caves and last message before coming home

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So I went to the mitchelstown caves today with my friend and her daughter. We were supposed to go to this little fishing village but it was absolutely pooring with rain this morning. I told her that ireland was going to miss me, after weeks and weeks of beautifully sunny weather the day before I leave its wretched, hehe i loved it!

but so we decided to go to these caves cause they were close enough and neither of us had been there, plus it was better than going to a manor house or museum. Anyway it was fantastic! it is owned by a family that still runs it from their house. The tour guides took down a group of about 30. Now any of you that know how scared I get with enclosed, dark places know that I was absolutely freaked but I just kept trying to not think that the cave would collapse on top of me. It was beautiful though. one of the caverns is large enough to house 200 people so occasionally they bring in chairs and a orchestra and have a concert. apparently they also turn off all the lights and make the guests bring in candles like how they originally examined the caves. We only were able to go to the upper level but i guess a few years ago they used to drop people down into this 50m whole that turned into a slide and then they had to climb out but it opens up to a breathtaking underwater lake. They are trying to build a ladder so that they can once again go down. I can't tell you how amazing this all was. the guide was telling us that there was this one cavern you could get to that you that was the largest of all of them by over double but you had to crawl all the way to get to it and there wasnt enough room to turn around along the way so you had to commit to go the full of the way from the start. She said it took her and the group she went with 6 hours to do just the journey so 3 hours each way. wow that would not be ok. but it was incredible really to think how old they must be and how many people have been down there over the years. While on the tour they shut off the lights and oh man you couldnt even see your hand in front of your face. there was absolutely NO light whatsoever to be able to see anything. YIKES!!! i have to go back there one day when you can go to the lower part oh man it was fantastic! A perfect last day so.

Then I came back to clean, which due to my incredible planning (by accident really) I only had to clean about 2 hours each day for about one week. but it was worth it to not have to clean all day today and be overwhelmed with it all. So i am all packed except just the last minute things. all bags under 23kg (i weighed them) and i will be picked up by my friend to go to the airport tomorrow at 9am. and sadly then goodbye to her then cork and then ireland.

So no, this is not the last post. But it is looming. I will send word when i am finally back in california safe, as my mom has requested of me.

Before all the hecticness of the errands of the life i left behind decide to overwhelm me i wanted to say thank you to my mom and my dad. you have given me more than a trip to europe; you have given me everything. and even when i forget to say it i will forever be thankful. I know these months of me being gone have been hard on some of you but i want to thank you again for allowing me to go and encouraging me to have an experience that will forever change me. Even though i feel i haven’t changed that much essentially, this time has opened my eyes to what i never deemed attainable.

i am so grateful to all of you for reading my rambles over the past months, showing me that people somewhere cared about me. i look forward to seeing you soon. if you’re coming to the airport i’ll be the one with a lot of bags, red hair and paler than pale skin. No accent, yet because of the aforementioned ye might think me irish.

much love from my last post in ireland

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Comments

[Raquel]

:D
awww...your shout out to your parents made me tear up :) love you! have a safe trip home!!