Ireland!

Sorry, I’m a little late but I said in my last blog that I would write about Ireland where I went two weekends ago. If anyone who is reading my blog is planning to study abroad in Europe or travel in Europe, which I would definitely suggest to do, you should use Ryan Air for cheap flights around Europe. I flew to Dublin from Manchester for 10 pounds (18 dollars!) which is a very good bargain. I got in late on a Thursday night and the next day I met my friend from Huddersfield, who took the mega bus/ferry there, overnight on a day tour we took to southern Ireland. My friend’s family is from Cork where we stopped on the tour. Also we went to a cathedral/castle and Blarneys stone (on a castle which is surrounded by a beautiful green with trails). When you go to Blarneys stone the tradition which I took part in is to climb up to the top of the partially ruined castle and kiss the stone while you lean backwards (with a guy who helps everyone get a grip of holding the bars even though I didn’t need it).
I spent the next two days exploring Dublin, which was a very nice city. I was very lucky that the weather was gorgeous when I was there. In Dublin I walked pretty much everywhere and saw most of the city’s major sites. Some of these included a free walking tour, went to the Guinness factory, museums/historic buildings, a historic prison, parks and to a botanical gardens/cemetery. I really like this company of free walking tours which is offered in 20 major cities worldwide because they give you a good sense of how to get around the city, see many things, learn about the city’s history, and tip based on your ability or how you feel about the tour. My friend who I was with got the hop on and hop off bus ticket which I bought to, but stupid me bought it for the wrong bus company. However, I didn’t really enjoy the bus and ended up using it only a couple of times. Personally, I would rather walk and explore a new place on my own. In many of the cities I have been to there are usually a lot of signs with arrows pointing the way to major attractions, and if needed I have found helpful people who given me directions.
In Dublin, I stayed at my first hostel which I found to be a good experience. I am not a very high maintenance person and have done a good amount of camping back in the states. All I really need is a place to sleep and if the hostel includes breakfast that’s always a good thing. Before I came to a hostel, I expected it to be full of young people in their 20s/30s which there were a lot of. However, I did see some families staying in the hostel and older individuals. Hostels are the cheapest accommodations since you get your own bed and share a room/bathroom with other people. For future trips I will definitely stay in hostels. Next week I go to Scotland stay tuned for the next blog post coming soon!

Leave a Reply

Next ArticleTravels!