Well...not much to report other than that the trip seems to be starting on a slow downward spiral.
The hostel experience has been a good one for the most part (although Sarah seems to have fared it a bit better that I have) but hearing other travellers our age talk about their trips and how they've moved from place to place all over Europe has made us realize that we may not have budgeted our time as well as we could have.
I have come to the conclustion that there are two types of travel....
1. Menu style: you pick one destination off of a map and chose to fully devour it
2. Buffet style: you "taste" a variety of different destinations
The buffet style of travel is by far the most popular choice among hostel-goers, and hearing all of the great stories about moving from country to country has made us a bit...well, disheartened.
But hindsight is always 20/20, right? Now we no for next time. And anyway....Ireland has been delicious.
That being said, I think I speak for Sarah as well when I say that we are very much ready to be headed home. It feels like we've seen most of what there is to see in our general locations, and, to be perfectly honest, we're starting to annoy eachother in a major way. Our differences proved to be helpful during the first two months of the trip...Sarah was the only one able to navigate the maps, and I was the only one who could remember the names of where we were trying to go...but now things are gettin' tense.
Just trying to keep it real here.
So, what is going to happen for the last two weeks? Well, it looks like the two of us will be parting ways to pursue our clashing interests...
Sarah plans to continue hostel-hopping along coastal towns so she can spend more time by the water, and I plan to head back to Brenda's where I will go on a Sukoku-solving-book-reading binge for the remainder of our time.
Anyway...thats about it. Hope everyone is having a stellar Thanksgiving! We are thankful for YOU, and for all of the support and love you've given us during this little adventure.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Boots & Things
Enjoy a few pictures. Some old, some new! |
| Fish and Chips...authentic |
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| Happy Day of Birth to Me...on November 6. Celebrating with a yummy carrot cake! |
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| Portrush, Northern Ireland (NI) |
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| White Rocks Beach...NI |
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| I put him back into the water...but he didn't move very much. |
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| Wittle Sophie-kins frolicking on the beach |
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| Castle Dunluce |
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| Peace Bridge...uniting Catholics and Protestants in Derry, NI |
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| Sophie-kins, and Jess. Typical scene |
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| Giant's Causeway |
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| Giant's Causeway |
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| Testin' out the Hunter wellies. |
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| Sarah's ultra-durable, ultra-waterproof shoeboots. |
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| View from the cliff above the Causeway |
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| Looking down on the Giant's Causeway |
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| Bessie |
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| Excavation happens. Even at the Giant's Causeway. (For Grandpa Burkhart) |
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| Walkin' to the rope bridge. Gusting winds. Freezing rain. |
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| We made it accross! |
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Prospects and things...
Hello friends and family!
Firstly, thank you all so much for your concern, thoughts, and prayers during this unexpected and abrupt change in our travel plans. It was great knowing you had (and still have) our backs. And a quick shoutout to my homegirl RACHEL KING for hooking us up with some potential leads. This girl is magic.
Its has indeed been a stressful few days..in part because we didn't know where to look for housing, and in part because of our host's seeming lack of understanding for the difficult position she was putting us in.
So, to make a long story short, we decided that we wanted to try and stay along the coast of Northern Ireland for at least an extra few days so that we could actually see some of the things we came to see (Giant's Causeway, the rope bridge, Jameson Distillery, etc). As luck would have it, we were able to locate a small hostel about 10 minutes away from Sonya's house, and a (literally) a 10 yard walk from the entrance to the Giants Causeway. We were able to swing a deal that includes our room, breakfast, and dinner for 15 pounds a day. Not to shabby. Right now its just the two of us in the hostel along with the owner. Thankfully another couple will be arriving tomorrow...which is good...because right now things are a touch on the awkward side.
We are planning to stay at this hostel until this coming Monday, at which point we will hop a bus to Belfast, and stay in a sister hostel for a few nights before heading back to Dublin to spend the remainder of our time with our second host. Whew. Did ya follow all that?
In Belfast we hope to explore the city, check out the Titanic museum and find a place for where I can get a good haircut. Although my stay in the magical Mullet-Land has been nice, I'm ready to move on.
So, tomorrow morning after breakfast, I'm hopping on a bus to Coleraine where I can hopefully procure some Hunter wellies (my sneakers have sprung a leak), and then we will commence with our exploration of the stunning coast!
Firstly, thank you all so much for your concern, thoughts, and prayers during this unexpected and abrupt change in our travel plans. It was great knowing you had (and still have) our backs. And a quick shoutout to my homegirl RACHEL KING for hooking us up with some potential leads. This girl is magic.
Its has indeed been a stressful few days..in part because we didn't know where to look for housing, and in part because of our host's seeming lack of understanding for the difficult position she was putting us in.
So, to make a long story short, we decided that we wanted to try and stay along the coast of Northern Ireland for at least an extra few days so that we could actually see some of the things we came to see (Giant's Causeway, the rope bridge, Jameson Distillery, etc). As luck would have it, we were able to locate a small hostel about 10 minutes away from Sonya's house, and a (literally) a 10 yard walk from the entrance to the Giants Causeway. We were able to swing a deal that includes our room, breakfast, and dinner for 15 pounds a day. Not to shabby. Right now its just the two of us in the hostel along with the owner. Thankfully another couple will be arriving tomorrow...which is good...because right now things are a touch on the awkward side.
