Friday
Wow! What an awesome trip! Ireland was incredible! Everyone should go to Ireland at least once in their life if they have the means and time away from real life to go. I flew out early Friday afternoon from Amsterdam and had a great flight! I sat next to an Irish woman living near Rotterdam who I was able to share the Gospel with and encourage in the faith a bit. It is always encouraging to share with others what God has done in your life. I arrived on Friday afternoon and rode the city bus into town which stopped very near my hostel. While in Dublin I stayed at the Globetrotter Hostel which was a little more expensive than some of the other hostels but was well worth the money for a clean and relatively quiet stay. After checking in I headed right out into the city for some sight seeing. Dublin is a nice city but I must say a bit dirty! The cathedrals and pubs are what you go to Dublin to see though. On the way from my hostel though I couldn’t believe my eyes! The luck of the Irish was truly with me, I found my Irish kin folk right there in Dublin, Buckley’s Butchers! (See pic below) I did not speak to any of them but I later learned that it is a chain of Butchers very popular in Dublin.
Next I headed through the Temple Bar area which is a small section of mainly pubs and street performers. Then I made my way up to Christ Church Cathedral which is a beautiful and very old Cathedral in the heart of the oldest section of Dublin. In fact the first church building built there dates back to 1030! Christ Church was also one of the choirs to participate in the premier of Handel’s Messiah in 1742. I was in luck as right as I arrived they were about to start an evening prayer service. So I went in and the service took place in the choir loft. So I sat in the very choir loft where the choir members in 1742 practiced for the premier of Handel’s Messiah! After the service I was famished so I headed back down to the Temple Bar to the Hard Rock Café for a good old American hamburger! It was great let me tell you! The only hamburger I have had since here is at the McDonalds in Rotterdam which was very disappointing. After dinner I stayed around the temple bar for a few hours and listened to some incredible live traditional Irish music in the pubs. There were also some great street performers as well. Well at about 10:00 or so I made my way back to the hostel for the worst night of the trip!
I went to sleep and was awakened at about 1:30 by three fellow roommates entering the room quite drunk! I thought no big deal and tried to sleep (I had ear plugs). WARNING…If you have a weak stomach proceed to the next paragraph! Well at about 2:30 or so I am awakened by the person in the bunk below me puking all over her bed and the floor! Needless to say it was completely disgusting and I was so thankful that I was on the top bunk! If I had been on the bottom…well let’s just not go there! So I pulled the cover over my head and tried to imagine myself somewhere else. At least the friends of this individual got up to help and clean up the mess as much as they could. So again, needless to say, Friday was a sleepless night!
Saturday
Well I thought it would be a good idea to get up early and give the drunks a good dose of their own medicine by waking them up from their sound sleep so I did! Well not really for that reason, I got up to beat the crowd to the shower and to breakfast! Breakfast at the Globetrotter is incredible! When they say full Irish breakfast included with the room they aren’t joking! Bacon, sausage, eggs, fresh fruit, freshly baked breads and biscuits, fresh juices and hot coffee! Right after breakfast I went straight to the front desk to explain last nights events to see if they had any single rooms available. I can truly say that they really take care of you at Globetrotters! Not only did they move me next door to their adjacent hotel (which was twice as nice as the hostel) but they hooked me up with a mad discount for the rest of my stay! I recommend Globetrotters to anyone going to Dublin! After breakfast I headed to St. Patrick’s Cathedral which is said to be very near the sight where Saint Patrick baptized the first Christian converts in Ireland around 432 AD! It was a magnificent Cathedral not so much because of any artwork, stain glass windows, or amazing architecture that you find in many cathedral but it was simply awesome being in a place where so much History took place in Ireland! Kings and princes, poets, musicians, as well as the common man all have gathered there to pray for Centuries! The words of Saint Patrick still ring true all over the Cathedral, “Christ with me,
Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ with in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every person who thinks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.” Well it was definitely a spiritual experience being there. As a side note Jonathan Swift (author of Gulliver’s Travels) was once the church’s priest and is buried within the church.
Well after my visit to the Cathedral I had to get out of the city! So I hopped on the city bus which took me out to the coast to Malahide. I didn’t tour the castle but I chose to spend the better part of the day just walking on the beach and taking in the coastal beauty of Ireland! Late afternoon I checked into my new room back in Dublin which was like stepping into luxury after last night on the hostel side. The bed was very comfortable with a comfy duvet and even the shower was hotter and more powerful than in the hostel. So I slept good on Saturday!
Sunday
Before I left Rotterdam I pre-booked a tour through Paddy Wagon tours for a one day bus tour through the County Wicklow. It was a great trip with beautiful scenic views of the Wicklow Mountains. First we stopped at the monastic ruins of Saint Kevin. St. Kevin was raised in a wealthy Irish family but decided to leave his wealth to live his life out as a hermit in the caves at Glendalough. When other heard what he was doing many joined him and together they built a monetary surrounded by the beautiful mountains and lakes. Next we went just down the road to the lakes at Glendalough which is where St. Kevin started living in the caves. The scenery was breathtaking and it is here where the wedding scene from Braveheart was filmed. We stayed here for about 30 minutes before heading to the town of Kilkenny where we toured Kilkenny Castle which as I remember is the largest Castle in Ireland (Alex correct me if I am wrong). Our tour guide Jerry was a great wealth of knowledge of the local area all along the way which made for a great trip through Paddy wagon tours. On the trip I met two people on the trip Jason and Ellen who were lots of fun to hang out with. After we returned to Dublin the three of us went out later that night for Chinese food which was a great treat for me.
Monday
This morning I checked out of my hotel, after eating one last Irish breakfast of course, said my goodbyes to Dublin and headed to the airport to catch my flight to Amsterdam. I got back home at about 3:45 and so all in all it was a great trip and I am so glad that I finally made it to Ireland! I will definitely be going back before my year is up to check out the West Coast which I hear is amazing!
Timo about to attack!
Here is Morten with a home made gun.
Here is a picture of my relentless Dutch teacher Ellie. She insists on us only speaking Dutch in class but she is still a nice lady.
