We flew from Boston to Dublin and decided to spend a couple of days there before heading to the farm. We were exhausted after the overnight flight but wanted to start adjusting to the time zone, so we did a hop-on-hop-off bus to see the sights without having to walk or figure out public transport and scope out what we wanted to see the following days. We also did a tour of the Guinness Storehouse, which was very cool, even if I still don’t like beer. Caleb enjoyed to pint though. On our second day, there was Good Friday so all the museums we planned to go to were closed (oops). Luckily, it led us to a museum we hadn’t planned to go to – the Little Museum of Dublin, all about the history of Dublin/Ireland, which had a super fun and interactive guided portion. We also went to Dublin Castle which turned out to be more of an art gallery than a castle. Then at night we went to Brazen Head Pub, the oldest pub in Dublin, and stopped by The Old Storehouse Pub to see Eily and have a pint.
Cork City
We made 2 short trips to Cork City with the first trip involving a visit to Marina Market for some lunch, a tour of Fort Elizabeth, a stroll through the English Market, and a stop at the Butter Museum. Who knew the history of butter was so complicated?! Our second time in Cork, Caleb spent most of it in the hospital. I spent some time relaxing and did a day trip to Blarney. On our last day, after he was out of the hospital we did a day trip to Kinsale.
Blarney Castle
I did a solo day trip to Blarney Castle, which you can reach by bus from Cork City.
Visiting the castle itself is mostly a wait in line to get to the stone which, legend has it, gives you the “gift of gab” if you kiss it. They have someone hold you as you lean back, but boy it’s a lot further than it looks in pictures! I’m a little afraid of heights so my legs were shaking like bacon for a solid 30 minutes after the experience, but when at Blarney you gotta kiss the stone.
An unexpected, but pleasant surprise, were the many “gardens” scattered throughout the castle grounds. It was especially beautiful being there in spring when so many plants were in bloom. My favorite garden area was the fern garden with loads of greenery contrasted with little white flowers. There was lots of variety throughout the grounds including a poison garden!
Kinsale
For our last day in County Cork, Caleb and I took a day trip to Kinsale, a little coastal town known for being the start of the Wild Atlantic Way. We took a guided tour to see the colorful houses and learn some of the history. Did you know, the Sullivan Clan was part of an attempted attack on the British in 1601 that shaped the history of Ireland today? Caleb comes from a long line of fierce warriors! Sadly, the siege failed leading to the exile of many clan leaders in the North who offered their support. As a result, the English brought in Scottish farmers to tend to the now empty land. As these new Northerns remained loyal to the crown over time, it eventually led to the North/South division that led to the “Troubles” and the creation of the Northern Irish state. For the rest of our time in Kinsale, we walked to Charles Fort which didn’t offer soldiers the best living conditions, but did offer incredible views of the coast.
MadAbs Roadtrip – Cliffs of Moher & The Ring of Kerry
The next couple of posts are about our road trip with Madie and Abby. They were brave enough to drive on the other side of the road, so we hoped in the car and headed from Galway towards Killarney, making a stop at the Cliffs of Moher on the way. Luckily, we were there on a super clear day and had full visibility of the Cliffs in all their glory. They’re so big it’s almost hard to comprehend! Sadly that also means the nesting puffins were too far down the cliffs to see, but we could imagine them flapping their wings 400 times a minute. We had a fun time walking around to all the vantage points – definitely a success on an Ireland bucket list item!
Our first stop along the Ring of Kerry was a recreation of a Kerry Bog Village, giving a glimpse into the traditional life of people in the region during the 19th century. They had multiple buildings including homes, the tavern, and the forge which just so happens to be named for me, Jack, and Caleb! All the buildings have the classic thatched roof made from bog turf. It also showed the tiny windows which were common at the time because of a tax based on window size. This is where the term daylight robbery originated! Families countered this by having large doorways, which were not taxed, that could open halfway up to let the sunlight in and remain closed on the bottom to keep the farm animals out. Lastly, there were 2 Kerry Bog ponies which are a special breed that are strong but small, making them perfect for working in the bogs
Our next stop was Rossbeigh Beach. In my opinion, this was the most stunning location we saw. It’s a strand of ocean that separates the Atlantic Ocean from a calm, sheltered bay. Along the Atlantic side, the mountains look huge and immovable compared to the expansive flat sands and the wild waves. The third picture includes Caleb for a reference of how far out the beach goes and how tiny us humans are compared to the grand nature. We didn’t have time to walk all the way to the end to see both sides at once, so I would love to go back and do that!
Another beautiful beach stop was Derrynane Beach. The waters were a beautiful turquoise even as the sky became more stormy and grey. The top middle image shows Caleb losing a battle with the wildness of the waves – he thought he could feel the water without getting his feet wet lol. Very pretty and fun for frolicking around.
We took lots of stops along the route to take in the views. Other locations we visited not pictured include Valentia Island and Kenmare.
At the end of our driving loop, we came across the stunning “Ladies Viewpoint” overlooking Killarney National Park which is featured in the 3 of the 5 images above. After a long day of adventuring, we ended with dinner and ice cream in Killarney town. The following day we headed into the park to see Torc waterfall (center) and Muckross House (bottom right) before heading back to Galway.
Inis Mor
On one of our days off, we took a trip to Inis Mor, the largest of the Aran Islands. Above I offer a pictographic representation of the vibes throughout the day. We start strong with Caleb excited for his first ferry ride ever, the good vibes continue as we bike around to see the sites the island has to offer, we feel like these mannequins – blown over in the wind as we realize our last detour has taken way longer than expected, biking almost 30 minutes at full capacity, and missing our ferry by 2 minutes. Before we get to the resolution of missing the ferry, a quick interlude for the wonderful sites that we just couldn’t leave.
