On the 13th of March, my BUNAC work visa expired, which meant that I had to leave the UK. My six months of work eligibility ended and they were kicking me out of their country as a resident, so I gathered a few friends--Nate, Ami, and Steve--and we flew to Ireland for a road trip. The four of us flew from London Stansted airport to the Shannon, Ireland airport near Limerick (only 13 GBP=$26 USD for a one way flight!).
Welcome to Ireland!We took a cab from the airport to our hostel, the Jamaica Inn, in the small town of Sixmilebridge just outside of Shannon and spent one night there.
Sixmilebridge, the small town near Shannon where we stayed for the first night before picking up the car for our roadtrip. The next morning, we took a cab from our hostel back to the Shannon airport to pick up our rental car. As soon as we took care of all of the paperwork and got the keys, we found our car and were on our way!
Nate, Ami, Steve, Heidi
Starting off on our road trip!
St. Patrick's day cake in a bakery window in Galway
Home of the Claddagh Ring in Galway
Driving along the Irish coast on our way from Galway to the Cliffs of Moher
The Cliffs of Moher
Turner's Lounge Bar in Tralee where we ate dinner on our way to Dingle BayWhen we arrived in Dingle that evening after Galway, the Cliffs of Moher, and lots of driving. We had discussed sleeping in the car that evening to save on money for accomodation, but also for the experience, so we drove around Dingle a bit checking it out and settled on staying in the car for the night in a parking lot in front of the water of Dingle Bay. It was not a very restful night; nonetheless, it was a fun experience. I really didn't sleep much and when daylight arrived just before 7 am, I suggested we start on the road again. We took a scenic drive from there before heading out of Dingle and onto Killarney.
Scenery on an early morning venture on Slea Head Drive near Dingle
The sign for Dingle coming from Slea Head Drive, view of Dingle Bay
Beautiful scenery and view of Dingle Bay on our drive from Dingle to Killarney
Main Street in Killarney where we ate breakfast at Humble Pie RestaurantKillarney was a lovely small town with a national park nearby; however, with the rain, we decided to pass on exploring it more and move on towards Cork and Blarney Castle.
Traffic jam due to a fundraising walk we came up to as we inched through the small town of MacroomBefore too long, we arrived at Blarney Castle, a lovely Irish experience.
Beautiful daffodils on the Castle grounds
I kissed the Blarney Stone!
One of the many humorous signs at the Blarney Castle
Blarney CastleFrom Blarney Castle, we drove through Cork and decided not to stop, as it was raining and we were determined to have some time in Kilkenny, so on we went.
As we had heard, Kilkenny was a neat little city. It had a lot of charm, pubs, shops, and lots of young people. We stayed at Daly's B & B on the main street, which had free parking and decent prices for the four of us to stay in one room. It was comfortable and conveniently located. Most everything was within walking distance, too. That evening, we went to a pub for dinner, had a drink and relaxed. It was wonderful to have a comfortable bed to sleep in after our long night sleeping in the car in Dingle.
Castle in Kilkenny just down the street from our B & B
The final stretch: On the road from Kilkenny to DublinWe spent a lot of time on the road and saw a whole lot of Ireland. It was raining for a lot of the time, as is expected in Ireland in March, but it was beautiful and fun to see so much of a country from which my ancestors migrated. It was also fun to drive on the left side of the road.
And then it was onward to Dublin to celebrate St. Patrick's Day!
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