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Published: July 21st 2007
Ireland is here... *sigh*
So Cork, well there is not much to say about that place... I met a girl that told me about a few cities she had visited and I asked her to pick one for me, so she said to go to Doolin. I decided I would go check it out, before leaving Cork I had to stop at the Blarney Castle and kiss the Blarney Stone (they say it gives you the "The Gift of Gab" - I do not need that). I really enjoyed going there because I finally got to see green lands, beautiful landscape and historical buildings. I sat in a little cove inside the castle and wrote in my journal and people watched before I kep on exploring the lands and seeing the lake and mansion. At the entrance/exit of the castle there is a gift shop called "erin giftshop," that was quite pleasing. So I kissed the stone and am just hoping that I do not get hepatitis. I left the castle and took off to the Kinlay House to get my bag and board the 5 hour bus ride to Doolin.
The journey was quite nice with views of the ocean and villages. County Clare was beautiful and you can see the difference when you enter it. The Cliffs of Moher are in this area. I got to the Allie River in Doolin, an absolutely wonderful hostel on the a little river, it was quiet with a great vibe, clean, amazing hospitality and beautiful landscaping. My second night in a hostel and I finally found Ireland. I felt so wonderful and I would certainly go back again. I met Hiro a lovely guy from Japan and we chatted it up until bedtime. The next morning I found out that my Galway host could not take care of me, I was so uncertain about what to do. Galway is the place to be this weekend so nothing is available I decided I would go on to the Aran Islands a day earlier than planned. I did not go to the Cliffs of Moher because the best way to get there is 2.5 hours each way and along the edge (not my thing, I think I would fall off or crawl the whole way) and I did not go to the Burren because the 30km walk would set me back about 8 hours. The Aran Islands were calling my name, so I headed to the pier for the ferry.
I got my ticket for 20 euro and sat at a table having a scone and tea, I met a guy there named Eoin (means John but pronounced Owen). We chatted a bit and then sat together along the boat ride (which stopped at 2 islands before we got to Inismore). Eoin bought me my first Guiness at a Pub and some Vegie soup while we waited for the next ferry. It was actually quite smooth and the head on a guiness is unbelievable. I would never go buy myself one but the half pint he got me was an experience. We continued on to Inismore and I talked him into checking out the hostel that Karl (the owner of Allie River) booked for me. We got booked into the same dorm and then we went off to rent bikes.
Ughhh.. So we got bikes at 4pm and the guy charged us 20 euro for both and said we could keep them until 11 am next day. We set off for Dun Aenghus (sp?) a large famous cliff side that has stone forts and historical stuff from back to 1100 BC. The bike ride was a fair distance but a lovely journey for sure. When we got to the base Eoin bought us tea and some very rich chocolate and caramel dessert thing. As soon as we finished our snack the Irish rains came to visit. The rains got very heavy for a bit as we walked the 20 minutes up the hillside along the rocks and grass to the cliffs. The drop is straight down and VERY high, I was shivering and my heart was pounding about 20 feet back. Eoin got quite close and I was nervous. The rocks became very slippery and we were absolutely drenched. We began our walk back to the bikes at 6:30. There happened to be a tour bus there and for 5 euro he offered to take me and the bike back, Eoin decided to do the ride and actually beat us back. lol I got to the hostel and we both showered up and walked around the local pubs searching for dinner. He had a Guiness at nearly every stop, we finally grabbed bite at Bayview (I got Caprese salad- YUM- tastes like home). The island was extremely quiet and I wondered where everyone had gone. Joe Mac's had a few people in there so most of our time was spent in there, a few guinesses were had (not by me lol) and we listened to 2 old guys speaking Gaelic and playing the accordian. Our pillows called our names around 2am.
This morning we got up and took a bike ride from 9:30-11 along the coastal side, turned in our bikes and the journeyed over to the other village (a good 2 hour walk both ways), I had made a connection with my CS host Glen and he planned to pick me up at 1 from a local mart. Eoin was an absolute gentleman and he waited to say farewell. Glen happens to work at a local hostel, the one I wanted to originally stay at. Rather then giving me a couch actually he has given me a bed here in the hostel free of charge and I am using the net free too. Talk about luck. I am at Minstir house, a place over looking the sea to Galway, it is a place that Kelly stayed when she came here and she found herself in paradise. I too have gotten a liking to this island, it is quiet, beautiful, peaceful and there are some Irish people too. Glen (from couchsurfing) is from New Zealand and he happens to be the same guy that was working here in Sept of 03 when Kelly stayed here, she commented in her own journal (my journal inspiration) that he was very nice. I think I can agree. So here I sit, finally able to catch up. There are so many more details to everything but I have forgotten bits and the wordage is growing so please make do with the highlights of this journey. I am now loving Ireland, I just need to stay away from big cities. Tomorrow I will get on the ferry to the Galway area but probably continue on to Sligo. My days here in Ireland are ending very soon.
Lots of love to you all, thanks for the messages and comments. I have replied back to some of the comments, however I think you can only view them here. So please go to view all the comments and you will see what I have written back. xoxoxo
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kelly
non-member comment
the glen connection
that is awesome! four years later and that guy still works there. he was very nice, and if i remember, not so bad looking either. bit of a flirt. either way, very accomodating. i'm sorry to hear that you haven't been able to see much of the sun in ireland. i was blessed to have the most beautiful day i've ever seen in ireland when i went to dun aenghus, which definintely made a difference. sligo, which is great, is more known for it's scenery and w.b. yeats' grave. it's not like a hip, party town. but one of the highest peaks in ireland is there, and it's so stunning. we love you. blessings on your trip!