyway.

After the prison Lauren and I caught the bus to Derry in Northern Ireland. After a four hour drive through sheep-dotted country side and seriously scattered rain showers, we walked through the town looking for a hostel. A nice old gentleman with a thick accent pointed us in the right direction, and we were lucky enough to have no idea where we were going when it started pouring rain for the hundreth time today. 

We asked for directions a few more times, and after being turned away by an overbooked hostel we were welcomed into one for 20 pounds ($35ish. Kill me now.) looking like drowned rats. I love traveling. :)

Five days of Ireland in five minutes...

I wrote a "three days of Ireland in three minutes" post a few days ago, but my iPod decided it was hungry and ate it. Thanks, kid. 

Anyway, I will keep this short and sweet. It shouldn't be hard because the last five days went so fast it could have been five minutes...

It was pouring rain, windy, and freezing cold a second ago. 

Now it's sunny and beautiful.

So, the last few days I was with a tour group. I am never, ever doing that again. Yes, it was wonderful being with some friends and family and not having to worry about figuring out where to go or how to get there, but two minute photo stops and no more than two days in each town is like torture for a wannabe photographer that likes to meet locals and experience the culture. 

Basically, the last five days were spent driving across the entire country (about 20 hours of bus in the last few days,) and stopping every few hours for two minutes to take pictures, or a quick hour or two for tours. 

Most of the country looks like this:

With lots of little rock fences and fluffy white sheep: 

A few mountains and rivers:

And a few random castles:

Our few "longer" stops were mostly in cities that were very much like American cities- well dressed business people, and shops and cafes with items to satisfy every hearts' desire.

(Yep, they like green.)

And a few little old fashioned towns with cool brick buildings...

(Ring castle)

And some castles...

(Kissed the Blarney Stone on that one. Not sure why. Ew. Guess its the thing to do!)

(Daddy and Broface and me! :)

A sheepdog demonstration (it was pretty cool watching the dogs do all the work to move the sheep left and right and forward and back, all from a whistle from the owner.)

And an awesome stop at a racehorse farm! The most expensive horse is a stallion insured for 80 million with a stud fee of 70 thousand Euros. Those guys take better care of those horses than anything I've seen in my life...

We also stopped at the Cliffs of Moher. Unfortunately, we were only lucky enough to see a ton of fog around a little castle:

And a few random favorites:

So finally today, my friend Lauren and I said goodbye to our tour group and are on our own to brave the Irish adventure.

Phew. Okay, I hope that's a good summary for five minutes. Literally, in the time it has taken me to write this it has gotten sunny and turned to pouring rain about four different times. 

In the next few days, I promise I will be writing more and going into detail and answering all your questions you have been sending me on Facebook. It's just been crraazzyy go go go on the tour. 

The real adventure starts now. :)

And ps - since blogger ate my St Patricks day post...