Inishmor- Galway

The three of us began our day by stopping by the Spar to get some breakfast which consisted of some less than delicious sausage rolls and also got some digestives to have as a snack later on in the day. We then rented some bikes and were off to explore the island of Inishmor.

We began riding around the island when before we knew it we were trapped in a stampede. It was a blur but I'll try to describe it as best I can. We were riding our bikes up a road (we barely saw anyone on the island and were the only ones on the road) when I saw three cows running around the bend next to a ruin. I naturally screamed "stampede!" Following closely behind the cows was a car carrying an angry farmer. The cows stopped but as soon as they saw the farmer jump out of the car they began running again. I think that it is safe to say that it was a near death experience.

Irish Style Stampede

Our first stop was the Dun Aengus, an iron age fort, which was described in my first Aran Islands post from March (when I first went with Carolyn and Kristina). It was a less than ideal day to look at the cliffs due to the fog (typical Ireland) but we still had fun sitting up there, eating digestives, and of course, having a photo shoot.

After taking our photo shoot and digestive snack at Dun Aengus and seeing the Seven Churches we went in search of lunch and since Supermacs is my favorite and I was leaving Ireland ion a couple of days we seized the opportunity and stopped in the Supermacs on Inishmor (one of only a couple restaurants there). We got a tenders meal (as per usual) and it just so happened that the Ellen Degeneres Show was on the TV in Supermacs. It might be due to the lack of TV over the semester or perhaps due to the fact that the guest was Lea Michele of Glee fame but Laura and Grace wanted to stay and watch so we did. It was nice relaxing after a rough bike ride and we got back in touch with our American side. And stay in touch with our Irish side as we ordered another order of tenders (they are pretty much amazing).

Laura & Claire- International BFFs

After lunch we returned our bikes and went back to the hostel to get all our belongings. And catch the ferry back to the mainland. The ferry ride was pretty nondescript and after about two hours of transit we arrived back in Galway, where we were staying at the Amber Lodge Bed and Breakfast. I really wanted Grace to experience a true Irish B&B while she was in Ireland so we splurged and got one. After spending a lot of time in hostels (including sharing a room with three very drunk men the last night you cannot imagine the joy of having the room to ourselves (and even having a bathtub).

After checking into the B&B and verifying that it had free Wifi we headed out to a pub for dinner. It was a typical Irish pub and had patches on the wall from US police departments, including one from Cook County and another from Naperville. It was like being back in the land of Lincoln.

While in the restaurant we realized Glee was on (we had heard an advertisement for it on the ferry) and I kindly asked the waiter if he could put on Fox. He responded, “I don’t think boxing is in season,” but then I repeated myself and he set to work trying to find Fox on the TV. I saw it come up on the guide and went up to the bar to tell the bartender. I said, “Is there any way you could put on Glee,” and he said, without hesitation, “No way in hell.” And that was that; no Glee for me.

Typical rundown of the food: I had Irish stew (had to get it in while I had the chance) and Gracie had bangers and mash, which included black pudding, so I think she is the fiercest eater I know.

After dinner the three of us started a mission to find Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food ice cream, which I got Laura addicted to. As our last night together we wanted to get some ice cream and watch “The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” just like back in good ol’ Roebuck 1. Our mission took us all the way out of the city centre of Galway and into the less quaint part, which had the Tesco and the ice cream. We bought some, along with a People magazine, and then set off back to the Amber Lodge B&B. We were all pretty tired and Laura offered to pay for a taxi back to the B&B so, after having some trouble hailing a taxi we were on our way back to the Amber Lodge.

Once we got back we took turns attempting to take baths (the faucet wasn't working well) and Laura was especially excited about it because she has not had a bath in three years! Three years! There is a draught in Australia and you can't take baths; I don't know how she has lasted that long. Anyway, it was nice to have a room to ourselves, instead of being in a hostel and after washing up and checking our emails we watched "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" while eating Phish Food ice cream. It was pretty perfect.

