An update from the past few days

Thursday, June 10: I got the chance to play tennis for the first time with Steve - another student in my program. We started on clay courts (a new and difficult experience) and then moved inside to hardcourts once one opened up.

Friday, June 11: We visited Kilmainham Jail at 11:00. This old jail, now a tourist site, once held many famous Irish rebels and revolutionaries from 1796 until 1924.

Saturday, June 12: I traveled alone to the coastal villages of Dun Laoghaire (pronounced Dun Leary) and Howth. Both towns have pretty marinas and harbours, and since it was perfect weather, I saw many sailboats going out to sea. I found Howth to be just a smaller version of Dun Laoghaire.

Sunday, June 13: A few friends and I took the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit) down to another seaside village of Greystones, from whence we went on a 6 km "cliff hike" north to the town of Bray. It is an easy and pretty hike, especially if the weather is good. It rained on us a little bit in the middle of the hike.

Monday, June 14: Most of the other guys and I visited the old Jameson (Irish whiskey) distillery. It was organized similar to the Guinness storehouse, except the Jameson tour was with a tour guide.

That's about it for now....Tomorrow (Wednesday), all of us are heading on a trip to the West of Ireland to look at some sites significant in the times of the Irish Famine.

The Guinness Brewery - Wed. June 9

Water, barley, yeast, and hops. Those are the four ingredients in each pint of Guinness, brewed to perfection. For 11 euro, you can take a self-guided tour through the 7 floors of the Guinness Storehouse, one of Ireland's biggest tourist attractions. The bottom floors feature information about the ingredients, the brewing process, and the founding of Guinness. Moving up, you learn about the history of the transportation of the beer and the various advertising campaigns. With the price of admission comes a voucher for a free pint, which you can exchange at the very top, the Gravity Bar, and enjoy a 360 degree view of the city of Dublin.

For your reference...

My phone that I use in the USA does not work here, so my local Irish phone number is 083 311 6854, or from the USA 011 353 83 311 6854, i believe. I can receive calls and texts for free.

Last weekend recap - Cliffs of Moher (June 7)

This has turned out to be a highlight of my trip thus far. At our hostel the morning of June 7, we purchased tickets for a Lally bus tour to the cliffs for 20 euro. By bus tour, I mean get on a bus and head to the cliffs, with the driver occasionally getting on the intercom to explain the significance of something that we were passing, and stopping once or twice for a chance to hop out and take a few pics. The bus dropped us off at the cliffs at 12:45, and we could do whatever we pleased until we had to get back on at 2:00 pm to head back to Galway. On the way to the cliffs, we stopped at a small town, Doolin, for lunch. Apparently Doolin is famous for its traditional Irish music.

Today was a cold and rainy day in western Ireland. The visibility was good, however, so the views were still fantastic. At the site, there is an old lookout castle that you can climb and look out at the 600-ft. cliffs from the top.

In the main area, a concrete wall dissuades anyone from going anywhere close to the edge of the cliffs. Walking further to the left, one finds a portion of the wall is unkempt and there is a sign reading something like 'go no further'. That's really too bad.

And then it was time to hop on the bus back to Galway, and then another bus back to Dublin. Thus ends my first weekend expedition.

Last weekend recap - Galway (June 6)

We boarded the 8:00 bus out of Tralee for Galway and arrived early afternoon to check in to Galway City hostel. In a couple hours, there were a total of 6 of us, and we were put up in a 12-bed room.

The city was packed. Busy place. Someone told me that there was almost always a festival of some sort going on, and this time it was a latin festival (latin meaning hispanic). There were also powerboat races happening, but we didn't go see those. We did spend some time by the water, however, both at the side of the canal that runs through the city and out at the shell-filled beach.

For dinner, we headed to McSwiggins, a bit classier and higher-end pub and restaurant. This place was chosen on the recommendation of our good traveling companion Rick Steves. Most of the main dishes were upwards of 15 euro, but one could get an excellent bowl of seafood chowder for 6.

After dinner and dessert, we all headed back to our room at the hostel, and I must have sat on my bed and twiddled my thumbs for at least an hour while my five female companions got ready for a night out. It is quite the process, let me tell you.

At last, around 10:30, we headed into town for a night that included a mechanical bull, a pole, and a drag show featuring Lady Gaga. That's all that needs to be said about that.

Headed to the Cliffs of Moher in the morning.

Last weekend recap - Tralee (June 5)

We headed out of Cork at 10:30 and got in to Tralee early afternoon and checked in to the Castle Hostel (recommended!). Tralee = smalltown Ireland with a decent night life (we didn't go out this night, however). We were more impressed with the number of pubs in little Tralee than we were in Cork. The centre of town is really just one stretch of road, about 8 blocks long. A nice building to see is the 19th Cent. Church of St. John the Baptist - a gothic revival style building. I really didn't do much else in Tralee besides see the church and go out late for a cheeseburger and ice cream.

On to Galway in the morning.

Last weekend recap - Blarney Castle (June 4)

The town of Blarney, home of the 15th century Blarney Castle and Stone, is a 20-minute bus ride from Cork for a round trip bus ticket of 6.20 Euro. It makes for a beautiful day trip on good-weather days. admission is 10 for adults, 8 for students. To reach the top, you have to ascend a narrow spiraling staircase that seems to get narrower as you get higher. It provides a great view of the countryside, and you can even lie on your back, hang on to two parallel bars, tilt your head back and kiss the stone. and don't forget to stare down at the ground 100 ft below.