MONDAY
Well getting to Dublin was an adventure. As is everything I guess. I left my hostel around 8am so I could get to the train station around 1/2 an hour before my train left at 9:10 (ish). I ate a quick breakfast, tried to get my overstuffed backpack zipped closed (always an interesting task) and quickly checked out. I just so happened to be using the Tube at morning 'rush hour' so it was packed. But thank the Lord, he allowed me to never have to wait for the next tube. Always managing to squeeze on, even with my stuffed backpack.
I got to the train station, and easily found my train, which hadn't even arrived yet. I found my car, took a seat, and got comfortable after the train did arrive. I sat in a 4 seater one (2 seats facing 2 seats with a table in betwen), and a 30 year old ish man joined me. He was British. and we had a nice chat for a bit before I fell asleep. The 3.5 hour train ride went quickly, and soon I was in Holyhead, Whales! I had no clue they had their own language (Welsh) and the signs sure did look funny. The train went directly to the ferry terminal, and I got off, got a muffin and coffee, and waited around 1/2 an hour before boarding the ferry! THERE WERE SO MANY IRISH PEOPLE. I LOVED IT. I love love love their accents, their family orientated culture, their lively attitudes, and friendly demeanors. I couldn't get the smile off my face. I probably looked like an odd foreigner.
I got on the ferry and got comfortable in these nice chairs with a table in the middle. There was no assigned seatining so I could sit anywhere. The 3.5 hour ferry was a tad boring, so I tried to nap. Soon, I was in Dublin! The ferry terminal is not quite in the city, and I hadn't planned yet how I was getting there. I looked outside, there was one bus, so I walked up, and asked where it was going and if I could get to the city center. An old irish man heard my question (and my accent probably) and chimed in asking where I was going. I explained and he said I was good to take th bus and then gave me more specific directions for after! I found the hostel easily, even though it was dark out..it gets dark here around 4:30 pm. crazy. hah
I checked in, met 2 australian girls I was sharing a room with, then got on my internet in the kitchen for a bit! Then I realized I was starving. Having only eaten a muffin since my toast at breakfast, and a cup of coffee, my stomach wanted real food. So I went to a local grocery store, got some pasta, sauce, and chicken. THen used the hostel's expansive kitchen to cook some delicious dinner! Mmm. then I waited for my friend Katrina to arrive later that night. Then sleep!
TUESDAY
Katrina and I woke up, wanting to just explore and get to know Dublin. Which is not a very big city. We just started walking around the city, and we did just that! We found some fun stores to go into, a few random irish looking monuments, and before we knew it a few hours had passed. We kept walking, then popped into a cafe/restuarant for some late lunch. It was delicious. We got a soup to start, then different sandwiches that came with fries for our main course. Yummmm. We ended up sitting and talking for 2 and a half hours because we never asked for our check, which apparantly you have to do if you want to get it hah. Then we finally did and he forgot for another 20 minutes or so hah. Needless to say we were there forever. Good thing we weren't in a hurry to go anywhere.
After, we went back to our hostel for a bit before wanting to go to an authentic Irish pub! We went to the touristy district, Temple Bar area, because it was close, and easiest, and went to one of the nearest pubs where we saw live music! It was so fun because they played very classic irish songs along with a lot of popular other songs with an irish twist. We enjoyed just sitting, people watching, and enjoying the friendly fun loving atmosphere. We left around 1:00am (we didn't get there until around 10:30pm) where we promptly crashed in our beds asleep hah.
No comments:
Post a Comment