Galway-Aran Islands

On May 18 we woke up at 8:20 and caught the 9:25 bus out of Cork to Galway. We have truly become travel warriors. Here's an example. Grace and Laura wanted bagels (they are food twins) from the bagel place that opens at 9 in Cork, so we went to the bus station, everyone dropped their stuff, I watched it while they ran there to be the first in line as it opened, got the bagels, and made it back to the station before the bus left. It might not have been completely necessary but we still tackled it successfully.

Grace eating her bagel with Nutella on the bus

After a four hour and twenty minute bus ride we arrived in Galway. First order of business was buying ferry tickets so that we could reach the Aran Islands that night. Check. Second order of business was finding a post office to mail Laura's stuff at. Check. Third order of business was shopping.

Galway is pretty much the jewelry capital of Ireland and all three of us love jewelry so it was bound to be a fun and expensive day. Grace and I got matching trinity rings and Grace also got claddagh earrings that had the trinity. Laura got a little treble clef pendent too which was so cute. We also got many gifts for people and had a great time shopping.

Matching Trinity Rings

And then it was time to go to the ferry. We hopped on a bus that took us to the pier about an hour away and then slipped into the ocean to go over to the Aran Island of Inishmor. When we got off the ferry at Inishmor it was raining which was a bummer but we put up our hoods and found our hostel, called the Artist's Hostel (also the only hostel I could find on the island). However, when we got there we were told that the three of us would not be able to stay in the same room like planned because the owner's nephew had stopped by the hostel and he needed a place to stay with his two friends. No, she did not split up his group of three, just ours.

The bar Ti Joe Watty's was just a three minute walk from our hostel so we headed there for dinner and craic. Laura and I both got the vegetable soup with brown bread (typical Irish fare) and Grace had the chef's special pasta. Grace and Laura also split dessert, which became a theme throughout our travels.

We wanted to wait for the live music which we hoped would be traditional, but instead we got "music and comedy" from this very small man who had a Napoleon complex and kept telling the patrons to be quiet. The best part of his show was easily the "disco accordion." He basically had a beat going and just jammed out with his accordion.

Our roommates (the hostess's nephew and his friends) were also there and a little over-served. But they hadn't been actually over-served, they had brought a water bottle full of vodka and pre-gamed at the hostel. His name was Richard and he was really classy. He did come over to our table and chat with us but he was very drunk.

Disco Accordion!

We eventually went back to the hostel because we were exhausted from the fast-paced schedule I had made. Grace and I shared a bed in one room and Laura was in another room. After a little while Richard came back from the pub and we had a pretty funny conversation with him. Then his one friend came back and sat on our bed and talked to us for a while. We asked them where the third friend was but they said that they didn't know. Eventually Grace said that she heard him come back. Apparently he forgot the hostel he was staying in and ran around the island twice trying to find it. At least they provided us with some entertainment.

Blarney-Cork

The Sisters on the top of Blarney Castle

The next day the four of us woke up after sleeping in a little and headed out into Cork. The first order of business was getting Brittany on a bus back to Dublin so that she could catch her flight back to Chicago the next day. We dropped her off at the bus station and then got on our own bus to Blarney, home of Blarney Castle and the Blarney Stone.

Blarney Castle

The bus ride was about twenty minutes. We got off the bus and to Blarney Castle no problem. It was kind of a cloudy day, but Blarney Castle was amazing as always; I think it is probably my favorite castle in Ireland, even if Rick Steves totally pans it in his guide to Ireland. It is a really pretty castle that feels like a castle (as opposed to feeling like a bunch of rocks stacked on top of each other that the tour guide tells you used to be a castle but just looks like a bunch of rocks stacked on each other). I could spend hours exploring the passageways in it.

When we got there was waited in line to climb the spiral staircases and kiss the Blarney Stone at the top of the castle. While waiting in line we met another Australian who was very happy to hear Laura's dialect and recognize his fellow Australian.

