Three doors down from the hostel, we were sternly reprimanded by three great dogs. They were very clear that we had no business walking in front of their house and told us so from a safe distance while wagging their tails in circles like doofuses. (OhmygoshIlovethem!)
One of them was much braver than the others, and came right up to the edge of the stone wall. She was super wiggly and, while I'm sure she knew it was not in her job description, she allowed/begged us to scritch her. Her companions continued to bark a bit before following suit, allowing their own ears to be scritched. Silly dogs.
Also, they stank to high heaven. That's how we knew they were legit working dogs.
"Okay, I'll allow a wee scritch...if you insist."
We walked a short distance to this lovely church. There was no information offered on-site, so I don't know a thing about it other than the fact that it is old and quite picturesque.
Evan is silly and perhaps a wee bit blasphemous.
I'm sure it was lovely.
Some local sheep...
this pretty landscape...
this old building...
...and these goofballs.
After our walk it was time to leave. We traveled west-ish to the radio station, but they weren't quite ready for us. Our tour coordinators are excellent at implementing Plan B, so Connor drove us to a place where we could get out and frolic in the ocean breeze a bit. Russ made us all promise that we wouldn't track sand back onto the bus. We really tried to honor that promise.
Sandcasts made by the locals
I will caption this one, "This is not going to play well at Corporate."
When we returned to the radio station, they were ready for us. The choir crammed themselves into what would be, under normal circumstances, a rather spacious studio. In short time, they got their work done and we were ready to begin the long drive to Dublin.
We were just about to pull out of the parking lot when I realized that I did not know the location of my phone. (You might recall that my reports from Israel ended abruptly when I left my phone behind.) I was a touch frantic. (TOO SOON!!!!) I ran back inside the station, but couldn't find it there, so I was fairly certain that it was on the bus. I told Russ not to delay our departure because of this, and we began our journey.
I found my phone just moments later. It was safely waiting for me in a pocket of my backpack where it had no business being.
Always put things back where they belong - ESPECIALLY when traveling. (I know this. It's one of my rules. I really wish I would never break it.)
The drive to Dublin was about four hours. I know it was late in the tour because I took no photos.
It was after 5 PM when we arrived at our hotel, which was right next to the Dublin airport. Thelate hour meant that there was no time for touring, so I never did get to the Guinness Storehouse to have a pint at the source, and I didn't get to the Jameson distillery. We did go to the Temple Bar District, and that's not for nothin'.
Evan and I joined Maddie and Owen. We spent some time in a kitschy/not so kitschy souvenir shop. We found a nice sweater for Evan and a hat for John (which Benja would appropriate as soon as I got home). (John has lost so much weight in the past year and a half that his hat size has changed significantly!)
We took some time to duck into the Temple Bar for a pint and to listen to some live music for a bit. I may or may not have impressed the pants off of my boy when I knew all of the lyrics to Cockles and Mussels. (Thanks, Mr. Herzog. Elementary school music classes were not wasted on me!)
The four of us enjoyed some dinner at small (and QUIET) restaurant. We did a shared small plates thing with some out-of-this-world breaded garlic mushrooms, smoked salmon, salad, spicy chicken wings, and garlic bread. It seems a little haphazard as I recount it; at the time, it was perfect.
It was now 9:30 (my bedtime!) and Connor wasn't returning until 11:30. I said good-bye to Evan and his friends and UberIreland-ed my way back to the hotel to pack/re-pack and sleep.
"Make good choices, Evan."
"I will, Mom."
Fun story: When I got to my room, the heat was CRANKED and the thermostat read 25C. It was the opposite of my hotel in the north. I had lost both pairs of reading glasses by this time, so I couldn't figure out how to turn on the cool air. Frustrated and sweaty, I finally opened the window. Not until 5:30 AM did it become cool enough to close it.
Also, airplanes are loud. I know this because we were right next to the airport, and my window was open all night long.
There's really not much else to tell about the trip. The next morning, we grabbed our final Irish breakfast in the airport. Evan got both of us a pint (because Ireland), and the server brought a third to our table, "just in case." (I love this country.)
Our flight home was a "wee bit lumpy," especially ascending and descending. More than a few airsickness bags were put to use between Halifax, Nova Scotia and Newark. Thankfully, mine was not among them.
Our American coach driver agreed to drop me off in Harrisburg, saving someone in my family six hours of driving. John was waiting for me at the Cracker Barrel in Harrisburg. I kissed my boy good-bye, and I kissed my husband hello, and, just like that, my Ireland Adventure was over.
When I walked into the house, Hilde was waiting on the porch, demanding to know where I had been. Norbert, somewhat slower on the uptake, wandered casually toward the back door to see what was up. It was dark, and when I reached down to scritch him, I felt the exact moment he realized, "HEY!!!! IT'S YOUUUUUUUU!!!!! OHMYGOSH!!! IT'S YOUUUUUU!!!! YOU"RE HOME!!!!"
And, that, too, was completely lovely.
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