Ireland
Let me be honest really quick, MY DESIRE TO GO TO IRELAND WAS AT A ZERO.
My aunt Patty however was the complete opposite. She had been planning a trip to Ireland for quite some time. More than I think I would ever spend longing to go to a place before I ever went. I think she said like 10 plus years or so? She finally decided it was time and planned a trip for her birthday. She called my uncle, he was on board & of course, he called me…shoutout to him. I was very ehh about it when he first told me because I just hadn’t had any desire to go. I am not sure it actually ever even crossed my mind. There were just so many other places that I had on my list that buried this little slice of heaven a little too deep and needed some light shine on it. (Foreshadow) lol. A few things came to mind in order to shift my initial thoughts from eh, to HELL YEAH LETS DO THIS. 1. My uncle reached out to me. That meant a lot. 2. I would be surrounded by family, and anytime you get to experience stuff like this with family, you NEVER pass it up. 3. I knew I could figure out a way to piece this together with another place & really enjoy myself on this trip. Which as you can tell from my other posts, I did just that.
I’m gonna dive right into the JUICY details here.
IRELAND IS BEAUTIFUL. One thing I have learned over my time adventuring, it's that I HAVE to stop comparing places. I’m starting now haha.
I will start off with my favorite part of Ireland
CLIFFS OF MOHER
I have seen a lot of land formations in my life, I have seen a lot of things that I am in awe about and this is one of those places that I am not sure I will see again in my lifetime. Majestic is a very good word to describe what I feel when I look at these cliffs. I got on a boat and was able to sit at the foot of the cliffs & stare up in disbelief. As we rode the boat in to the foot of the cliffs, I really felt like I was about to dock at the island in Jurassic Park lol. It was massive by all definitions of the word. Its a straight drop off when overlooking from the top, can't fathom how they came to be, or what would happen with a slip and a fall. I’ve seen the cliffs in California and stood on the mountain side in Italy, and fear didn’t strike me like it did in Ireland. If you are able to ever experience, like everything else I say in life, GO, EXPERIENCE IT. While I stood at the top I also like to place my thought process into the minds of Vikings or anyone from that time period, even Game of Thrones time period. To stand on top and overlook while you see enemies approaching, or to be enemies approaching, those are some pretty cool feelings/thoughts. Fun ones for sure.
GUINNESS
I HATE DARK BEER. It just is not in my blood to enjoy a dark beer. However, I now appreciate dark beer. One thing I love about myself is my ability to dislike something but appreciate it at the same time. I appreciate the craft, the process, the love the Irish people have for it. In turn, I can now tolerate dark beer. I can now say “Let me get a Guinness, cheers” & laugh over a pint with some good company. Its really interesting how much of a role Guinness plays in the foundation & longevity of Ireland.
BLARNEY CASTLE
YOU DO NOT GO TO IRELAND & NOT KISS THE BLARNEY STONE. The Blarney Stone is a stone that sits on top of the castle and is a big legend that if you kiss the stone you are granted the gift of eloquence. (I had to double down on my gift) ;). You lay on your back, you stretch out really far and you are basically close to being upside down while you kiss the stone. Germaphobes, stay away. Have fun, live a little, don’t let the thought of millions of people kissing the same spot freak you out haha.
I am pretty sure I have Irish blood in me, so I got to see a little bit into my past. I think me and Marisa are gonna do one of those ancestry things for the VLOG so stay tuned for that. We think it will be fun and entertaining. I want to say this was the first castle I have ever seen. I could be mistaken. Since this is the only one that comes to memory right now we will say that it is. It was gorgeous though. Ireland gave me PNW vibes for sure & I love the PNW with my soul lol. Ireland had every freaking color fall had to offer! It had all the green, yellow, oranges, red’s, brown’s, IT WAS SPECTACULAR. The grounds the Blarney castle was on was well taken care of, definitely good to the eye and good for the experience.
THE BOOK OF KELLS / TRINITY COLLEGE
This is a really old library, I also had not done my research on this until I got back to the states, but Its the oldest college in Ireland & is home to one of the coolest libraries I have ever been in. It houses so much history and has rights to every book published in the country as well as in the UK which serves as a depository. Home to one of the oldest pieces of literature in the whole world The Book of Kells. It was created by Celtic monks around 800 AD!!!! Which means that its roughly around 1,213 years old. Its basically a book that houses the four gospels of New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John)
So I want to take a moment to thank my Aunt Patty for allowing me the opportunity to experience such a place and for putting up with boneheads for such a long period of time. If asked about Ireland I will always push people to go for its rich history, beautiful countryside, and breathtaking views. I loved getting to experience this place with family.
Feel free to reach out to me if you have any other questions about Ireland. I will be happy to answer! Happy Travels
& remember