Throughout the day we made several stops including the Four Saints Church (top middle), Fort Agnus (top left), Kilmurvey Beach (top right), and the Worm hole (both bottom images) aka our downfall. The views were incredible, but the trek through fields and over stone walls was a bit more of an adventure than we realized. We should have turned back way sooner than we did so definitely our fault we missed the ferry, but c’est la vie. Luckily another tour company had a slightly later ferry that they let us take and we caught the bus from their port to Galway city, sadly missing the ferry ride past the Cliffs of Moher. Still a fun day, but lessons to be learned.
Connemara
A couple of weeks later we decided to brave another tour company day trip. This time to Connemara, a part of the western region of County Galway. This tour offered lots of natural beauty with mountains, lots of green, loughs, and Irelands only fjord (top middle). We enjoyed watching the scenery from the bus and taking several short stops to take a longer look.
Our longest stop was at Kylemore Abbey. An estate with lots of land that holds its extensive gardens and a church. It was originally made for an affluent family before being taken over by nuns and then converted into a girls school which only closed in 2010. Wouldn’t be too shabby of a place to live or go to school with all the land to explore and the beauty of the surroundings.
Hozier & Wicklow
In July, we headed to Dublin to see Hozier in concert! The venue, Marlay Park, is pretty much a huge grass field which was quite cool. We got there early, so we got some food from the food trucks and enjoyed the 3 opening acts – Ye Vagabonds, Lord Huron, and Brittany Howard. Caleb might’ve been (not so) secretly more excited to see Lord Huron than he was to see Hozier but after the concert, he’s a big fan. Hozier is an amazing vocalist, and he always has a sort of mystical sense about him. Everyone in the audience is pretty sure he summoned the rain with his music at one point (sure rain was in the forecast but trust me it was the music). Definitely one for the books.
The morning after the concert we hopped on a bus down the east coast to Wicklow. This was one of my favorite things we’ve done so far because it’s the first time we were really out in nature and went on a hike! We did the Glendalough loop which goes past a waterfall and then along the lake all the way around. The trail started off super busy, but once we got past the waterfall and started gaining more elevation the crowds thinned out a lot — and then they thinned out even more when a storm rolled through, and it started down pouring. Luckily, we decided to stick with it and the storm passed in a few minutes and we were quickly dried off by the wind and sun. The views of the lake were also stunning as it cleared up right as we were reaching the highest point. We saw lots of goats and green hills along the way. We had to move our lunch location after a deer tried to join us but ended up finding a great spot by the river that runs down to the lake. Near the end of the trail, there was an abandoned mining site (bottom left image) with remains of some of the buildings and equipment. We tried to go back to the lake for sunset, but it ended up being cloudy, so we called it a night and headed back to Galway in the morning.
Germany (with Anna!)
For our first trip out of Ireland, we went to Germany to meet up with Anna! We stayed with her and her parents who were so nice. The first day we were there, we had brunch (cheese: lactose-free for me, bread, and vegetables) with her family, rode bikes into town to walk around a bit, and watched the Eurocup final. The second day (pictured above) we took a day trip to Cologne where we saw (and climbed the stairs of) the cathedral, saw some sites around town, and went to the Chocolate Museum.
The next day we went to Landschaftspark which is an old steel mill that has been opened to the public after allowing nature to grow freely. We explored the different areas of the mill and Anna told us some of the history. some of which she learned on school trips there as a kid. It was also one of the filming locations for the most recent Hunger Games movies.
Later that same day we headed into Dusseldorf. We had some lunch and then went to a couple of shops to wait out the rain. Once the rain settled, we went to an amusement park and went on some of the rides. The first one we went on was way more intense than we expected so we went on the kiddie rides after that. Caleb wanted to do one of the shooting games, and he won a stuffed avocado, now named “Puff”. Anna also made sure to get her favorite fair snack: chocolate-covered strawberries. On our last day there, we biked into Moers again and Anna gave us a tour of the town including her old school and other places she used to hang out in high school. After a nice brunch, we played a round of mini golf. Caleb won cause he’s actually good at golf, but fun was had by all. That afternoon Anna and her parents headed to the Taylor Swift concert while Caleb and I headed to the airport for our journey back to Galway.
Castlebar & Westport
At the end of July, I took a two-day trip to Castlebar and Westport in County Mayo. On day one, I took the bus to Castlebar and went on a hike that was basically a service road up to a cell tower. It was very pretty and green though and there were lots of free-range sheepies around. The views from the top were also very nice, it’s hard to see in the image (right), but there are a bunch of islands in the water. After the hike, I headed into Westport because my taxi driver said there was nothing to do in Castlebar lol. I was staying at a hostel, so I dropped my stuff there and then headed out to explore the town. I walked around a bit and had a matcha before going back to the hostel for dinner and sleep. In the morning, I went out for another matcha, and Caleb met me in town after taking the bus from Galway. He had worked until 6 am and stayed up because he didn’t want to miss his bus at 8 am, so he was a little sleep-deprived the whole day. Together, we had some brunch before starting out on a walking loop of Westport. Along our walk, we stopped at Westport House which is a house formerly owned by an affluent family but was recently sold to someone who has more money to keep up with the necessary maintenance. The house itself was nice with lots of old paintings and items. They’ve also done a bunch of stuff over the years (since it has been open to the public) to try to bring in more revenue, including a mini train ride through the forest. This was definitely for kids, but we had a great time, and Caleb got a picture (middle) in the conductor’s seat at the end – lucky boy! After that, we continued on the loop which included forest and water views. At the furthest point, there was also a nice view of Croagh Patrick across the water (left). Maybe soon we will hike there!
England
For our trip to England, we stayed in London the whole time and took several day trips to explore famous spots nearby. On our first day in the city, we explored the Shoreditch area where we had some delicious vegan food and shopped around the many vintage stores, each adding a jean jacket to the collection.
