{Ireland} Galway

It's been a while since I last posted about my trip to Europe. I still have my Ireland and Scotland blog posts in draft mode because they're waiting for me to add pictures to them. I really need to get rolling on this, so hopefully I'll get the rest of these up in the very near future.

When I started thinking about going to Ireland the top things that I wanted to see were countryside and castles. I wanted to see nature and natural beauty and lush greenness. I knew that getting over to the west coast to see the Cliffs of Moher was a must-do.

Since seeing the Irish countryside wouldn't be possible without some mode of transportation, I decided that a tour bus was the best route. Renting a car for one person wasn't cost effective, plus navigating random country roads by myself did not appeal to me at all. I was a bit leery of the tour bus route since it seemed so touristy and lacking in flexibility, however this specific tour ended up being one of my favorite parts of the entire trip.

I booked a two day tour package through the Galway Tour Company. For a few extra bucks they'll pick you up in Dublin instead of Galway, so that made my life even simpler. It's about a two hour bus ride from Dublin to Galway and I spent the time peacefully napping on the comfy tour bus. I also quickly found out that taking a tour bus is ideal when you're traveling alone. I met two girls who were traveling together and eventually met up with them in another city in Ireland later in my trip. I met a group of six girls who were traveling Europe together for multiple weeks and hung out with them quite a bit. I also met a girl who was staying in Dublin for a month and she and I hung out at the Cliffs of Moher and took pictures for each other. So, not only was the tour company itself wonderful, but it was a great way to connect with other travelers.

Also, after doing all of my own planning for every little detail of the trip, it was really nice to sit back and let the tour company do all the work. I just had to get off at the right times, and the rest of the time I got to sit back and watch the Irish countryside go by while listening to fantastic bus drivers who were immensely entertaining.

I got to see a lot of cool things during the two tour days, way more than I could hope to cover in a blog post. I'll try to cover some of the highlights though.

The most important thing is that I discovered my favorite place on earth during the first day of the tour. It had been overcast all morning, but when we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher in the afternoon we got a glorious dose of sunshine. I only got to spend two hours there, but it was hands down my favorite two hours of my entire trip. I am in love with that place. The natural beauty is stunning and none of my pictures can truly do it justice, but here are some pictures anyway.

 

See those tiny little people in this picture? (click on the pictures to see them larger) That gives perspective to how big these cliffs really are.

Included with the bus tour was a 1.5 hour walking tour of Galway itself. Like both of the bus drivers I had, the guide was awesome and I loved every minute of it. I also loved every part of Galway that I go to see (although I'm sure I saw mainly the touristy part).

I went to a pub that was recommended by one of my co-workers (my company has an office in Galway) and ended up being there on a night with a fantastic band and some great Irish dancers. I absolutely loved the music.

The Burren - amazingly unique landscape.

Cong - An adorable and very tiny town that's completely surrounded by rivers.

Kylemore Abbey - this is a pretty classic Irish tourist destination and it's absolutely stunning.

 

 

Ross Errilly Friary - this ended up being our last quick stop right at the end of the second tour day and I took some of my favorite pictures here.

 

Amusingly enough, the hostel that was included as part of my two day tour ended up being my favorite hostel in Ireland. I spent hours upon hours researching all the hostels for my trip, and the one hostel that I didn't actually pick myself ends up being one of my favorites. Funny how things like that work out.

Next stop - Dublin!

What I'm Loving - September 2013

I'm loving that August marked three years at my company. Last year was my first time hitting the two year mark at any job, and while I switched positions during my third year, this is still my first time hitting the three year mark somewhere. Only two more years until I get an extra week of vacation days! ;)

I'm loving that it's the senior year for my class of highschool students! They're pretty hyped up about it and I'm excited to see what God does in their lives both this year and in the future.

I'm loving the thunderstorms and overcast weather that we got to enjoy for a few days here in Phoenix. On Sunday I got to sleep in a tiny bit and then did my devotions sitting in front of a big window while the rain slowly drizzled down outside. Perfection.

I'm loving where my church (Scottsdale Bible) is going with their vision for their young adults ministry. There are lots of cool things ahead, and I'm excited to see how things unfold.

I'm loving Adioso. Hipmunk and SkyScanner have been my go-to flight search engines when I'm not flying Southwest, but I recently discovered Adioso and I love it. It's probably more useful for flexible dates and exploring options, but I also like the features it has for price monitor alerts.
It's a lot of fun to just type stuff in and see what it comes up with. I type in "Phoenix to anywhere on November 20th for 5 days" and it gives me a list of different places I can go to with the prices. It's fun to play with.

I'm still loving the 99 cent medium iced coffees at Dunkin Donuts. It's become a part of my daily routine and I'm not looking forward to that deal ending this month.