We are planning to stay at this hostel until this coming Monday, at which point we will hop a bus to Belfast, and stay in a sister hostel for a few nights before heading back to Dublin to spend the remainder of our time with our second host. Whew. Did ya follow all that?
In Belfast we hope to explore the city, check out the Titanic museum and find a place for where I can get a good haircut. Although my stay in the magical Mullet-Land has been nice, I'm ready to move on.
So, tomorrow morning after breakfast, I'm hopping on a bus to Coleraine where I can hopefully procure some Hunter wellies (my sneakers have sprung a leak), and then we will commence with our exploration of the stunning coast!
Monday, November 12, 2012
S.O.S
Somebody save our ship, please.
I guess you could say we're in a bit of a "lurch"
Our current host Sonya, has encountered a family crisis and has given us 48 hours to find alternate accomodation.
Although we understand that things come up...we're also a little bit peeved. Just bein' honest.
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I guess you could say we're in a bit of a "lurch"
Our current host Sonya, has encountered a family crisis and has given us 48 hours to find alternate accomodation.
Although we understand that things come up...we're also a little bit peeved. Just bein' honest.
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Friday, November 9, 2012
The final chapter in our trip...
Well, good news. We're 3 for 3 with our host families.
After a tiring four hour bus trip to Northern Ireland, our final host, Sonya, was waiting to pick us up. And I think its safe to say we've saved the best location for last.
Sonya, who is actually quite young, lives in a tiny village about half an hour from Coleraine, which is about 2hrs. North of Belfast. Her house is small but beautifully decorated, and she shares it with her two rescue dogs Sophie and Jess. Both of the dogs are absolute dears...they want to be wherever you are and are always ready to give hundreds of kisses.
Although we've only been here for two days, I've loved watching how Sonya runs her life. She keeps things very simple and pretty much just does the things that make her happy. And if that means letting Sophie drink tea out of her mug, then so be it. I've been realizing that there are two types of people: those to live to work, and those who work to live. She is definitely one of the latter.
This evening we went with Sonya to take Sophie and Jess for a walk along the coast. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that the coast of Northern Ireland, which is rugged, grassy, and untouched, is even more stunning than the Cliffs of Moher. There is a narrow dirt path that runs along the edge of the cliff...and the view is breathtaking. Sonya takes the dogs to the cliffs every day to play fetch and get some room to run....I can't imagine having such a gorgeous view right on my doorstep.
Pictures will definitely be coming soon...check back!
After a tiring four hour bus trip to Northern Ireland, our final host, Sonya, was waiting to pick us up. And I think its safe to say we've saved the best location for last.
Sonya, who is actually quite young, lives in a tiny village about half an hour from Coleraine, which is about 2hrs. North of Belfast. Her house is small but beautifully decorated, and she shares it with her two rescue dogs Sophie and Jess. Both of the dogs are absolute dears...they want to be wherever you are and are always ready to give hundreds of kisses.
Although we've only been here for two days, I've loved watching how Sonya runs her life. She keeps things very simple and pretty much just does the things that make her happy. And if that means letting Sophie drink tea out of her mug, then so be it. I've been realizing that there are two types of people: those to live to work, and those who work to live. She is definitely one of the latter.
This evening we went with Sonya to take Sophie and Jess for a walk along the coast. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that the coast of Northern Ireland, which is rugged, grassy, and untouched, is even more stunning than the Cliffs of Moher. There is a narrow dirt path that runs along the edge of the cliff...and the view is breathtaking. Sonya takes the dogs to the cliffs every day to play fetch and get some room to run....I can't imagine having such a gorgeous view right on my doorstep.
Pictures will definitely be coming soon...check back!
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Whats new?
Its crazy to believe that Sarah and I will be leaving Dublin soon...the time has flown by. So what have we done with the past week or so? Check out the pictures and descriptions below and to find out.
Also, sorry again that there aren't more pictures of Sarah....shes always behind the camera :)
Thanks again for all of your love and support!
Day trip to visit Brenda's stepmother in Malahide...
Visit to the Museum of Natural History...
Also, sorry again that there aren't more pictures of Sarah....shes always behind the camera :)
Thanks again for all of your love and support!
Day trip to visit Brenda's stepmother in Malahide...
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| Malahide Castle |
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| Brenda's Stepmother's dog, Susie |
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| Marina, Malahide |
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| Marina |
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| Marina |
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| Beach A lovely visit to the Dublin Zoo. Safe to say it was a highlight for both of us... |
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| Cutie |
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| Super-Cutie |
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| Mr. Hippo |
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| Sarah and Zebra |
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| Rhino buns |
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| Sheep buns |
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| Bothering the cow while he ate his oats |
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| The "Pee" Monkey |
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| Me and Pee |
Visit to the Museum of Natural History...
Kilmainham Gaol (Jail)...
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| Museum of Modern Art |
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| Sheep Crossing |
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| Squirrel Crossing |
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| Chillin' in the bean |
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| Formal gardens at the museum |
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