We have been back from our honey moon for two months now and I am FINALLY getting around to sorting through my photos and writing a blog. When you are photographer it always seems like doing something with your own photos is always last on the list of things to do. I am actually pretty impressed that it is not already a year later!Our trip to Ireland was nothing less than amazing. The scenery, the history, the people, the food and of course the beer. I took about 1800 photos over the period of two weeks and had a heck of a time filtering down what to share in my blog. I tried to keep it to the highlights, but I am sure I have still shared too many.
Our first day in Dublin was pretty exhausting having travelled all night, but we still tried to make the best of it.One of my favourite things we did in this unique city was the Teeling Whiskey Distillery. It wasn't on my list of things to do but we had some extra time and I am so glad that we did. It is actually a fully operational distillery, where as most of the other distilleries and breweries are just museums. I still can't bring myself to like whiskey, so I was happy to sample a whiskey cocktail which wasn't nearly as pungent as a glass of whisky! One of my other favourite things about Dublin (and Ireland overall) was breakfast, toasties and bacon.... so much bacon, need I say more?
Next we were off to Northern Ireland. We took the scenic route, which not only included some awesome sights, but also some incredible fish and chips and a ferry ride. One of the coolest sights we saw were the Dark Hedges, we are not Game of Thrones watchers, but for those who are they might recognize this incredible path of trees.
I have to admit Northern Ireland was home to many of my favourite times on the trip. Belfast and Derry are cities that are full of history, and I am talking history from my lifetime not from thousands of years ago, and are seeing a phase of renewal that is exciting. Our visit to Carrick-a-rede Rope Bridge was an exercise in facing my fears and the views were well worth it!
Next up was Galway. Through our travels thus far everyone we talked to raved about Galway, but it was honestly not one of our favourite stops. It was still worth the visit with some cool sights to see, including the adjacent Salthills Promenade, and some pretty awesome places to eat. It is a University town, so maybe we were too old for the activities that everyone was raving about!
Our next stop was the famous Cliffs of Moher. The night before we drove out to the cliffs I was having some crazy dreams about driving our tiny car right over the edge, luckily in reality you can't really park anywhere near the edge... crisis averted!
Pictures don't really do this area justice. It is hard to see in photos how sudden and immense these drop offs are. It really makes you feel tiny as a human.
For me, Killarney was my favourite stop in the Republic of Ireland. The natural beauty in this area was beyond my vocabulary.
We did the Ring of Kerry, where each stop was unique and almost more beautiful than the last. There were beaches, cliffs, rolling hills, unique small towns, hand made chocolate factories, what more could one ask for?! Our second day in the area we explored Killarney National Park and the Gap of Dunloe. This experience is not one I will soon forget, the sights were so amazing again pictures don't really do it justice.
One of my favourite things about the area was the amount of sheep in the area. At first I would get excited and point and say "Sheep!" but eventually there were so many everywhere I couldn't keep up! If you are ever planning a trip to Ireland, Killarney MUST be on your list of places to visit.
We then ventured to the Southern coast of Ireland; Cork, Kinsale, Cobh, Waterford, and again this area did not disappoint. We visited the Blarney Castle and kissed the stone, ate amazing mussels in the seaside town of Kinsale, visited the Jameson Distillery, experienced the most rain we did the entire trip, went to an Irish Football Game championship, and visited the Waterford Crystal factory.
In Cork and Waterford we stayed in some adorable Bed and Breakfasts, one even had horses, pigs and other animals.
On to the final leg of our trip we stopped in Kilkenny and then headed back to Dublin to catch our flight. In Kilkenny we visited the Kilkenny castle and grounds, which included lawns as far as the eye could see! We went to the Smithwicks Brewery and enjoyed a few flights.
Our last night in Ireland we spent in Portmarnock near the Dublin airport, which was right on the coast and was a nice way to end our action packed trip.
This trip was more amazing than I could have even imagined. It was the first time my husband Joel and I had taken a real trip together (beyond visiting family in Ontario and going to weddings!) and it was an experience I will never forget.
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