4 Days and 3 Nights Around Ireland

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So with Cheryl here and all, we decided we would do the fastest tour of Ireland ever. To any travelers thinking of seeing as much as Ireland as possible in a short amount of time, this would be the way to go.

Day 1: We started out the morning in Galway, exploring a bit of town and being extremely frustrated that our favorite bagel and coffee shop was not open (Cher became instantly obsessed with the 2nd best Chai Lattes in the world). Our first stop was the Blarney Castle, so with all three of us piled into our beast of a Volvo that the Budget car rental place gave us, we were off. As all car rides go, we sang, we laughed, and we invented car games. Cheryl and Brian invented “Slug Bug Castle.” Basically every time you were the first to see a castle (of which there are hundreds in Ireland), you hit the other person in the arm and yell “Slug Bug Castle!” The problems with this game were twofold: 1. Anything and everything looks like a castle and isn’t necessarily a castle, so blows were being thrown for forts, towers, and even churches. 2. Brian was driving, so Cheryl would quickly dart her eyes in every direction and slug Brian’s arm before he even had a chance. I thought it was hilarious, Brian . . . not so much.

So on this trip I’d like to start by commending Cheryl. Cheryl has been afraid of heights for as long as I’ve known her. It’s the same way I’m afraid of snakes, when there are times not to be fearful, I still am, as is she. A few days prior to this trip Cheryl stood at the top of the Cliffs of Moher and looked over the edge, and now, here we were climbing the teeny tiny winding staircase to once again kiss the Blarney Stone at the top of Blarney castle, and Cheryl held onto her nerves. This time, unlike Brian and my previous visit, it wasn’t raining. So Cher and I explored the castle grounds from the waterfall to the elusive witches’ tree to all the beauty inbetween. Cheryl accomplished her main mission on this trip by kissing the Blarney Stone, and although it took the man holding her over the edge several attempts as he told her “lower . . . lower,” she managed to get her lips right in place to hopefully be blessed with the gift of the gab.

After collecting Brian from the local pub, we were off to stop two . . . Fermoy. Fermoy is a little town north of Blarney on the way to Dublin. Some of Cheryl’s Irish ancestors were from Fermoy, so Cheryl had two jobs to do here. One was to get some of the river rocks out of the river to bring home to her mom, and two was to take a picture of the street sign of the street on which her relatives used to live. Well, we paced and paced up and down the street for nearly half an hour looking for that sign but we had no matter of luck about us. Apparently the street sign used to be attached to the building they were currently in the process of tearing down. (Side note: most street signs in Europe are not poles, but are affixed up high on buildings, which makes it increasingly difficult to find where you’re going.) With one more mission to complete, we headed off to the river. As we approached the murky water, we all had the same realization. There were no river rocks in the river, instead they had been cemented to the path on the river banks and the river was now completely full of mud at the bottom. So although Cheryl made it to Fermoy, we were unsuccessful in her missions. On the plus side, we did eat cheese fries from SuperMacs before getting back in the car.

Our next stop was Dublin, the lovely home of Rob and Carl. Brian was ecstatic because we ate sushi for the first time in two months, and Cheryl was in heaven at the notion of a warm bed with walls that didn’t leak. Rob and Cheryl were reunited after seven years (we all met in Italy on a trip Cheryl, my mom, and I took during college) and we all slept happily after a long day’s journey.

Day 2: As soon as we were up, showered, and functional, we were on the road once again. This time we were heading north towards Belfast. Now, because things have only recently cleared up in Northern Ireland (allegedly) we were still a little concerned as to what we might run into. With passports in hand we crept through what we though was border control, only to discover that it was no longer active. With smiles and relief, we continued on to change euros into pounds and find a bite to eat. Belfast is beautiful! If you’ve ever been to London, just imagine it without the constant overcast weather and rain. Once again “Lonely Planet” served us well by recommending “Maggie May’s” for cheap and delicious food. In all honest I also wanted to see it because my grandfather always calls my significant other mother “Maggie May” and I thought it would be fun to find it. Love you Marg! It was by far one of the most delicious meals I’ve ever had. We all had the beef stew and various side meals. Brian had gravy fries, I had cheesy pepper fries, and Cheryl had cheesy garlic toast. The place was packed with more and more people coming in each moment. It was a small place with no more than 15 tables, so as soon as a couple got up, there were people eagerly swooping in to take their spots. If you ever make it to Belfast, go to Maggie May’s!

After cruising around town and thoroughly enjoying the sights of the city as well as the murals (See “The Murals of Belfast” for full details) we were off further north to Mrs. Brown’s house for the night. It was by a fluke that I happened to pick this place, and it was by far the best B&B I’ve ever experienced. The rooms were huge with double showers and loads of comforters. Cheryl had a bathtub in her room so for the first time in two months I took a bubble bath and was in a state of complete and utter bliss. Mrs. Brown was one of the sweetest women I’ve ever met and she was incredibly hospitable. As an added bonus, there was a closet filled entirely with games right outside of our rooms! Cheryl went out to pick games and nearly gave the man across the hallway a heart attack in doing so. We decided on Scrabble and Fact or Crap. I’m presuming you all know Scrabble, so let me just say this, don’t ever play Brian. Brian is one of those people who will use three letter words so that the money letters land on a triple letter score. He also does nothing to assist in the extension of the board. Playing Fact or Crap with him on the other hand was hilarious. Brian prides himself on his knowledge of random trivia, so Cheryl and I thought we were both screwed. Turns out we were not. Fact or Crap is simple. Someone reads a card that states random information “An ostrich’s egg is twice the size of its head” and the other players hold up a card stating either “Fact” if they think its true or “Crap” if they believe it to be false. The joy of playing this game was that if the information is “Crap” it doesn’t tell you the correct information, so you’re constantly frustrated and all three of us realized we like learning when we play trivia games.

