Mo thuras nóiméad deireanach go Baile Átha Cliath

As with Berlin, I wanted to go back to Dublin and the last time I went was for my birthday in 2015 when Jamie and I were still together (or putting on a happy face to avoid questions :p).

Whilst those memories were good, I wanted to make some solo ones too.

You can read about that last trip here.

I decided since Ireland didn’t require any quarantine or testing and we didn’t require any of that coming home (we are part of the Common Travel Area) I thought it was a no brainer and I have wanted to go back to Dublin since 2015.

I booked my flights but this time I didn’t book a seat or priority. I got the fare for about £20 return. The return ticket to the airport on the train was more expensive – for the cheap seats in the back: THIS IS WHY I DON’T DO DOMESTIC TRAVEL.

The only thing that bugged me was that I couldn’t check in until 24 hours before the flight left and my OCD (super organised) self didn’t like that because I couldn’t see the pretty Ryanair blue in my Apple wallet and couldn’t put it in my calendar. Ask my friends and they’ll tell you how OCD (super organised) I am and how much it probably bugs them. Haha.

I didn’t plan leaving for this trip very well because I finished work at 05:30 and the train was at 10:15. I managed about 3 hours sleep. You know what though: I wouldn’t do it any other way and I suspect my friends wouldn’t expect anything else from me either.

The journey to the airport and the flight was pretty uneventful. I didn’t get a window seat on the way there (the downside of not buying a seat) but that was ok. It wasn’t enough time to have a sleep either.

I got to Dublin and out of the airport in not a lot of time at all and headed for the bus. Slightly raining but I didn’t care. I wasn’t in PTown. One thing I like about Dublin is that you can get a city bus from the airport to the city centre and it only costs €3.30 each way.

Day 1 - Dublin

I got to the hostel and checked in and then went out for a wander to find food and see what was around.
The hostel was in a really good spot. Right in the city centre on the south banks of the Liffey.
After I was done, I headed back to the hostel and spoke with reception for recommendations of things to do. One that they gave me was to do a tour to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway. I decided to book it for the next day.
Once this was booked I went out for dinner and to get my steps in and then came back for a sleep as I needed to be up at 06:00 and I was shattered.
Total steps: 11,350
Total miles: 5.5
Below are some of the pictures from today
Day 2 - Cliffs of Moher & Galway

Today was my early start day for the excursion to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway. I had to be at the meeting point at 06:55. I made sure to leave early enough so I could find pastries and chocolate and pop for breakfast and hide away and stuff my face where nobody could see.
I met the guide and dutifully paid my €45 to get on the bus. He was a very knowledgeable guide and told us all sorts of stories (some of which I am sure were just Irish folklore).
One of the ones he told us about was why there is a town with a service station called Barack Obama Plaza. It is on the outskirts of a town called Moneygall. You can read about that here.
He told us that a young lad wanted to put the town on the map and started researching people from the area and came across relatives of Obama. He then told the news and it got all the way back to Obama and he visited Ireland and this is why the plaza is named after him. The guide also said that the lad who found this information and Obama are distant cousins.
After our stop here, we then headed to the cliffs along winding country roads – just the kind I like. It started to rain heavy and I wasn’t sure whether the cliffs would be good to see.
We arrived at the cliffs and it was foggy and rainy. I went into the shops to find a magnet and by the time I had bought it the rain had stopped but it was still misty.
I decided to walk up to the top and see what kind of view I had. At that point in time, not very good. I decided to walk around and see what else was there. I found a tower that you could go up and lookout. The view was still blocked by the mist. I went back down the tower and decided to walk back towards the visitor centre. As I was walking back, the mist started to clear and the view of the cliffs was amazing. I just stood there and didn’t know where to look. I had a little bit of a flex and thought it very reminiscent of when I was on the Great Ocean Road in Australia and was stood at the top of the cliffs overlooking the 12 Apostles.
I decided to stay up and have a walk around and take in the views it had to offer. Several times the mist rolled back in and then out again. It was totally worth it to stay up there though.
Once we had our 2 hours here, we got back on the bus and headed to Galway. We drove again along winding country roads and the scenery was really nice. I couldn’t stop looking out the window. The guide then told us of the Potato Famine and how the majority of the country was wiped out. You could tell he was affected by it because of how softly spoken he got and how trembly his voice got. There was a plague that destroyed potato crops across Europe and lasted around 4 years. You can rea about it here.
We arrived in Galway and we were told that the guide wasn’t allowed to do tours in the city because of Covid. I went to find the toilets and get a drink from McDonald’s. You have to show proof of vaccination if you want to sit in.
Once I was done with my drink, I bought my Galway souvenirs and then I saw a church and headed towards that. Sadly those grounds were closed and I decided to have a walk around the city and see what it had to offer.
It is a really pretty city and the River Corrib runs through it and there was a nice walk and some good views along the river. In my opinion, these views were better than those along the Liffey. Don’t @ me either – I said what I said.
I headed back to the bus to sit down as I wasn’t feeling 100% but the driver and guide weren’t back either so just sat on the wall waiting.
As we were heading back to Dublin, I got a message that my AL hadn’t been approved and that just set the rest of the evening for me. I wasn’t in a very good mood after that.
Total steps: 10,944
Total miles: 5.2
Below are some pictures from today
Cliffs of Moher

