Eire

We are back. For those of you who didn't know, Meghan and I (as well as my other cousin Mandy) spent a week in Ireland for our half-term break. Sadly, that half-term break is already over, which is why I am at home writing this blog.

I already knew that I really, really liked Ireland before leaving, and this trip kind of soldified this opinion. It is a beautiful country, with beautiful people and an fascinating (albeit tragic) history. I am always sad to leave.
I guess I could go into a detailed description of everything we did and everything we saw, but I'm sure nobody (including me) wants me to do that. So I will try to summarize some of the highlights in yet another list.

Here goes...

Carley's List of (Hopefully) Interesting Things That Were Seen/Experienced In Ireland:

- Sleeping In An Airport Overnight. Technically this did not occur in Ireland, since we were at Heathrow, but it was part of the Ireland trip as a whole. I have never tried to sleep in an airport before; I can't say that I'd look forward to doing that again.

- The Aftermath of "The Troubles". We spent a couple of days in Northern Ireland, and it is easy to see remnants of the past tension (and some present tension, unfortunately) in cities like Belfast and Derry. It is clear that there is still alot to be done before both sides can live in complete harmony, but it seems as though the majority of the Irish people are optimistic and trying to make it work.

- Beautiful Scenery. I mentioned this already, but Ireland is a beautiful country. I particularly liked the Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland, the West Coast and the Connemara, and the Cliffs of Moher. I won't try to describe these places in words - I'll post some pictures instead.

- Butler's Chocolate Cafe. This should not be surprising, given my chocolate addiction. They have really good mochas and brownies, and they give you a free truffle to go with your order! What's not to like?

- Participating in a Guided Tour. The majority of our time in Ireland was spent as part of a tour group of about 13 people. I haven't done a tour for longer than a day before, so this was an interesting experience for me. As someone who is fairly independent, likes to have control over my itinerary, and likes to stay in locations for more than one day, this was not really the ideal way for me to travel. It did take a lot of stress out of planning and we did see more than we likely would have on my own, so it wasn't really that bad. Just not quite what I'm used to, that's all.

- Seeing Shane Butler live in Temple Bar. I actually had no clue who Shane Butler was, but we were fortunate enough to see him play in Dublin. He did a lot of great covers, and I thoroughly enjoyed his performance. You may want to check him out - he's pretty good.

- Tim Horton's. I'm not really sure why there is a Tim Horton's in Ireland, but there definitely is one. We saw it at a rest stop in the West somewhere. I guess it IS important that the Irish people have the opportunity to "Experience a Canadian Legacy", as the signs there so eloquently put it.

Carley's List of Things She (unfortunately) Did Not See In Ireland:

- Fairies, leprechauns or pots of gold

- Four-Leafed Clovers

- A Pint of Guinness that looked appetizing to me

- Bono

And that pretty much sums up my trip.

Actually, I'm sure there's heaps more that I've forgotten to mention, but I'm currently drawing a bit of a blank. I'll add more (and I'll post pictures) if I think of anything.