Day 2 of the trip we headed to Bath where we explored Bath Abbey, the local parks, and of course the famous Roman Baths. We had a great time learning about the history of the baths, switching between the “adult” and “kids” audio descriptions. We also had a little lunchtime picnic at the Royal Crescent and enjoyed afternoon tea with a Bath Bun which is a bread bun that has a whole sugar cube baked inside. Yum!
Day 3 was jam-packed with touristy London activities. We started the day with breakfast at Borough Market before walking across Tower Bridge to get to the Tower of London where we spent some time listening to the audio guide and meeting the Beefeaters. Next, we took the tube to Westminster Abbey and stumbled across Big Ben before heading inside the Abbey for a walk around with the audio guide there. This was only the beginning of the day though because we also went to a concert that night! We also did visit 221B Baker St, but that actually happened a couple of days later.
Continuing Day 3, Caleb and I went to the Noah Kahan concert. These tickets were what inspired the whole England trip. The concert was lots of fun! Noah is quite the entertainer and had lots of cool crowd interactions, including letting a fan come up on stage to play the guitar part for “Maine”!
The set design was also very interesting! It felt like we were moving through all of the New England seasons as we went through the show.
After the busiest day of our lives, we spent day 4 visiting Oxford. It was a nice town, but both of our least favorite parts of this trip. Some of the most popular attractions were closed to the public due to TV show filming and the ones that were open seemed excessively expensive for the experience. Nonetheless, we’re happy we went and got to experience it at least once in our lives. We spent the day walking around the city, visited Christ Church, and saw part of the Bodleian Library.
The first half of day 5 was a trip to Stonehenge! We took the early tour, so we got there right as it opened and were able to get some pictures with very few people in them. The audio tour and visitor museum for Stonehenge were both very interesting and it was a very well put together experience. The site definitely has a mystical feel about it and was one of my favorite parts of the trip.
For the second half of day 5, we walked through Kensington Park to Buckingham Palace. We actually had tickets to tour inside the palace, which I didn’t even know was a thing until this trip! We weren’t allowed to take any pictures inside and instead of describing it, I’m just going to act like the whole place was full of sculptures like these. I guess the royals really love a goofy animal sculpture!
And of course, we can’t have a trip without talking about the food. Ireland is great… it’s just sometimes… the food isn’t… that diverse. So, that being said we had as many yummy treats as we could in England including some delicious Jamacian curry, Japense food (twice), taiyaki, and more. Already missing the ramen.
Mom & Dad Roadtrip
Achill Island & Sligo
Our first stop on the road trip with Mom and Dad was the Achill Island area. We made a short pit stop at the Achill Island Sea Salt store where we learned about how sea salt is prepared for people to use and tasted some yummy sea salt fudge. Then we continued onto a vista point and went on a short walk up the hill to frolic with the sheep and take in some different views of the stunnin’ beaches. We stopped in the cute town of Sligo for the night.
Northern Ireland
The next day, we headed to Northern Ireland. Our first stop was Giant’s Causeway. The legends say the causeway was built by the Giant Finn MacCool (Fionn Mac Cumhaill) to fight with another giant in Scotland. The nerds say that it’s the result of volcanic activity. Either way, there are tons of hexagon-shaped rocks which, are fun to climb around and sit on to take in views of the sea.
Next, we continued onto the Glens of Antrim, which were nice, but not as cool as the internet made them out to be (sorry Dad, for making you drive extra to go see them).
Our last stop on the road trip was Belfast. We rode around on a hop-on, hop-off bus to see the sights and learn some interesting history. Tensions between the Republic of Ireland (Catholics, nationalists) and Northern Ireland (Protestants, unionists) can still be quite heated sometimes, so there are gates between some neighborhoods that get locked at night. However, things are much better than they used to be. We took in sights like City Hall, the Titanic Museum, and the Peace Wall. We ended the day at the hotel in Dublin for Mom and Dad to prepare to continue their travels in Scotland.
Dingle Peninsula
In October, we took a day trip to the Dingle Peninsula. The first stop was Inch Beach, which is definitely more than an Inch long! The sand looked like it stretched for miles before the sea even started. The water on the sand reflected the sky and the mountains beautifully. Next, we passed by some Beehive huts, which are very old primitive structures of early inhabitants. We stopped at a couple of vista points to take in the views of turquoise water and waves crashing against the cliffs. Our final stop was Dingle Town, which was very cute and quaint. We walked around for a bit and met Fungi the dolphin before hopping back on the bus for our return trip.
Cork City (with Paris!)
Paris’s husband, Adam, has been traveling between the States and Cork for work, and Paris was finally able to join him for a trip! Caleb and I made our way down to Cork for the weekend to hang out. We met up with them for breakfast and chatted for a long time catching up. Then we headed to Cork City Gaol (jail). It’s now a museum, which has been set up to follow the story of several former prisoners ranging from a 7-year-old petty thief to a wealthy woman protesting poor living conditions in the city. Apparently. the living conditions were so bad at the time, that some people would purposefully get arrested because living in the jail was nicer! After the jail, we went to the Butter Museum – a Cork classic. Paris and I spent more time playing with the farm animal toys than actually reading about the history. Then we all headed to Marina Market for dinner, which is great because everyone can get their own thing. We ended the night at Paris and Adam’s hotel room watching Frankenweenie.
The other days in Cork, Paris and Adam actually had to do work, so Caleb and I entertained ourselves by visiting Blarney Castle. We kissed the stone but spent most of the time in the gardens. Caleb tried his hand at some photography using the digital camera.