Galway
Trigger Warning: Day 3 - Dublin

I will once again preface this with a trigger warning.
The stuff with annual leave and work has been bubbling over for a few weeks now and it got to me on the trip back from the excursion and it bubbled up through the night and spilled over to today and I didn’t really feel like doing anything.
I was supposed to do a walking tour but that got cancelled and that was the final straw for me.
During the night I was going to end everything but got stopped by the Garda and spent time talking to them.
Once the walking tour was cancelled I sent the below message to my friends because I really was done.
I was ready to not come back from Dublin so I didn’t have to deal with anyone or anything. I couldn’t think clearly.
Thankfully I got to speak with all of my friends and that helped me out somewhat. I deleted all work stuff off my phone and that made me feel better too.
I bought a day ticket for the trams in Dublin and rode around them most of the day and found some places to get off and get pictures. I didn’t get very many because I was still not in a good mood and not in a good place mentally.
Thankfully by the time the day was over I felt a lot better and had a good sleep. I needed to as I was leaving for home and had to check out at 10:30.
Total steps: 11,335
Total miles: 5.5
Day 4 - Dublin

I decided since I had about 3 hours between checking out and leaving for the airport I would do a walking tour. I am really glad I did becuase the guide was really funny. He also swore like a trooper which I though added to the fun of the tour.
The tour was about 2.5 hours and we got to see some of the main parts of the south of the city. There really isn’t much else to be said about today since I only had those couple of hours to do stuff before heading to the airport.
Once I was at the airport I realised I hadn’t picked up my passport so had to have someone bring it to me. I was worried I wasn’t going to get on the flight and even more worried I wouldn’t be in my own comfortable bed.
The fact I am writing this shows that I made it.
Total steps: 11,336
Total miles: 5
Below are some pictures from today

Minus the blip on day three, the rest of the trip was really good. I thoroughly recommend the Cliffs of Moher if you do get a chance to go to Ireland.

I got to Stansted and we had to get a bus to the terminal – turns out it was because we didn’t need to go through immigration because we came back from the Common Travel Area. Now that I think about it, that would be why we didn’t have to do that at East Midlands. Only taken 6.5 years for that to make sense!!!

I sat at the station awaiting the train home and then at the bus station for about 30 minutes.

I was so glad to be home and in my safe space.

View all of my Dublin pictures here.

View all of my Cliffs of Moher pictures here.

View all of my Galway pictures here.

Total steps: 43,965

Total miles: 21.2

chris | Friday September 17th 2021 | Travel| Cliffs of Moher, Dublin, Europe, Galway, Ireland, Tracel | 0 Comments

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Mo thuras nóiméad deireanach go Baile Átha Cliath

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