Seriously getting back on the blogging track peeps - because we have some serious traveling ahead! Thanks for bearing with me while I slooowly go back in time to document our Europe travels (which yes, happened an entire month ago). I've been in lovely but blog-unworthy Boston, so stretching out the Europe posts like this just lets me re-live it all. At least that's why I'll tell myself I'm taking forever, rather than the fact that I'm too busy to breathe lately let alone blog! But that's besides the point - on to Galway!

When we arrived we went immediately to our hostel to check in. The Salmon Weir Hostel was not our best stay of the trip with its rickety bunk beds and tight quarters, but the price was right. We then decided to walk around to shop & take in the sights. Luckily it was a Saturday so we were able to enjoy the festive Galway Market (shops, snacks, flowers & live music everywhere) as well as Shop Street and historic sights around Galway.

We decided we'd walked around enough just as it started to rain, so we decided it was a good time to take a drive  west to Spiddal, a nice coastal town Jim had once been to.

The coastal drive was beyond gorgeous - we finally felt like we were really seeing what Ireland is all about. We looked at the map and were enticed by a little peninsula (that we thought might have views of the Aran Islands), so we decided to keep driving! Everything was so green and the air was amazingly fresh. As we got further out there, it became more and more barren - just coarse green and brown landscape, with curvy stone walls and tiny little cottages with their covered peat piles scattered about.

We went to the very end of the road and wandered around for a bit, taking in the sunset and the smell of peat fires, and saying hi to the crazy Irish livestock. When it started getting dark we finally headed back, stopping at a gas station for some hard ciders. I literally couldn't get enough hard cider at this point in the trip - they have so many delicious flavors there!

Back in Galway we walked around the downtown area, stopping for the BEST fish and chips ever at McDonagh's then checking out almost every Irish pub we walked past for a drink. Favorites were The Quays, McSwiggan's, and Roisin Dubh. 

Cheers to Galway!!

After a long day of exploring the area we were so exhausted that we had no trouble falling asleep in our rickety, red bunk-bed! Next stop: Cliffs of Moher....

Ireland Day 1 - And We're Back!

This blog was originally created to document our 6,000 mile journey across the states - but travel called! Our recent 10 day European trip deserves recording too, and for that matter, so do our future adventures. We're not done with this blog yet! So here we go... 

We took a 5pm flight out of Logan, fully enjoying the limitless snacks (& wine) and movie selection. Twilight Eclipse (terrible), The Descendents (decent) and Cowboys and Aliens (good!) - before you know it we were in Germany for our 5 hour layover.

Jim's way with (old) ladies came in handy as usual - he flirted our way into the Lufthansa first class lounge for our layover! Free breakfast was much appreciated - but even better was the nap room. That's right - a nice quiet room with bed/benches & new pillows for us to nap in before the second flight. Sweet!

Finally we boarded the much shorter flight from Frankfurt to Dublin, and arrived at about 11am local time. Grabbed our rental car - and we were on our way!

Jim had previously been to a little town called Malahide that he loved, so we swung by on our way to Dublin city.

Then parked right in the center of Dublin, so we could walk around and soak it in. We strolled through Temple Bar, along the river, to Trinity College, and through a cute little indoor market filled with cafe's and boutiques.

"Trinity College is an oasis of peace and beauty. Its campus is a mix of classical and contemporary buildings interspersed with elegant gardens. Founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I, Trinity boasts stellar alumni, including playwright Oscar Wilde and Nobel laureate Samuel Beckett."

After our short afternoon of checking out Dublin we found Donnybrook Lodge B&B, grabbed some hard ciders at the local SPAR grocery store to enjoy at the hotel, and settled in for a bit before finally heading out to find place for a drink. More specifically a delicious Guinness. 

We checked out the neighboring bars too, including Mary Mac's and Paddy Cullen's, but returned to Rowe's pub to order a D-e-e-e-licious meat pie with a side of 'chips' (with vinegar & mayo of course).  

When we left the pub and got to the car, we saw that a big yellow BOOT had been placed on our rental car. Waahh! Guess parking signs don't have to be posted on the same side of the road as the spot in question, the way they do in Boston. Oh well! We just went back to the bar, were offered a cell phone to borrow by a nice Dublin chap (he liked that we were from Boston - Ireland's cousin), and made the call. Half hour later and we were free.

 Ok ok, it's actually called Crowe's Pub...but that's not nearly as cool, right?

Next morning - we woke up and drove through the city one more time on our way out, and after our requisite stop at a rest stop for cappuccino & breakfast, we were on our way -- just a 2 hour drive from Dublin to Galway.

Thanks for checking in, peeps. Next post - Galway!!