Halloween Trip
Kildare & Kilkenny
At the end of October, we were heading over to the east side of Ireland and decided to make the most of it by making a couple of stops along the way. Our first stop was in Kildare where we had some brunch, went to the Irish National Stud Gardens, and saw a St. Brigid’s statue (middle). At the Stud Gardens, we went to their interactive racehorse museum where we got to “buy” and “train” a horse, practice our sportscasting skills, and dress as a jockey (right). You eventually “race” your horse and Caleb’s absolutely destroyed the 4-year-olds we were up against. After playing pretend racehorse, we got to see some retired Irish racehorses. We then walked around the gardens and came across a pond with what seemed like hundreds of ducks. We ended our time there at a Japanese friendship garden designed to follow the “journey of life” from birth to death. After Kildare, we went to Kilkenny where we took a tour of the Smithwick’s brewery before having dinner at Sullivan’s Taphouse. Maybe one day Caleb will inherit the family business!
Dublin
Our next stop on this adventure was Dublin. We spent the day exploring the National Gallery of Ireland. There was a great variety of styles and a whole exhibit showcasing Irish artists. That night we went to the Glass Animals concert. It was a lot of fun. The lead singer was a great performer and the stage design had an outer space theme that tied into each song.
Púca Festival (Athboy & Trim)
On Halloween we went to Trim and Athboy, where the Púca festival is held yearly. The Púca festival is a celebration of Samhain, the Celtic autumn festival. It marks the transition into darker times and is when the veil between the living and dead is at its thinnest. To learn about the history and traditions, we went on two guided walking tours. One, in Trim, was called Beyond the Veil. They explained how Púca (spirits), are able to cross over more easily during Samhain due to the thin veil, and they will often play tricks to lure the living into the land of the dead. The other walk was in Athboy at the Hill of the Ward (Tlachtga). This hill had significance for ancient and modern druids. It holds spiritual energy and is where the Samhain fire is lit at sunset. The fire is then brought to neighboring areas, and for the Púca festival, it is used to light a large bonfire which was preceded by a small parade with different figures. Some people were dressed up as well. Caleb was a hobbit, and I was an earth blood elf from the show Dragon Prince.
Wild Nephin National Park
We took a trip to Wild Nephin at the beginning of November. It was a couple days post US election, so it was extra nice to get out in nature and disconnect from the world. I also drove in Ireland for the first time, so that took all my mental capacity. We did a couple of hikes and walks throughout the weekend. The first hike was our first true experience with the bog. We both ended up sinking in a couple times, and I almost lost a boot! Despite the bog trying to eat us, it was a lot of fun, and the views were great. We only saw 2 other people the whole time. The second day (not feeling up for another bog fight or another drive down the narrowest roads known to man) we went for a walk along a paved road. While not quite as adventurous, the views were just as rewarding (middle pic) and just what we needed. Besides the hikes, we spent the rest of the weekend cozied up in a tiny house reading and making dinners.
Christmas Market Trip
Caleb and I took a two week trip to check out some of the Christmas markets around Europe and visit new places!
Netherlands
Our first stop was Amsterdam, Netherlands. As soon as we landed, we headed to dinner with the Vennema family as Saskia and Korne were in town visiting the boys for Thanksgiving. It was great chatting and hearing what everyone has been up to! The restaurant was great, and Saskia was able to recommend a delicious vegan dish for me.
On our first full day in the city, we headed to the Van Gogh Museum. I didn’t realize that he didn’t start painting until he was 27! The art was incredible, of course, and it was interesting to learn about the progression of his work as well as his personal life. He really integrated himself into the artist community and had great friendships with many other artists. The museum also had a guest exhibit of some other artists including this famous statue (middle).
One of my favorite places we went in Amsterdam was the Sam & Julia Mouse Mansion. It’s this huge installation of little mouse scenes – so cute! The mice were up to all sorts of stuff such as visiting museums, celebrating pride, and baking. They sell little kits at the store so you can make your own stuff. Maybe someday I can provide a home to some meeses.
We also went on a walking tour of Amsterdam. We definitely learned stuff, but I couldn’t tell you what any of it was – oops. Anyways, here’s some pictures of pretty buildings.
Denmark
Our next stop was Denmark, Copenhagen! Denmark was high on the bucket list for both me and Caleb, and we made sure to pack in the action. We got a Copenhagen card which gets you access to loads of attractions and experiences. The first day we went to the National Museum of Denmark, had some pastries, walked through some Christmas markets, went to Rosenburg Palace, and took a canal tour. The museum had SO many exhibits going over the entire history of Denmark, even through the present day. They also had a special exhibit on Jul, the Nordic winter festival which has ties to present day Christmas. Rosenburg Palace was a royal residence and had lots of portraits and treasures. It was also located in a nice park, which looked stunning in the golden hour of sunset. Our canal tour ended up taking place after dark because the sun sets so early. So, we couldn’t really see much of what the tour guide was talking about, but it gave us ideas of what to see the next day. That night we had dinner at a boat restaurant, which was a cool experience and the smørrebrød was really tasty. We ended the night at a cocktail bar called Balderdash which had funky cocktails including one with shaved deer heart. I didn’t get anything too crazy, but Caleb tried an Old Fashioned with duck fat.
The second day, we started with a pastry from Hart Bakery, which is one of the most popular bakeries in the city. Then we went to the Danish War Museum and learned about Danish involvement in wars throughout history. Caleb had a lot of fun learning about their Navy and submarines. The whole museum ended with an interactive exhibit that was a replica of an Afghanistan base including the work out area, sleeping area, nearby market, and more. It was very interesting to experience. Then we went to a botanical garden, where we had lots of fun taking pictures of the plants and butterflies (all pictures above). There were also little frogs who acted as pest control for the butterfly area. After that, we went to Tivoli Gardens, which is an amusement park (with rollercoasters and stuff) and was set up with a huge Christmas market and lights display for the holidays.
The next day, we started out by going to an outdoor playground for adults that had all sorts of climbing obstacles and mini in-ground trampolines. After that we headed to Freetown Christiania, which is a self-governed area of the city where people occupied an abandoned military base. Their main attraction used to be that you could buy drugs there legally, but due to rowdy visitors, they recently ended that. As a result, the area is struggling a bit, but it was very cool to visit. There was lots of fun street art and plenty of vegan places to choose from for lunch. We also stopped by an artist market where I got a sweater and Caleb pet the knitters’ chihuahua. A win for all involved.