Day 3: Day 3 we woke up to the most unbelievable breakfast, and after asking Mrs. Brown if we could live with her forever and being declined, we were off! Having no clue how far the Causeway was from where we could park after the excursion the night before (See “Scariest Car Ride Ever”), we eagerly bought jumped out of the car with substantially less layers than we should have had. The Causeway was a good few kilometers walk and it was windy, rainy, and cold as all getout. But, of course, totally worth it. The legend of the Causeways is that the Irish giant Fionn mac Cumhaill (Finn McCool) built it to walk to Scotland to fight his Scottish counterpart Benandonner. But upon seeing Benandonner's great bulk, Fionn fled home and asked his wife to disguise him as a baby. When Fionn did not arrive for the fight, Benandonner walked across looking for him. When Benandonner saw the size of the “infant,” he assumed the alleged father, Fionn, must be gigantic indeed. Therefore, Benandonner fled home in terror, ripping up the Causeway in case he was followed by Fionn. In actuality, the Causeway was created by intense volcanic activity. We climbed around and explored as much as we could without slipping all over the place and then raced to the bus so as not to have to endure more of the cold on the walk back. I would love to go back to the Causeway during the summer and really climb around because it is a fantastic structure and amazingly beautiful.

We decided the next thing to do before the rope bridge was warm our souls with a little whiskey, so it was off to the Bushmills Distillery. The Bushmills has been an official distillery since 1608 (unofficial for who knows how long). It was actually a pretty interesting tour as to the process in which whiskey is made. The best part (besides the tasting of course) was watching the bottling and packing room. Move over teddy bear factory and sticker factory, the whiskey factory is the new hot tour for elementary school kids to go on! I only wish. We watched for a good twenty minutes as machines labeled bottles, filled them, corked the, packed them in boxes, sealed the boxes, crated the boxes, and wrapped the crates in a an enormous plastic wrapping machine! Very cool. Right as we finished our whiskey and Cheryl and I were happily playing in the gift shop one last time, Brian announced that it was snowing outside so we should get a move on. We figured he was fibbing to get us to hurry up, but sure enough, the moment we stepped outside we were in the middle of a light and perfect first snowfall in Ireland. It was truly magical. After catching snow on our tongues and racing to the car, we were off to the Rope Bridge.

The Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge was built about 350 years ago for salmon fisherman. It used to have only one rope for a handrail on each side and wide planks to cross the middle (think Indiana Jones “Temple of Doom” bridge at the end of the movie). We weren’t even sure if the bridge would be open since it closes during “high winds” and it was currently windy and snowing. We tried anyways and luckily they decided to deem the bridge “safe enough” for the time being. Now, the ticket booth is at the beginning of a mile and a half hike up and down the hills to the bridge. So Cheryl was faced with an immediate decision of facing her fear of heights once again. Luckily her will to try the new and exciting overcame her fear and the three of us were off once again. As a child, I loved climbing. In trees, on structures, we would even play “hot lava” so I could find ways to maneuver from bookcase to bookcase or table in the house. This was by far one of the scariest climbs I’ve ever done. The stairs were straight down, narrow, and slippery form the rain. When you start to cross the bridge, the wind takes hold of it and sways you back and forth. The drop down is immense, especially when you look at our feet and the tiny piece of wood and rope holding them from the ocean’s rocks down below. But we did it! All three of us made it and it was well worth it for the views alone. The place looks like it could be plucked out of Kauai!

After our fearsome hike, we were off to visit my family in Donegal. Although it was a ways away, it was a beautiful journey with a fantastic end. My cousin Catherine and her mother Mary cooked us a fantastic meal of shepherd’s pie, apple tart, and delicious tea. It was the first real Irish home-cooked meal we’d had in months! The trip was bittersweet because Michael, Mary’s husband, had passed away only a few weeks prior. But that didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits. We all spoke of him and how much we would have enjoyed having more visitors. I got to meet Catherine’s beautiful children and learn all about their favorite cartoon show. It was nice to be in a home with people connected to my past. After sharing stories of home and our adventures, we rested at the B&B not far from Mary’s house in which all of my relatives have stayed on their visits. I felt the comforts of home once again.

Day 4: We woke up to an unbelievable view of the ocean from our room and delicious breakfast. No wonder all my family stays here! Catherine decided to drive us around Donegal to see where my family had grown up, their first houses, the schools they went to, and all and all enjoy the beauty of the land they were raised in. Teelin Bay was beautiful, and I can see know why the Byrnes side of me lived here. Although Cheryl, Brian, and I were still not comfortable with the twisty narrow roads, Catherine was. I’m sure she was in complete control at all times, but there were several turns near the edge of the highest cliff in Europe that I feared for my life. After afternoon scones and tea and lots of hugs and kisses to my kind-hearted family with promises of returning one day, we made our way back to Donegal, passing through Sligo as we returned to our home in Galway Bay.

We spent the last night of our adventure at O’Flaherty’s pub in the town of Costelloe. We sipped whiskey and listen to the locals speak Gaelic as we toasted the end of our adventure around Ireland.

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Comments

[Cheryl]

yay Ireland!
Awwww, reading that was like reliving the whole trip, so wonderful!!