That Irish Lifestyle

Hey Folks,

This post is about to be a little long and jam packed because I've been slackin' a bit on updating!

Visits from the States~*
As I believe I've mentioned previously, Emily (my friend who works for NBC who we visited in Paris) came to check out Dublin for a few days on her way back to the States. Seeing my BFF twice while over here in Ireland is more than I could have ever hoped for.

Pouring the perfect pint

Emily learning how to sip a Guinness
properly in the Velvet Room

Snugglin with my homies

We had a great time! We took her to see the usual sites.. yanno.. Trinity College, Temple Bar, Guinness Storehouse and of course Dicey's. It was a great time and I was so sad to see her go because it flew by. I tried to convince her to just stay in Ireland with us but apparently she has something called a "job" or whatever to get back to.. psh.

That same week my friend Ali from highschool was actually in Dublin for her study abroad program so I got to reconnect with her as well, which was absolutely awesome. It was like we hadn't even skipped a beat. Kennedy Gaels 4LYFE.

Ali on my right and a photobomber behind us

Family Time~*
Other than that, Michelle and I have been continuing to live the Irish life. Her wonderful family has continued to be so kind to us! Anne and her family had us over for a delicious backyard BBQ complete with burgers, sausage, potatoes, wine, etc. We had such a great time hearing their stories from her days at Aer Lingus with one of her very good friends.

Late nights at the Carews'

Michelle's cousin Tommie invited us out with her husband to a wonderful lunch at the Westbury Hotel. The spot was beautiful and it was a gorgeous day so the sun was shining in and we had a great chat.

The Coynes (who I've mentioned their incredibly generosity previously) invited us out for another backyard BBQ. It's always a lovely time, but this time was especially nice because it was an absolutely gorgeous night. The weather has been perfect to say the least. I can honestly count the amount of rainy days we've had on one hand.

Galway~*
Since we arrived everyone has been asking us if we've been to Galway or if we had plans to go. We certainly wanted to go but just didn't really take the time to plan it. Well last Wednesday I said to Michelle "Hey wanna go to Galway this weekend?" And we booked the bus and hostel and headed out that Friday.

The bus ride was supposed to be 2 and a half hours, but somehow it turned into 5. Let me tell ya, a hungover bus ride is up there with some forms of torture. At least there was wifi so I could complain to everyone I know about how rough life is these days (aka recovering from a great night on my way to a super fun city in Ireland.)

We finally arrived and made our way to our hostel. I've heard great things about Galway and how it's a tiny little city, but there's so much fun to be had. Soon as we headed down Shop Street, I knew what everyone was talking about. If you've ever been to Dublin, it's a bit similar to Grafton Street as it's all pedestrian and tons of shops and street performers. It's a bit smaller and there are more restaurants and pubs so it was actually better haha.

We settled into our hostel with the help of a very cute Australian and made our way to our 12 person dorm room. I had stayed in hostels before but never in one of the big rooms full of people I didn't know so this was a new experience for both Michelle and I. Unfortunately our bunks were on opposite sides of the room, but we didn't plan on spending much time in the room anyway.

We went out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant called Cactus Jack's (flashback to my childhood.) It was delicious and Michelle and I left in a food coma. We went to a couple of the bars and had a few pints but after eating my entire weight in fajitas, it was difficult to stomach the beer so we headed back to the hostel to get a good rest before the following day.

The next day we took a bus tour to the Cliffs of Moher, which included a stop in a little town called Doolin. We got to grab lunch at a pub, a pint of Guinness (obviously) and some homemade fudge before making our way to the Cliffs.

When I was in Ireland back in November we visited the Cliffs, but it was so cold that we took in the beauty as quickly as we could before sprinting back to the warm car. This time was a bit different. It was an absolutely GORGEOUS day and we spent two hours taking pictures, walking along the edge (YIKES) and taking in the sites. It was a great day.

The Cliffs of Moher

Stuntin' is a habit

Crowds at the Cliffs

Flower Child

 We then headed back to Galway city, grabbed some wine and got ready for the evening. We spent most of our time in a bar called "The Front Door" that our friend Katelyn (who studied in Galway) had recommended. It was such a great time. We chatted with some locals, but also a few tourists which was fun to swap stories and experiences.

The next day we got to check out a small flea market with hand made jewelry, clothes, etc and grab a bite to eat before heading back to Dublin. Guess what-- surprise, surprise-- we had another hungover 5 hour bus ride with the world's most obnoxious people in the world seated directly behind us. It seems that every time we travel there is never a more wonderful feeling than arriving back in Dublin. It was a great weekend though for sure because it's always nice to see other parts of Ireland other than Dublin.

Life in Dublin~*
Dublin is such a fun city. We are constantly discovering new places to go and new things to see. This past Friday we headed out to the Dawson Lounge with our friend, Eddie. Its the smallest pub in Dublin. It was honestly like being on a ship! The place was packed and there were maybe only about 30 people in there. We were by far the youngest people in there, by about 3 decades at least, but it was awesome. We had a pint before moving on to another bar on the street for the night.

Eddie on my left, Sheila on my right

For our Sunday afternoon, we headed back out to the Coynes for a cliff walk on Howth Head with Joan and two of her friends. It was yet again, another perfect day. It was actually a little too hot while we were getting ready to go, but the breeze along the coast made it wonderful. It was certainly more physical activity than Michelle and I are used to these days, but it was refreshing to get so much fresh air and to climb along the cliff with such spectacular views; it was just what we needed. It took us a little over 2 hours to complete the trail and we ended up in Howth where we topped our hike off with a nice pint of Guinness. The Coynes invited us back to their house for yet another delicious BBQ, wine and dessert. Try and tell me that doesn't top your Sunday Funday.

Trekkin'

Good ol' Rex takin' in the sites

A number of exciting things happening in the next few weeks! In July we're headed to an Arctic Monkeys concert (which I have been waiting for since before we even arrived in Dublin) and then the next day we're off to see my family in Italy! It's gonna be a long 48 hours, but the destination is worth it. We're going to be staying in Positano on the Amalfi Coast. I've wanted to go to the Amalfi Coast for just about forever so I'm so excited to finally cross it off the list!

Shell is leaving so soon so we're trying to get everything we've wanted to do out of the way. We try and avoid the subject all together and just pretend it's not happening like the adults that we are.

Missing everyone so incredibly much and sending all my love back home to the good ol U.S of A. Michelle and I are planning on celebrating the 4th even though we'll be the only ones doing so over here, but we'll be sure to represent MURICA the best way we know how.

Love to all,
Paige xx

Befriending bartenders

Watching the boys play cricket at Trinity College

Sippin a Cosmo at our fave restaurant in Ranelagh

That American Spirit (they're not ours)