Climbing up

We made it to the top and this time I think I kissed the right stone (I wasn't sure the first time). Not much more to say; I don't kiss and tell.

Laura kissing the Blarney Stone

Sloppy seconds

Grace's turn

After a stop at the gift shop we walked around Blarney Castle grounds and the Rock Close, which were both beautiful. We even saw the poison garden, which is filled with poisonous plants.

Grace and Claire

We stopped at a coffee shop while waiting for the bus and before we knew it we were back in Cork where we shopped 'til we dropped. I got two pairs of shoes at Penney's (including a pair of 2 euro silver glittery flats that I wore in London and threw out because they gave me blisters after 15 minutes of walking). Grace also got a couple things at Penney's, Ireland's own very cheap version of Kohl's. After working up an appetite shopping we stopped at McDonald's for the Irish specialties we can't get in the US, including twisty fries and Crunchie McFlurries.

When we got back to the hostel we asked for a recommendation for dinner from our hostess. She recommended Scott's which we went to that night. It had good food and we had a fun time chatting and spending time with each other.

We went back to the hostel and started resting up for our next day of traveling.

Cashel-Cahir-Cork

View from the Rock of Cashel

The plan was for Laura and I to wake up early and help Brittany bring her stuff down to the cab then say goodbye to Stacy, Stevie, and Britt before their American Airlines flight back to O'Hare International Airport. Things didn't happen that way though. As Laura and I were about to come downstairs to help Brittany came to our door and told us that their flight had been cancelled due to the menacing volcanic ash cloud. So naturally I went back to bed until I had to wake up to head off our our Irish oddessey.

After resting a bit Laura rushed into my room (where I was sleeping on the couch because Grace was sleeping in my bed) telling me that Stevie had found another flight and was leaving right away and we had to say goodbye/find her a cab. We got down there and the cab company was being a pain on the phone so I rushed out into campus to see if I could with some luck flag down a cab.

And I did have some luck because as I ran outside I ran into Stacy who had called a cab and was waiting for it. She too had found another flight and was heading off to the airport so Stevie split the cab with her and they were on their way back to the United States.

I was packing for our trip, as was Laura, when I gchatted Brittany to ask if she wanted to food that she gave me back since she was staying a couple extra days (her new flight was on Tuesday). She said no and asked if I knew what Stevie and Stacy were doing. I told her that they had already gotten on a 10:30 flight back to the US and she was bummed that she would be in Dublin alone so I invited her on our trip, which she accepted, and after saying goodbye to Jenni, our little Canadian friend, we were off.

While on the bus to our first stop, Cashel, I called our hostel and got Brittany a bed in our room which worked out well. And after riding the bus bus for  while we got to Cashel, home of the Rock of Cashel, an old castle turned church turned ruin. It is located on the Plain of Tipperary and the surroundings are absolutely gorgeous. Here are some pictures to prove it.

Me, Brittany, Laura

The Rock

Sisters

While at the Rock we just sat down, enjoyed the view, and ate the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies Grace made (and waited the two hours until the next bus). It was good craic.

Our next stop was Cahir where Cahir Castle was located (creative name I know). Unfortunately, the castle was closed for tours but we got to see the outside which was cute. We also went in search for dinner in the town of Cahir and found a dive restaurant to eat at. And when I say dive, I mean there was an ant crawling on the table and I avoided anything with meat or claiming to be meat. After two hours, another bus came and we were on the final leg of that day to Cork.

Cahir Castle

We got to Cork no problem and made our way to the hostel that we booked. On the way, a friendly Irishman saw that we were tourists and asked where we were from. We responded Chicago and he said, "God bless you, God bless Chicago!" More proof that the Irish are the friendliest people out there.

We made it to the Aaran House Hostel no problem and the hostess was so nice. The property was very clean and Grace asked if all hostels were like this; I told her that this was the nicer end of what hostels offer. There was also a dog at the hostel that was cute and if it misbehaved the lady of the house was not afraid to put it in its place.

We went to bed early that night and rested up for the adventures ahead.