We spent a lot of time between activities walking around the city. These are some images from the Nyhavn area, which is what most people picture when they think of Copenhagen.
We made sure to make time for fun on our busy days. Pictured left is the playground mentioned above. Caleb climbed one of the obstacles and took a picture from up there. On the right, Caleb made the most of the dress up activities at the War Museum, imagining himself as a 17th century Danish Naval Captain.
Germany
Continuing our journey, we made a brief stop in Hamburg as a resting point between Copenhagen and Munich. We went on a walking tour and learned lots about the evolution of the city throughout history.
Our first day in Munich, we took a day trip to Dachau Concentration Camp where we spent most of the day. You can walk around the grounds, see some of the former buildings, and recreations of the dorms over time. There was also a museum with a wealth of information about every aspect of the history including the prisoner’s devastating experiences as well as their amazing resilience. That night we visited one of the most popular Christmas Markets in Munich in Marien Platz. The market didn’t have as many homemade gifts as we were expecting, but there were some hidden gems. Caleb got a handmade wooden clock, and I got some gingerbread, so everyone was happy. The second day in Munich we took the hop-on-hop off bus to see the sights of the city including the Olympic Park and castle pictured above.
On another day trip from Munich, we went to see Neuschwanstein Castle, which is the inspiration for Disney’s Cinderella Castle. We didn’t have tickets to see the inside, but we enjoyed the scenic walk up and taking in the outside views from all angles. The castle was never fully finished, I’m curious what else they would’ve added!
Belgium
After Munich, we made our way to Brussels, Belgium. We used an interrail pass for all our train travel, which made the process a lot easier but, unfortunately, nothing can save you from train delays. The journey to Brussels ended up being our longest travel day by far, wiping out an entire day. So, we just went to sleep once we arrived. The next day, however, we walked around the city a bit, had breakfast, and sampled some Belgian chocolate before heading out to Gent.
Our first stop in Gent was Gravensteen Castle, which was built by a very rich local in ye’ old times and remains very well preserved today. The audio tour is narrated by a Belgian comedian and all throughout the castle there are fun, stylized art pieces (pic right) to accompany the story they tell. I’d say it’s one of the best self-guided tour experiences I’ve ever had. The history of the castle was interesting, and they sprinkled in lots of fun facts, such as the invention of the chimney.
Surprisingly, Gent is known as the Vegan Food Capital of Europe! So naturally, after the castle, we stopped at a vegan restaurant for some lunch and hot chocolate to warm up. It was very tasty, and I wish we could’ve stayed in Gent longer to try more of the vegan offerings. Sadly, we only had a few hours left, which we spent walking around, perusing a Christmas market, and popping in some souvenir shops.
And that’s all she wrote folks. The end of a two week long trip. I’ll leave you here with some food highlights from top right to bottom left: vegan hot chocolate, “that would make a great still life” breakfast remains, Hart bakery pastries, smørrebrød, and, lastly, gingerbread and oat flat white.
Month Long Trip
To finish out our time in Europe, we took a whole month to travel around Europe. We started with two weeks in Italy and then traveled by train through Austria, Hungary, and Poland before flying over to Scotland and, eventually, making our way back to Ireland.
We started out in style flying first class to Rome! Just kidding, we were in the cheap seats, but the flight wasn’t full so Jason got his own seat.
Rome
On our first day in Rome, we went around the city taking in some of the top sights like Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and Piazza Navona. It was the least busy I had ever seen Trevi giving Caleb and I both a chance to toss our coins and take in the views for a minute. On our way from there to the Pantheon, Caleb stopped for an affogato. After experiencing espresso, gelato, and the architectural wonders of Rome – he started to understand what all the hype was about.
Continuing on, we stopped for some gnocchi at Numbs (my parents’ obsession restaurant) to fuel up to climb the Spanish steps. We arrived just in time for sunset and enjoyed the beautiful views over the city.
On day two we continued with the heavy hitters – starting with the Roman Forum. Rick Steves has a great free app with audio tours of many of Europe’s cities and sites. With Rick as our guide, we explored the Arch of Titus, various temples, and Palatine Hill. The Roman Forum is the heart of Rome, where the original city stood and it’s always cool to feel connected to the thousands of years of human history that happened there.
After the Forum, we headed to the Colosseum. Because it was low season, we were able to snag tickets through the actual website instead of resale through a tour company. This let us tour the underground, where the behind-the-scenes happened for the gladiator games and other shows held at the arena. It’s all uncovered now, but it used to be underneath the floor with elevators and trap doors for people and animals to enter the arena in surprise locations. The complexity behind it is fascinating, but it’s also very tragic that the entertainment was mostly people dying.
On day 3, it was time to head to the Vatican. 2025 is a “jubilee” year for the Catholic church, meaning many will be undertaking a pilgrimage to holy sites, including the Vatican this year. As a result, it was pretty packed even for low season. I can’t imagine what it will be like later in the year. Especially if there is a change of Popes! The museum holds some of the best art in the world: from sculptures to paintings to tapestries, and more. We used the Rick Steves app again which gave some really interesting context on some of the works. One of the most interesting to me was the story of the statue in the middle picture. The sculpture itself depicts Laocoon, the priest of Troy, and his sons. They know that the Trojan Horse is a ploy, but the Gods, wanting Troy to fall, have sent serpents to kill them so they cannot warn others. When the statute was made, sculpting was evolving from depicting stationary, solitary figures to scenes with more motion. Over time, the statue was damaged and buried in dirt. When it was uncovered, it was missing an arm, and various artists were consulted about how the arm would have been positioned so that repairs could be done. One up-and-coming artist who had studied anatomy knew it would have been bent, despite being met with much skepticism — this artist was Michelangelo. This particular statue had a huge influence on the style of his art style throughout his life. For example, the influence can be seen in his paintings in the Sistine Chapel, where the motion between figures conveys the story of creation.
