Coming to this after Milan and Rome
Our trip to Ireland was great. I was surprised how small an dintimate the cities were. I found Dublin incredibly modern and the west coast the opposite. We explores a lot. Some details….
Thursday
We flew to Dublin and then rented a car. Learning how to drive on the left side was a challenge. It was harder than I had thought it would be but had no problems.
We checked into a swanky and hip hotel called The Dean. Interestingly it was our 2nd hotel that had a record player and records for us to play in the room.
After checking in, we got some drinks on the rooftop and then had dinner up there too and then went to bed early.
Friday
This was our day to explore Dublin. We hit all the spots and ate some great food. We hit Temple Bar district, Dublin Castle, Trinity College, and (of course) The National leprechaun museum.
Dinner in Temple Bar district at Old Storehouse. Gave the chef a toy – Chef Paddington.
Saturday
We hit the road and drove from Dublin to Glassan Lakehouse and met Jen for lunch. The Lakehouse was super cool We swam at the Lakehouse.
Then we drove on to the west coast village of Galway. That town was really cool. It is small but has a ton of energy. It was like Bourbon Street in New Orleans but except it being fulled of tourist it was filled with locals of all ages. It was just their lifestyle.
After walking the town for a bit, Diane and I had oysters and some drinks in our hotel (The Hardiman) which was super fun. The drinks were delicious but we were tired and wanted to crash. As much as we wanted to experience the town we just couldn’t handle it
Sunday
Checked out and drove to the Cliffs of Moher. Stopping first at a small diner on the outskirts of Galway called The Neighborhood which was really great.
On the way to the cliffs we passed so many small and quaint villages. The road down the entire coast was a 2-lane road that tested our driving skills and also gave a front row seat to these small towns and B & Bs. Super old school and cute.
The Cliffs of Moher were really impressive but I found that my hometown view of the Marin pacific coast has spoiled me a bit.
After cliffs we headed to Dromoland Castle which was way nicer than we expected. The gardens were awesome (no Skylands, but still beautiful). The castle itself is now a hotel and we had fun tooling around.
We stopped at the town Limrick for dinner at a great seafood spot called Cornerstone and filled up on calories. The town was cute and much bigger than I had thought. It felt like an Irish version of Denver.
We then drove 2 hours back to Dublin to crash for the night. We stayed the final night at Clontarf Castle which was super fun. Diane, Sash, and I had fun at the bar rehashing the trip. Sasha had lots of questions about all the things she needs to learn before she goes to college. We wondered which city we had just visited (Rome, Milan, Dublin, Galway) we would choose to live in for a year if we had to choose one
Finally, we’re on our way home:
