Dublin: I

This entry is all about my fabulous weekend in Ireland with Michelle! Wow. As I write this, I've been back in Paris for a couple days and I still can't get over how amazing my weekend was and how much I want to go back. I hope the following entries are not too boring for you, because I wanted to record every detail I could remember. Here goes nothing...

December 12, 2009, Saturday

Today started really early—I woke up at 3:45 so I could shower before leaving the foyer. Unfortunately I did not get a lot of sleep mast night because there was a huge party a couple doors down from me in the foyer, and people were being so loud. Luckily I am a morning person and can get by with little sleep. We had to leave so early because RyanAir likes to fly out of very remote airports and it was flying out of Beauvais, over an hour outside of Paris. I got all my stuff together, packed into the now-infamous brown Weekend Trip Bag, and left the foyer around 5 a.m. In order to catch the first metro at 5:30, I got to Nation around 5:20. I really don't like the walk from my foyer to that metro station early in the morning or late at night, even though it's only about 10 minutes. It's probably safe, I just get a weird feeling. I took the metro all the way to the western periphery, to Porte Maillot, and met Michelle there at the bus terminal. We were both so excited we were so talkative and giddy on the bus ride, though I think we tried to sleep a little. Beauvais is a very small airport, almost not even real in my opinion. It took us not long at all to go through security and we had some time to relax before getting on board. It's free seating, just like EasyJet, so we found a nice part on the left side and I got the window—nice! I have a baseless fear of the right side of planes so it was perfect. The flight was only an hour and a half, too! Good thing Michelle was there for me to squeeze the daylights out of her hand during take-off. She's a good sport. :)

Seeing the green fields from the airplane made Ireland really come alive. It's just like it looks in the pictures! Though during the Spring the green is more vibrant and lush, for the middle of December, we were really surprised at how much greenery there was. We booked a hostel named—wait for it—Paddy's Palace! It has such a funny name, how could we not? Actually, it is the only hostel in Europe (or the world, as Stephen, our Paddy's Palace employee friend, would tell us) that has free shuttle service to and from the airport. I can't get over the accents! And I thought it was great in England. Actually, sometimes when the Irish pilots spoke on the plane, it was as if they were speaking another language entirely. Also, did you know the language can be called Irish, too, not Garlic? I thought that was interesting because it sounds a little incorrect, like saying people speak American or Mexican, but it is correct. Everyone was so, so friendly and helpful and just generally very...cheery. What a pleasant change! The Paddy Wagon picked us up at 12; Yes...the Paddy Wagon, a bright green bus with a sheep and leprechaun on it, that says PADDY WAGON TOURS across it. We must have been quite a sight. It was hard to get used to the fact that the Irish drive on the other side of the road, too. I could already tell it was going to be a fantastic weekend! The bus took us right to the hostel, in the center of Dublin. We really picked the hostel well—great location close to the River Liffey that runs through the city. Our driver told us all about the area on the way there. This hostel really should have been considered a palace! It had great couches in the lobby, a huge flat screen tv and a computer with free internet for anyone who wanted to use it! And books and brochures...it really felt like a little hotel. If anyone is ever looking for a hostel in Dublin, I demand you stay at Paddy's Palace. We got checked into our 10-person female dorm room right downstairs, but we only ever had a couple roommates at a time. I got the top bunk. :) It was still rally early at that point so we got settled and then walked around the city to a place where we could get on a hop-on hop-off tour bus.

Dublin is even smaller than Paris, and seems to be very accessible from anywhere. There is a pretty lively population and a lot of people. It was really interesting to see the stark differences between Dublin and Paris. Dublin is not as pretty, architecturally, I would say. The buildings are nondescript brick ones, not too high, with no embellishments at all. I prefer the wrought iron balconies, flower boxes, and window shutters of Parisian apartments much more. People seem more relaxed and not as consumed with image. I think I can say in a sociological, observational way, that Dubliners are not as rigid as Parisians with self-image and clothing and looking good, and Dubliners have a more alternative style, whereas Parisians don't take as many risks and wear a lot of dark colors. We found the bus station and paid our 13 euros to get on. It was a little cold but we had sun and clear weather so Michelle and I sat on the top of the uncovered double-decker bus to get the best view. The tour was an hour and a half long, and it took us by beautiful parks, Saint Patrick's Cathedral, Christ Church, the Guinness Factory, and all sorts of historical sights. We took so many photos! Phoenix Park in Dublin is the largest enclosed park in all of Europe! It was really beautiful. The whole area around the Guinness Factory smelled like barley, thought I really thought it smelled like horse manure, haha. I think it's the number one tourist attraction the city and the beer is sold literally everywhere.

When we got off the bus around 3:15, we wandered around to some Christmas markets we had passed on the Paddy Wagon. After being to the markets along the Champs Elysées, no other markets seem as impressive, but it was still so nice! I didn't buy anything but some scones and fudge...mmm! It was so festive and it was right on the water, which was nice. That killed some time before we headed back to the hostel for a little because it was so cold out. I will admit it...we may have taken an hour nap in our beds, haha. Hey, we had been up for so long and were really tired. We got some dinner recommendations from people who worked at the hostel and tried to get into a really popular pub called the Cilt (pronounced “kilt”) but it was full until 10 p.m. We still found another Irish pub and Michelle and I both ordered Shepherd's Pie! That was one of my goals for the weekend. She had a Guinness because, well, When in Rome, and I had a coke. Even though I was in Dublin, I could not bring myself to drink the stuff. Dinner was so yummy. I had wanted to check out the temple Bar area after dinner but we were so tired that we just went back to the hostel and watched a little tv in the lobby before going to bed. The show The X-Factor was on and people are pretty nuts about it, so we got in on the fun for a little. It's like American Idol but with better accents.

So, Paddy Wagon Tours is a touring company that also has several hostels all around Ireland, not just in Dublin. They run 1-, 2-, 4-, 6-, and 10-day tours all over the country, too. Miche and I decided to pay a little more to take a day trip to the Cliffs of Moher on the west coast. I think staying in the city all weekend would have been a little suffocating; plus we really wanted to see the countryside. Most people who stay in the hostels go on tours, or they stay in the hostel BECAUSE they went on a tour. We went to bed satisfied with our plan and still so ecstatic to be in Dublin!