Just outside of Vatican City is Castello Sant’Angelo. My brain was tired from learning so much at the museum, so I don’t really remember what this was all about. However, I do know there’s a famous angel statue (left pic) and great views of Saint Peter’s Basilica (right pic).
And of course, the all important food pictures. Starting from the left: Caleb with his first affogato; Numbs gnocchi; pizza and arancini; panini with delicious vegan parmesan; aperitivo at a rooftop bar.
Naples – Napoli
The next stop on our Italian tour was Naples! We were spoiled with loads of recommendations from Caleb’s friends who used to live in the area — one being born there and another being stationed there. Our hostel also had a very cool outdoor space which was very nice (once you got up all of the steps in the middle picture). We started out with a Rick Steves walking tour of the city learning all about the history of Naples. If you’re ever there, go to the archeological museum! There are tons of famous Italian artifacts there, including many original pieces from Pomeii. We walked down via Pignasecca (where the market stalls are) and got some incredible oranges, Spacca Napoli (a historical main street), and more. We stopped at Capella Sansavero, where the statue of the veiled Christ is (no pics allowed). The OG owner of the chapel was a devout Free Masonist, so many of the statues there include figures shrouded in veils or nets. They’re all incredible works — more rich people need to be commissioning priceless works of art tbh.
Among the recommendations were lots of food suggestions, so we had some incredible eats in Naples. Caleb had a life-changing espresso and an Aperol spritz on the go — he was really living the life. We also had Naples-style pizza, gelato, fresh lemonade, and more. We spent part of the night having aperitivo in a square where a man played us “Despacito” using a blade of grass. It was truly the Italian vacation dream.
The next day, we took the bus to Mount Vesuvius. To answer your questions, heck yeah we climbed it, just not the whole thing. It took about 30 minutes and we’ll pretend we could see it. And now you can see it too in these pictures we took! Nothing like starting your day with a volcano hike and wine, the breakfast of champions.
After visiting the volcano itself, we made our way to the city that it buried, Pompeii. It was a little difficult to follow Rick’s tour here given how confusing the streets are and that the off-season is when they do many of the renovations. The quieter times also meant there were lots of cats around, which was cute. We wandered our way around and sometimes learned a thing or two. We saw the preserved homes of people from different walks of life, walked along the streets with chariot grooves, and saw some of the newer excavations that are being done. On our way back to Naples it started pouring but we had one more tour to get to so we explored the Catacombs di San Gaudioso. Basically, rich people would pay for special tombs that were meant to get them into heaven. I can’t say how that worked out for them, but it did work out for the monks who wanted their money to build an extravagant church. The catacombs are indeed under a now very ornate basilica.
Florence – Firenze
We had hoped to spend some more time in Naples the next day but it continued to dump rain, so we headed onwards to Florence. The train ride was uneventful until we realized on our way to the hostel that we had left our suitcase on the train. So we took a nice little run and very narrowly made it in time to grab our bag. Crisis averted and lesson learned lol. Florence is, of course, where I studied abroad during undergrad so I was very excited to be back. On our first day there, I took Caleb on a little tour. We went to Mercato Centrale, Piazza del Duomo, Piazza della Republica, Piazza della Signoria (my fave), Ponte Vecchio, got Eduardos (!!), and finally Pizza Sante Croce (where my apartment was).
The next day was all about Palaces. We started with Palazzo Medici Riccardi, which was owned by the Medici and then the Riccardi family. It’s one of my favorite palaces in Florence because the decorations are so well preserved. It gives you a great sense of how much art and beauty were valued at the time and how it was incorporated into the living spaces. The family chapel, the Chapel of the Magi, is decorated with beautiful murals depicting the Medici family incorporated into religious scenes. The colors are still vibrant and the gold paint is shiny after 400 years. The other masterpiece here is in the Mirror Gallery, where the entire ceiling is frescoed with different scenes from Greek/Roman mythology. So many frescos from the Renaissance have been destroyed or faded over time, which makes this one even more breathtaking. It looks as if it was painted yesterday and immerses you in the beauty of the period.
After we finished at Palzzo Medici Riccardi and some lunch, we headed to our tour at Palazzo Vecchio. The building had many uses throughout history, and the tour mostly focused on when the Medici family lived there. This would be several generations after the Medici’s who lived in the other palace. This group essentially declared themselves rulers of Florence and occupied a government building — power move for sure. They decorated rooms with statues of Popes and other important figures in the family as well as murals of wars over neighboring areas that they played a part in winning. Very humble folk. Unrelated, they had secret passages and an escape route that exited out a neighboring building.
As we finished up the tour, we exited out into golden hour on Piazza della Signoria. This made for a very dramatic backgroundin photos of the statues. Behind the statue of Perseus slaying Medusa, you can also peep the one of the 3 David’s in Florence.
Day 3 was all about museums. We started at the Uffizi gallery. Originally, the building was used only for business by the Medici family, then they opened part of it to the public to display some of their art collection, and now it’s a museum. The Rick Steves tour was very interesting for this one as it explained the setup of the museum as a transition from Medieval to Renaissance art. In one room, you can compare 3 paintings of Madonna with child and see the subtle changes from 2D to 3D as well as the increasing realism of the figures. There are also rooms dedicated to some of the greats such as Boticelli (Primavera – left picture; Birth of Venus), Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Da Vinci. The top right picture is a Da Vinici painting depicting the Annunciation. If you’re wondering what exactly it is that makes Da Vinci paintings so masterful and compelling, Rick explained it’s a combination of anatomical accuracy, humanity, and personality.
