ARRIVAL IN IRELAND

HEY GUYS.

Sorry I haven't updated my blog! The bed and breakfast I stayed in for the first two nights only had wifi in a tiny sitting area with no outlet for my laptop, so it was pretty impossible to do anything. I also only found two coffee shops with free wifi in my whole two days of Dublining.

ANYWAY, well I suppose you can guess that I made it to Ireland without dying on the plane. I didn't even have a panic attack, which is GREAT. The flight from BHM to ATL was very bumpy and jerky and stressful. But the flight to Dublin was quite smooth. It was actually a pretty boring flight. I couldn't sleep either, so I just leaned against the aisle and just watched movies for 7 hours. But I got to Dublin at like 7:00 in the morning, and took a taxi to my B&B and woke the owner up. Oops. But apparently she slept in by accident anyway, so it's all good. Yay. She fed me breakfast, even though I hadn't slept there the night before, which was very nice. The place was very cute:

 

Places I went on the first day in Dublin:

• Trinity College. I didn't see the Book of Kells. I just sat in the courtyard and ate a sandwich and watched students and tourists scurry around.
•  Christ Church Cathedral. It was a lovely building, but I didn't go in here either. I read that the gift shop is bigger than the cathedral. Pity.
• Dublin Castle. I just walked around the castle grounds for a few minutes. 
• Coach House / Dubhlinn Gardens. This place I stumbled across by accident, but it was my favorite area probably that I saw all day--maybe even both days I was in Dublin. It's crazy how quiet it got almost instantly as I walked into this area. No car noises, very few tourists. This was the only place I felt comfortable taking my camera out and taking pictures. Especially pictures of myself. I wonder if this fabulous place was even in my guide book:

 

As you can tell, I don't like to pay money to see things that I can generally see for free (churches, old buildings, libraries). Especially if I have to be surrounded by tourists and cheesy Irish-themed knick knacks. Poor Dublin has tourist shops at least two per block. I did really like the sheep salt and pepper shakers, though... Anyway, I got lost a ridiculous amount of times this first day in Dublin. It was tiring. I finally found a coffee shop that had wifi, so I decided to stay there until dinnertime. Two nice Irish guys and a Brazilian guy(lol?) talked to me until the place closed at 6 (apparently coffee shops rarely stay open past 6 or 7 in Ireland?). Then, I went to the Irish House Party, which was pretty much a three-course meal with a live Irish music show afterwards. I met a mom and daughter (26 year old) from Canada who had just arrived that morning as well. They were very nice, and offered to let me stay with them if I ever wanted to go to Winnipeg, Canada. They even said stuff like, "Ya know?' It was great. 

Also, it was cold. A lot colder than I anticipated. But at least I like the cold.

<3 Christine