Castles, more castles...and funny accents?

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Hey everyone, I'm back with more adventures and get prepared for the pictures 'cause they are amazing! I've done some really exciting travelling in the past two weeks, hence why I haven't really been keeping up with this blog as well as I should, but I promise to try my best! I've also been very busy with work since I finally have a semi-permanent full-time job and I'm fairly knackered by the end of the day to be honest. Yes I know I just used that Irish word; I don't have a goofy accent yet, but the slang is pervasive and slowly creeping into my speech haha. I also work with a very large group of young Irish people so I'm definitely picking up the lingo faster now, my personal favourites are "that's/you're grand", "deadly", "just for the craic" and "brilliant" haha, it makes me laugh listening to a room full of them.

So the past couple of weeks I've definitely done a bit of travelling and now that it's getting to be summer (although looking outside my window right now you'd never know; it's been pouring rain all week and it's SO cold and windy it feels like winter) I plan on hopefully going somewhere each weekend even if it's just around Co Dublin on the outskirts. Two weekends ago I went to visit a friend who lives in Malahide, which is about a half hour outside Dublin and a cute little coastal town where a lot of rich people live. It was the first time I took the DART which is the train system and it was pretty cool going through the countryside. The weather was fantastic so we just had a nice relaxing day; checking out Malahide Castle and walking through the grounds, then walking along the boardwalk and getting food at a little Italian cafe. It was so ridiculously charming, it almost makes me reconsider living in the city; but for right now, the convenience of living in Dublin definitely outweighs living in the quaint countryside, for now at least.

The weekend after that I went to Cork, which is in the southwest of Ireland. It's essentially the second largest city in Ireland (which is pretty sad considering there's only like...300,000 people haha!!) and it was amazing how different it was from Dublin. There's a huge rivalry between the two cities, with most people from Cork believing that they're the true capital of Ireland, right down to intense rivalries between rugby loyalties. One of the funniest things about people from Cork, besides their ridiculous loyalty and stubbornness regarding their county/city is their accents. Even other Irish people can't understand them! They have such a heavy brogue and they talk so quickly and with such tonal variation that it doesn't even sound remotely like English. For some reason I can understand them pretty well, in fact I have trouble with the Dublin accent more than the Cork one but it's definitely interesting to hear for sure.

So I got to see all of the neat things around Cork like the River Lee and the Lough, the University, the English Market and a bunch of other architectural things around the city. Probably the best part of the trip however was going to Blarney! Getting to see the castle and kissing the Blarney Stone was the coolest thing ever!! I don't think you can go to Ireland and not do it; sure it's probably the most cliche "Irish" thing you can do, but it was still awesome. The castle is definitely underrated and I thought it was so neat, almost cooler than the Blarney Stone. We explored the castle for a while and the acres of gardens and grounds, so it was really a grand time. I got some spectacular pictures from the very top of the castle and definitely freakedddd out a little climbing the "100 stairs" which are so narrow and twisty it was gut-wrenching. Unfortunately it poured rain pretty much the whole time we were there, but luckily missed it when we went to Blarney and Cobh (also pronounced "cove").

We took the train to Cobh which is where the Lusitania sank; it's a quintessential and picturesque Irish seafaring village and I absolutely LOVED it. The more Irish the better I say haha, and I am really enjoying going to places where you can really interact with the locals and get a taste of the real Irish culture. It was fascinating learning about what went on when the Lusitania sank and all of the cool monuments and dedications to the people who died during that time. There is also one of the most impressive cathedrals I've seen there, probably just because the village is so small and the cathedral is massive and perched up on the biggest hill in Cobh. It overlooks the harbour and was truly breathtaking. It's been so fun seeing all of these different areas of Ireland and I can't wait to keep seeing more. Next weekend I have plans to go out to the west coast to Galway which everyone says is one of the best places in Ireland, so I'm pretty excited! Anyways, enjoy all of the pictures and I will update you after my trip to Galway. Love and miss all of you!!

xoxo Sarah

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Photos

Malahide Castle
What a cute little castle isn't it?

Cricket!!
Look at these silly men playing cricket, it's such a pansy sport hahah