Prologue -
Last year for Christmas, with Lisa's help (she gave us buddy passes - standby Delta Airlines flight tickets), I put together an Amazing Place (a play on "The Amazing Race") gift for Tyson. Basically, he could choose some exotic place to travel to using our buddy passes and I would make it happen (with help from a lot of people!). He made his choice and we spent a year saving up for a trip to Ireland. It's a place we've both wanted to visit and we both have ancestors from there. It was Tyson's first use of his passport, so we had to make it good! My Mom flew out to stay with Tyler so it could be just a Tyson and Carrie trip. We've been looking forward to our Ireland Adventure for so long!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
We knew our chances were slim. The flight out of Sioux Falls was sold out, but had a reputation for a few no shows. Tyson and I got to the airport a little after 5am, checked in, and waited. As the flight was ready to close, it appeared our waiting had paid off. The gate agent said there were 2 seats left on the plane so we boarded and walked down the aisle to the very back of the plane where we found ONE seat. Opps. The gate agent had miscounted. The flight attendant told me to go ahead and take it, but since she wouldn't let Tyson sit on my lap, I opted to get off the plane with him and try again tomorrow.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Take two. No problems today. We were back at the airport before the crack of dawn and checked in again. The gate agent recognized us from yesterday and assigned us seats right away - as this plane was quite a bit more empty than yesterday's. From Sioux Falls to Atlanta and then to JFK. We spent our layovers reading books and trying to pop our ears (at least on my part. Worst part about flying!). We were ecstatic to be assigned seats together in Business Class on our overnight flight from JFK-Dublin (best part about flying nonrev)!
Talk about the royal treatment. Warm, lemon scented washcloths, a 5 course gourmet meal, individual screens to watch all the movies you desire, noise cancellation earphones, fresh squeezed orange juice, seats that recline almost all the way, a real pillow and blanket, a take home freshening up travel kit, and breakfast in the morning. I have to admit, I was not pleased to hear the pilot announce that we had made it to Dublin an hour and a half early, but I'll bet the coach class passengers were happy!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Arriving early in the morning, Tyson got his stamp in his passport and we emerged into the overcast, brisk morning air of Dublin. Freshening up and then getting a map and some city information from a girl with a super cool Irish accent at the Info desk, we were on our way! I was surprised at what an easy city Dublin is to get in and around. We took a double decker bus in to the train station, stored our bags and bought train tickets for later in the day, and then took the bus into the heart of the city. Dublin is quite beautiful in a colorful, architectural sense. I loved all the old buildings that are preserved and still quite functional today. Everywhere there were baskets of flowers and bright colorful doors. That was my favorite thing to see!
We explored up and down Grafton Street while awaiting our tour of the city.
Inside the Grafton Street shopping center. Tyson thought it was hilarious that they charge everyone 20 cents to use the bathroom.
My red scarf from H&M. Love that store!
We chose Viking Tours based on good reviews. They drove us all over Dublin in an old WWII amphibian craft which meant we also got to tour from the water too - just a canal, not the actual River Liffey like I was hoping. It was a good way to go in that we got to see way more of Dublin than we could have seen on foot, but, while our tour guide was funny, we both wished he would have told a few more stories and history about what we were seeing.
Our tour bus, er...boat?
The Ha'Penny Bridge
St. Patrick's Cathedral
The back of the U2 recording studio in Dublin.
After sandwiches and hot chocolate for lunch, we made our way to Trinity college where we saw the Book of Kells (see Wikipedia) and the gorgeous old library. I wish we could have taken pictures in there because it is quite possibly the most beautiful library I've ever seen. Complete with arched ceilings, dark wooden ladders extending two stories (think Beauty and the Beast), books from floor to ceiling with old - imagine 1st edition Book of Mormon - binding, busts of philosophers and other famous people, and even a few students tucked into hidden corners on the upper level.
Outside the Trinity College Library and Museum.
Everyone was so nice and helpful. Especially the girl who helped us speed walk several blocks to the correct bustop so we could make it back to the train station in time. I felt like we really were on The Amazing Race when they ask a local to run with them to help them find their next destination. We made it (just in time!) to our train and settled into our seats.
The scenery to Galway (Western Ireland) was very pastoral and beautiful.
