They say there are forty shades of green in Ireland. So far, I have counted about fifty-two. 
I recently met up with one of my longtime best friends Dave for a fun visit / homeland tour (Dave) of Ireland. Kelly and Kelly and Keith Travel Worldwide (haha) were happy to organize a reunion for The Kitty and The Business Man. Dave arrived fresh after an all-expenses paid business trip in London (lucky dog), with his international cell phone and Blackberry at reach. He was kind to compromise with me and my impossible budget (sleeping in a couple hostels and eatıng from grocery stores). I, too, managed to afford some well awaited upgrades (yay prıvate bathrooms and rental car!). Though Dave and İ have headed down two quite different paths over the last year, it was nice to see we still have a lot in common.
We did the world's quickest tour of Ireland: visiting Cork, Killarney, Dingle, Kilkenny and Dublin in just four full days. We were on a mission to see the countryside, listen to traditional Irish music, and taste corned beef and cabbage!
(Tradional İrish home left during the Potato Famine)
We began our trip chatting away over our four hour bus ride from Dublin to Cork. There, we met up with my friend Noel, an ex-KBS Korea camp '05 English Teacher, and had a couple Murphy`s and listened to some open-mic music at the pub. Noel's Irish accent and sense of humor was certainly missed while apart! We also went to Ireland's most famous castle, Blarney Castle, and kissed the Blarney stone. Dave and İ are now blessed with the gift of eloquence for the next seven years (can't you tell?).
Then, we were off to start our ROAD TRIP! Avis car rental took advantage of us young, last-minute / spontaneous travelers, but, in the end, 140 Euro ($180 plus gas) was worth our two days of freedom. I was eager to accept the challenge of being the sole driver on our 400 mile loop. I practiced driving stick, driving on the left side of the road, shudering everytime I passed the cars, cows, and tractors alike on the tiny, tiny roads of Ireland (I have a feeling these roads weren't build for cars). Dave's excellent navigational skills led us around Dingle Peninsula, small country town mainstreets, and medieval castles.
(Dingle Peninsula)
(Dingle Main Street)
It's a long, long way to Tipperary...but we made it there too!
After all of our İrish adventures, we landed back in Dublin to enjoy what İreland is most famous for...Guinness! Slante! 
(Guinness Brewery Tour)
No comments:
Post a Comment