Ireland

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We made it to Dublin on March 10th, 2011! Thank you US Airways for getting us here safe and sound and even a little early! With no issues in the airport, customs, or getting our baggage we were able to pick up our car at Dan Dooley and hit the road!

Which brings me to driving in Ireland. Everything is backwards. Drive on the LEFT. Driver is on RIGHT of vehicle. Fun! Greg is our designated driver for this trip and I will give credit where credit is due, he is doing fabulous! I've only thought we were going to crash twice and with one small adjustment of my passenger side view mirror (pulling it in to the car), we have an additional 5 inches and are solid!

Roundabouts are EVERYWHERE. The first one we almost cut someone off, but since then Greg has taken them like a pro.

Crossing the street has proven to be a challenge when in Ireland and I now repeat out loud.. "Look RIGHT, then LEFT" about three to four times before actually crossing the street. 😊 Greg just whips his head back and forth several times.

Dublin so far is so good. We were able to walk around the city even in the cold and briefly saw the Temple Bar area, City Centre, and the College. We will be back on the 15th and will have 5 days there, so we weren't concerned about doing it all.

Yesterday we took off from Dublin after oversleeping until 10am! Opps! No worries, we checked out by 11 and were on the road to Trim, Ireland, where Greg has some family history. We were able to see and tour the Trim Castle (where Braveheart was filmed) and grabbed some food at a pub. An Irishman danced a little for us at the bar and played an Irish tune for us. Not sure what the song was, but it mentioned "Have you ever grabbed balls". After our meal Greg took our plates back to the restaurant next door and I drank a bit of his beer. When he returned I went to the bathroom and one of the guys at the bar said to me, as I passed, in a thick Irish accent "Stole a bit of his craic, no did ya?" Busted. We've been wondering about the word "craic" and have gotten several different meanings. I refuse to use it in a sentence for fear of using it incorrectly.

Next stop: Castlebar, County Mayo

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Photos

Ah! Our first Guinness!
Worth the wait

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I'm whispering sweet nothings in his ear.

Closed. :(
We weren't able to get inside but could still tour the grounds.

Off with her head!
Oh no!

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I'm running to get warm!

Braveheart
Crazy Mel G was here!