Unfortunately I don't remember much of it as my head kept nodding. Something about a swaying train and jet lag makes a girl sleepy...We arrived in Galway in the early evening and splurged on a taxi to our Bed and Breakfast which was located in Salthill - a suburb of the city. Kudos to Tyson for finding the Claremount House. It was a perfect B&B - homey, nice and comfy, friendly hosts without being intrusive. It was located right across the street from Galway Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. We met quite a few other travelers there from all over the world who were seeing the Irish sights and researching ancestry.
Late this evening we attended Trad on the Prom. A well done show full of traditional Irish music, song, dancing. The dancing especially was phenomenal! What a day. Back at the B&B, I quite literally fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
As we were not crazy enough to venture renting our own car in Ireland (picture driving a stick shift on narrow roads - oh, did I mention you have to drive on the other side of the road and that the steering wheel is in the right hand side of the car?), we set up two day tours with The Galway Tour Company to explore all over Western Ireland. Today's trip was ultimately to the Cliffs of Moher.
Our driver and tour guide was a little old Irish man named Desmond. He did an excellent job showing us the beautiful scenery, a small castle, a mystical fairy ring-fort believed to be inhabited by leprechauns, the Burren, and the Cliffs of Moher.
Ballyalban Fairy Fort - and our co-pilot leprechaun on the tour bus.
The Burren (meaning "a stony place") - The over 5000 year old Gleninsheen Wedge Tomb and the flora that springs up everywhere amidst the limestone.
Lunch at a perfectly quaint pub in Doolin. Delicious seafood chowder!
Dunguaire Castle
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Before we came to Ireland, Tyson and I rented "The Quiet Man" with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. A classic from the 50s (and pretty funny too), it was filmed in the very part of Ireland we were touring today, the village of Cong. Unfortunately our stops in the beautiful filming locations were ridiculously short - and sometimes it was just a drive by look. Maybe we will rent a car after all when we come back someday.
Along with seeing Connemara National Park, at least we were able to spend some time at the picturesque Kylemore Abbey.
The Ross Errilly Friary was built in 1351 and is still amazingly intact. You can see fireplaces and stairway passages, even where the ceilings were placed for the different levels. Very neat.
Centuries old hand laid stone walls were everywhere. It's interesting that if you want the same kind of stone wall built now on your property, it's very expensive.
Mountain sheep dotted the mountain side as far as we could see. It was amazing how high up they could get and easy to see their white fleece against the green.
Ruins of a traditional Irish home. The larger room was the kitchen and living room. The smaller room was the bedroom - for all 10 or so people in the family. Out of respect and mostly superstition, people today build around these old homes, instead of rebuilding or restoring them.
Peat is still cut and used as fuel in some places in Ireland today.
The beautiful Kylemore Abbey and gardens.
We made it back to Galway in time to catch a bus back to Dublin where we checked into the Globetrotter Hostel, which is located in a 200 year old building in the city center. It was late evening, but the city was still going strong. We walked to the Temple Bar area for some music and dinner. The nightlife in Dublin is not really our thing. Too much smoke. But it is quaint and although we were always careful, especially with our money, we felt safe everywhere in Ireland.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Although we were hoping to stay one more day in Ireland to visit Cork and the Blarney Castle, alas, flight availability did not allow this. Guess we'll have to come back! So, we rose before the sun came up and packed up. Our hostel was awesome enough to serve most of their full Irish breakfast to us half an hour earlier than they typically do. Then we were at the bus stop and on our way.
Airport check in was smooth sailing so we had some time to do some last minute shopping and actually found some pretty great souvenir items and deals. When does that ever happen in an airport? Though we were sad to leave a day early, the bonus was that we were able to fly Business class again back to the States. Sweet! We made every one of our connections (barely! We got the last 2 seats from JFK-Atlanta) and arrived home in the late evening. Tyson was so excited to see Tyler he woke him up. Okay, not on purpose, but he did admit he wasn't sorry about it.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Hmmm, apparently Tyler did just fine without us. He missed us, but had his Grandma and our tape of lullabye songs to keep him company. In fact, when my Mom did leave a few days later, Tyler said, "I miss Grandma." Alright, then, where should we go next, Honey?