Next we headed to Galleria dell’Acadmia to see the famous David. The picture on the far left was actually at Palazzo Vecchio and shows a practice version of David’s head, and now we know – his pupils are heart shaped. The middle and right pictures are the real deal though. I guess it is a universal experience (because I remember feeling the same way the first time I saw the statue), but Caleb was confused how a statue could evoke such an emotional reaction from him. There’s just something about it. Another cool part about this museum is that it includes unfinished works by Michelangelo. They’re all part of a series, in various stages of completion, so you’re able to see the sculpting process, and also see his unique process. Most sculptures map out their forms before starting work with the marble, but Michelanglo just went at it. He felt he was simply freeing the form from the marble itself, and seeing just an arm or a head poking out, it really does seem like that’s what he was doing.
On our last day in Florence, we explored Pizza del Duomo. We started by climbing the cupola and enjoying the views over the city. (If you’re planning to do this – be warned- it’s quite the hike and they only give each group a certain amount of time, so some slower folks had to head back down almost as soon as they got up.) After we made the journey back down, we looked around the inside of the church. There’s not much in there because they keep the items in the museum. After the church, we headed to the bell tower and climbed that – another 414 steps. In total, we climbed about half of the Empire State Building. The views from the bell tower out onto the Duomo were beautiful. If you had to choose one to climb, I’d go with the bell tower. Next, we went to the baptistery, which was under heavy renovation, so we moved on quickly. We ended with the museum, which had most of the original works, including paintings and statues from the church, and Giotto’s bronze doors for the bell tower.
After a short rest at the hostel, we ended the day at Piazzale Michelangelo. We walked from the hostel, passing Poggi’s grotto and the rose garden. I knew it would get crowded for sunset, so we got there early and had a little picnic before staking out a spot along the railing and taking in the views.
Some of the Florence food highlights — pistachio cornetti, panini, Eduardo’s gelato (twice, of course), and Caleb enjoying the hostel espresso machine. Some other notable dishes that we didn’t get pictures of were Caleb’s Florentine steak and my ribollita.
Bologna
Continuing up through Italy, we made a pit stop in Bologna. We were near the train station and about a 30-minute walk to the city center. We stopped for lunch at Osteria da Fortunanta, which has a couple of locations throughout Italy. I finally met my dairy match in a cacio e pepe dish. It was delicious, but the first omen that I would no longer be able to eat cheese. We wandered around for a bit and then stopped in a cafe for coffee to chill before our walking tour. The history of Bologna is a bit wild. Our first stop was the public library which, throughout time, has served as a private residence, Nazi headquarters, and a basketball court. Very versatile. For those (like me) who didn’t know, Mussolini sided with Hitler but then later fled Italy, at which point the people of Northern Italy rebelled against the occupation. A few of my favorite fun facts on the tour were about the pettiness of Popes. In the main square, there is a statue of Neptune (Nettuno) that was commissioned by a Pope, but the artist has some beef with him so he positioned Neptune’s hand in a way that it looks like a dick from a certain angle. The pope was so mad he wanted to cut off the artists’ hands, but alas, he fled to safety, the people of Bologna protected the statue from destruction, and we continue to be blessed with this piece of art. At another point in time, a man of science made a solar calendar in a church, and the Pope was angry because the Earth is supposed to be the center of the universe. So, naturally, he wanted to destroy the calendar and kill the man. Luckily, he did not succeed in doing either. And lastly (my favorite Pope story), during a jubilee year (2025 is one as well), many Catholics make a pilgrimage, with Rome and the Vatican being the most popular destinations. Well, this particular year, the Pope was not getting as many visitors as he would have liked, and he found out it was because the (alleged) bones of Saint Peter. The Pope was upset because someone else was getting all the attention, so he sent people to steal the bones, killed them so that no one would be able to snitch, and then filled the ENTIRE church with dirt. Incredible. Anyways, continuing on our tour, we walked through the food district and saw lots of local meats, cheeses, pastas, etc. Then we went to the university, which was one of the first in Italy to teach women, allow Jewish teachers, and teach anatomy. But the Popes of old never saw a good time they didn’t want to ruin, so the Pope at the time made all of those things illegal and bribed people to still go to the school by letting them put their family crest on the walls.
The second day in Bologna was a more chill one. We went back to some of the spots on the tour to explore some more. We started by checking out the ruins underneath the palace/basketball court/library. Then we went to the church with the solar clock, but it was too cloudy to see it in action. Then we went to the 7 churches of Bologna (one of which being the one the Pope filled with dirt), and then headed back to the Airbnb because I had an interview (spoiler alert: I got the job).
Como
Our last stop in Italy was Como (of lake fame). Since this was the halfway point on our trip, we decided it was time for some rest and relaxation, so we stayed in a hotel! More on the hotel later because even though I said rest, we spent most of the first day out exploring.
We headed over to the lake to catch a ferry to Varenna. The lake is huge, and there are views of hills and mountains all around, including the Swiss Alps. Even though we went in off-season, it was still fairly busy, so I can’t imagine what it’s like in the summer.
In Varenna, we headed up the hill to Castello di Vezio. This was a Caleb pick because he wanted to check out the plaster cast “dementors” (left pic). They also had some other cool stuff like owl rehab and really old fossils. Being up on the hill, there were also incredible views over the lake and the surrounding area. We spent a while just soaking in the views. Then we headed back down to catch the ferry back to Como, but oops, they were sold out. So we ended up taking a ferry to Bellagio where we had dinner before getting the ferry from there back to Como.
The second day, we spent the whole time at the hotel. We had the breakfast buffet, drinks and snacks, and dinner all there. In between meals, we watched some movies and just chilled. We took advantage of breakfast again the next day before hopping on the train to our first non-Italian destination.
Innsbruck
To kick off the post-Italy travels, we headed to Innsbruck Austria. The train went through Switzerland & the Austrian Alps, so it was definitely one of our most scenic train rides. Our first day started with some of the most exciting travel adventures to date – laundry and groceries. Once that was sorted, we headed into town.
