Slainte!

"If you feel us speed up, it just means that we've missed the runway and we'll have to circle around for a second shot." This is what we were told by the captain on our Ryan air flight, as our plane was landing in thick fog at Cork City Airport on Thursday afternoon.

Shortly after the success of the pilot, we had our own challenge to face as we left the airport for our B+B in central Cork. With Mike behind the wheel, driving standard on the opposite side of the road, in rush hour traffic and rain, we once again managed to arrive safely. We left the B+B that night at the precise moment when the skies opened up and the wind blew a gale. Desperately trying to escape the rain and tame our wild umbrellas, we scurried to shelter. My belly laughing refused to cease until hours later when we were cold and wet, but even then, we found ourselves drying our clothes under the bathroom hand dryers. After dinner, drinks and several different bands, we eventually made our way back to the B+B. Between the honesty of the pilot, the down pouring rain, and the excitement of being in Ireland, together they brewed up a hilarious start to what proved to be an amazing vacation.

We left Cork early Friday morning and headed north to Blarney- but not before eating a huge B+B breakfast. We found our way to Blarney quite easily and by this time the rain had let up. As we bought our tickets to the Castle, we were instructed that the normal route up the hill had been diverted due to flooding. As we made our way up the detour, the comedy of the rapid running streams and the submerged bridges was revealed. However, due to the rainy weather and our off season timing, we were fortunate to tour through an empty Blarney Castle, passing only one other tourist along the way. Of course, we didn't leave Blarney until our mission was complete and we both successfully kissed the Blarney Stone. With a big Irish man holding our arms, one a time, Mike and I leaned upside down off the castle edge to embrace the "Gift of Gab." A enchanted legend that Mike was certain I didn't need...

After Blarney, we drove North towards Limerick, stopping in a tiny rural town off the beaten path called Quin. A town composed of a pub and monastary ruin, Mike enjoyed the quintessential Irish lunch with a Lamb Stew and a pint of Guinness (I too, had the Guinness). We continued north through Limerick and ended our day of traveling in Galway. Finding a vacant room in a B+B close to the city center, we parked our car, left our bags and ventured through the streets of Galway. Galway was great. It had the lively, small city feeling that Mike and I had been hoping for. We listened to music, talked with strangers, and luckily had much better weather than the night before!!

The next morning, we drove West through Connemara along the coast through small fishing villages. The scenery was incredible as we passed miles and miles of green grass and stone walls. After our scenic morning route, and slight fear of running out of petrol, we headed East across the country to Dublin.

Arriving around four, we said good bye to our Blue Nissan compact and went in search of our final accommodation. We spent two nights in Dublin, listening to Trad music and experiencing the Irish culture. We met up with my friend from high school one night and took full advantage of the Temple Bar area and the Traditional Music Fest that was taking place throughout Dublin. During our days we visited the Guinness Brewery and drank Guinness straight from the source, we also checked out Christ Church Cathedral, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin Jail, Trinity College and simply wandeded the streets of Dublin.

It started snowing in Dublin on Sunday night into Monday morning - this was just the beginning of the out of the ordinary wintry weather which was hitting the UK. The biggest storm in 18 years and Mike and I were scheduled to fly. Although our flight was severely delayed, and we spent close to six hours aboard the aircraft on the runway, watching sweepers attempting to plow, we eventually made it home.

The trip went by quick, but we had an absolutely amazing time!! We saw a lot and laughed a lot and our vacation proved to be everything we hoped it would be! Even the 13 hour journey home couldn't put a damper on it. We now look forward to planning our next trip and scouting out our future adventures. Thanks for following our stories and we'll be in touch soon. Slainte!!