Travel Tuesday || First Flight and Dublin

Welcome to my spring mini-series of Travel Tuesdays! In October, Caleb and I went overseas to Ireland and England, so obviously I took a lot of photos. This was a trip I had been dreaming of since I was young, one I had cried over years before I ever booked it because I assumed it would never happen. I wanted to share all of our adventures with you on the blog, which led me right to this series! No better time than to tell you about Dublin, with St. Patrick’s Day later this week!

This was my very first experience with flight, and it was my very first experience with going to a different country! Let’s just say, this whole holiday was special to me. Other than straining my ankle on my first day of sight-seeing, our time overseas was perfect.

My brother so graciously took us to the airport to see us off. Caleb and I went as minimal as possible–we packed a carry-on each and one extra item (my purse, him a small duffel). That didn’t leave a lot of room for future souvenirs, though, so we also packed a large duffel inside a carry-on. So sneaky.

Our layover was in Atlanta. I never knew airports were SO huge. It was simple to find where we needed to go…the getting there was what was long. After walking (and riding the conveyor belts, possibly my favorite part of airports) what felt like a mile, we made it just in time to wait two more hours! The important thing? I found a smoothie shop. All was well.

I had heard bad things about riding coach. No leg room, bad food, blah blah blah. Fortunately for me, I have short legs and loved the giant masses of food they heaped upon us. Tortellini, shrimp, salad, breadsticks, cheese slices, and brownies for dinner, yogurt and a roll with orange juice for lunch, and pretzels and nuts in between? I didn’t know I’d be eating gourmet in the air.

Speaking of eating gourmet, we hit the ground running once we landed. First stop: Rolling Donut off of O’Connell right in front of the River Liffey! These donuts were about three inches thick, tasted like cake, and gave us the giant sugar rush needed to stay awake until bedtime in a new time zone. Believe it or not, my picky-foodie-self was a bit more adventurous overseas than my can-eat-anything husband.

After fueling and checking into our hotel, we walked through Dublin to Trinity College. (Pictured above, the Jeanie Johnston Tall Ship and Samuel Beckett Bridge.) When I was in high school and took the ACT, I was able to pick three colleges I wanted to send my scores to. The first two were UA and OK State, and the third was Trinity. Well, I finally got that college tour, so I can make an informed decision now. Too bad I’ve already graduated.

At Trinity, we visited the obvious: The Book of Kells. And it was intense. You travel through an exhibition about the writing of the books, what kind of ink was used and how it was dyed, and what the books are about. The exhibit leads you to a dimly lit room featuring two sets of pages from the Kells, surrounded by intrigued visitors. It was a little difficult to view, but with patience and a little shoulder action, I managed to steal to the front.

Following the exhibition, you can view the Long Library. Do you love to smell old books? Imagine that, multiplied by thousands of books, a hint of old, stained wood, and a subtle note of stonework. Speaking of stonework, I got to take a selfie with Shakespeare, one of my great literary loves.

We walked nearly 10 miles throughout the whole day, from Trinity College, to Grafton Street, to St. Stephen’s Green, to Merrion Square, to Molly Malone, to Suffolk Street, to Dublin Castle, the list goes on and on. I must mention, one of my favorite things in Dublin were the colorful and ornate doors!

The churches in old cities like Dublin are magical. (Is that a contradiction?) We only wandered around the outside of Christchurch Cathedral and John’s Lane Church, but we spent the 6 euro each to go inside St. Patrick’s Cathedral and it was WORTH IT. Caleb will attest, I cried at how beautiful it was inside. To be fair, I cried at a lot of things during this trip. Every piece of the experience made you feel like you were in a Harry Potter movie, or a castle scene from Game of Thrones where no one dies. There was soaring organ music, dim gauzy lighting, stories-high stained glass Bible scenes, imposing statues of old church leaders, and the tomb of Jonathan Swift. It was a whole different world inside and outside.

That night we went to the Temple Bar district, originally intending to try out the Brazen Head. Unfortunately, walking into the Brazen Head was like trying to wade through waist-high jello. If you’re determined to do it, I’m sure you could. There was almost no space between the people to walk through. We ended up going to a different pub down the street that was far less crowded, and to be honest, smelled a lot less like smoke.

Back at the hotel that night I took a long soak in the tub trying to get rid of the pain in my legs (guess who acquired Achilles Tendinitis overseas?! This girl!) The next day we were set to take a bus tour throughout Northern Ireland. (That will be covered in next week’s travel blog!)

Our last day in Dublin (and day 3 overall) was relaxed. We’d accidentally seen everything we’d planned to see the first day there, so we took leisurely strolls through town, along the river, and, of course, through a lot of stores.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the best food in the world. At The Quay’s Irish Restaurant, I ordered Guinness Beef Stew with mashed potatoes. What can I say? Deep in my stomach, I’m an Irish girl. (Well, I mean, deep in my genes I’m an Irish girl too.) If I could have this stew for the rest of my life, I still wouldn’t have eaten enough of it.

Growing up, my dad played a lot of Irish music. I sang along to The Irish Rovers mostly, but The Fureys, with their song “Clare to Here” was another staple. So when I saw the The Fureys were doing a concert right where we’d be…I booked it. I booked it before anyone else. Caleb and I got front row, center tickets, and as the concert venue filled up, we swiftly realized that not only were we the youngest in attendance, we were the only Americans. This fact was brought out to us even more when our new friend and front-row-center-mate Paul from Liverpool asked Caleb how in the world he had even heard of The Fureys.

How much did I cry that night listening to authentic Irish music and songs I grew up with? A lot.

Above was my first train ride! Public transportation in Ireland and England is pretty great.

I’ll leave you with three photos: a River Liffey skyline, the Famine memorial, and the menu at the local KFC. Note the O’Sanders Menu, not the Colonel Sanders menu.

Thus concludes Week One of my travel series this month! Stay tuned for next week’s blog, featuring our Game of Thrones tour of Northern Ireland! The scenery and natural colors of this country are phenomenal.