Last night was only six hours long, and very little of that time was spend sleeping, because my family and I were on an overnight flight to Ireland. When we arrived at 6:30am, we were all officially on a new continent for the first time.
The plan in Ireland is to drive to a lot of sights and end in Dublin. Unfortunately, this involves Dad driving a van on the left side of the tiny roads, and me in the passenger’s seat navigating and saying, “Left. Left. Left.” It can be quite scary at times.
We arrived at our first semi-large town, Gort, at 7:45am. Nothing looked open except for the Gallery Cafe, where one man sat on the patio. So, we parked and headed over. Once we arrived, we realized that they were probably closed, because the man appeared to be sleeping with his head in his hands. Nevertheless, Dad asked if the restaurant was open, and the man looked up and explained that nothing would open until 11:30… People are tired; he, for example, had just gotten back from an all-night party.
When he guessed that we’d been traveling all night, however, he decided to offer us some tea and toast anyway. So, though we all felt as if we’d be imposing, we followed him inside and thankfully ate his toast, ham, and fresh jam, and drank his tea. Everything was delicious, and we decided that being served tea by a hungover-but-friendly Irishman was the perfect start to our vacation.
Since we finished breakfast at about 8:45, we decided to attend the 9:00 mass at the church across the street. Mom remarked that we’d seen the partiers, and now we could see the churchgoers. I told her that in Ireland they’re not necellarily different (as evidenced by the slight smell of whiskey by the altar during communion).
After Church, we headed up to Galway, our original destination. Galway is a cute little Irish town, and we stopped in a 1950′s-themed diner for reubens and hamburgers for lunch. Next, we drove south to Doolin, where we had reservations at a bed and breakfast. Nearby, we toured the Cliffs of Mohr, a famous set of cliffs and small castle on the western edge of Ireland.
For dinner, we tried Irish pub fare; I went with some of the best fish and chips I’ve ever had and a Guiness to drink. Finally, I drank some hard cider and listened to live music with Laura and Dad before going to bed.