We started out walking around the Old Town which had these super cute buildings with the Austrian Alps in the background. We ended up getting the city card like we did for Copenhagen and it definitely came in handy – especially because the sights of Innsbruck are more spread out so the free access to public transit on top of access to the attractions was very needed. The first card attraction we visited was the Imperial Court Church and Museum. The church was filled with statues of old royalty and the museum had a more everyday life focus. The coolest part of the museum was the recreations of “parlor” rooms throughout time showing the evolution of stubes (similar to stoves but way cooler), wood carvings as decorations, and dining room table styles. To end the night we went to a rooftop bar with a 360 view of Innsbruck to enjoy the sunset.
The next day, we kept it going with the views by taking the funicular to the “Top of Innsbruck” at Nordkette Mountain.
Here’s the view from up there! It was very beautiful and also a little terrifying being so high up with the slippery snow and areas that went right up to the edge. We spent some time wandering around and taking in the views from all the angles.
As we were headed back down on the funicular, one of the stops was for the Alpenzoo, so of course we had to check it out. The zoo is dedicated to rehabbing animals found naturally in Innsbruck/ similar alpine areas. There were some big animals like bears and vultures, and there were also lots of cute little fellows like this newt, sheep, and harvest mouse. 10/10 reccomend.
Apparently, we did a lot this day, because after that we headed to the Swarovski Crystal Museum. One of the coolest parts is before you even go in – it’s the bush/waterfall face pictured above decorated with actual Swarovski Crystals – insane.
There was lots of cool stuff to see inside too. The rooms are set up like art installations so there were different themes like a disco ball, “smashed” stuff, and a winter wonderland. The pictures above were from more of a museum section. The top left is Cinderella’s slipper from the recent live-action remake, the bottom left is the biggest (one of the biggest?) crystals, and the right is an Elton John outfit decorated with crystals.
The next day, we tried to see the views from a mountain on the other side of Innsbruck, Patscherkofelbahn, but it was too windy so we couldn’t take it all the way to the top. So we headed back to the ground and went to the Grassmayr Bell Foundry. The family has been making bells for centuries and the museum went over the history of bells from their conception to the present day. There were also lots of opportunities to ring various bells which was very fun.
Normally I do the food post at the end, but these are the only food pics I took (even though we had a couple of tasty treats). These are from Karaffe, which I wish we had discovered sooner. They’re known for their pistachio treats and it is very well-deserved hype. As you can see, we forgot to even take pictures, but take my word for it – the pistachio cheesecake and loaf were both beautiful and delicious. The matcha and coffee were tasty as well.
We ended our time in Austria visiting the Schloss Ambras Castle. I’ve heard a lot about the Ottoman Empire, but I think this is the first time my brain actually processed that it was a real thing and also happened relatively recently. Due to the frequent interactions between Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian, the cultures had a large influence on each other. Some parts of the castle displayed armor, others had a collection of art, and others just showed how the living quarters were. We also explored the grounds which had lovely views of the mountains and quite a few peacocks.
Budapest
We didn’t make any plans for Budapest before arriving, so we decided to go on a walking tour to get to know the city a bit. This tour was of the “Pest (pesh)” side, which is considered to be the more metropolitan side with lots of restaurants and nightlife. We learned about St. Stephen’s Cathedral – built by the first king of Hungary, the WWII memorial, and looked across the river at the “Buda” side, and saw the parliament building.
After the tour, we headed to the Ruins Bar, which I completely forgot I had been to before. The walls are covered in graffiti and other art so that it looks sort of like an abandoned building, but it actually has a bunch of different bars inside. We were there in the daytime so we walked around and looked at the art. We did get some drinks, but we didn’t really end up drinking them – guess we maxxed out our day drinking at Mt. Vesuvius lol. There is a food truck area right outside, so we grabbed food there. We spent the rest of the day chilling before heading to a brewery for dinner where Caleb tried a couple of fun Lord of the Rings-inspired brews and I had a very tasty lemonade.
The next day, we were on a mission. There is an artist named Kolodko who makes mini statues and hides them throughout the city. The subject of each statue holds some significance tied to the location it’s in. For example, the top left statue is Mr.Bean’s bear (dead) at the location of the former British Embassy before Brexit. The hardest one to find was the man in the boat (bottom right) because it’s hidden in the railing of a bridge. In total, I think we walked about about 7 miles to find these ones, and we didn’t even see them all!
And 7 miles wasn’t enough for us because after that we went on a walking tour of the “Buda” side. We learned some more of the city’s history and also saw the castle and some of the government buildings. There’s some controversy because the government is investing a lot of money into restoring the castle when the Hungarian people think that money should be going towards schools and healthcare.
The plan for the next day had been to leave early for Poland, but we ended up taking a later train to go to the Star Wars experience. It was a super nig collection of memorabilia like pieces of the film set, signed figurines, and replicas of stuff. They also let you play with lightsabers which was my favorite part.
Here I am licking a chimney cake in Budapest and Caleb trying to one-up me by licking the wall of a salt mine in Poland. After the Star Wars exhibit, we spent the rest of the day on the train to Poland. The first train had little cabin things like the ones in Harry Potter which was pretty cool. We almost missed our connecting train which would’ve gotten us stranded in a random town overnight, but that didn’t happen which was also very cool.
Poland
During our time in Poland, Kraków was our home base, and we took a number of day trips to different places.
On our first day in Poland, we took it easy in the morning before heading to Wieliczka Salt Mine in the afternoon. The full mine is HUGE – the tour guide said you could spend months down there and still not see the whole thing. We didn’t have months so we opted for the 3-hour walking tour. It’s no longer an active mine so it’s set up more like a museum with old equipment, replicas, statues (like the ones pictured), and even a church complete with salt carvings. The walls and ceilings in most of the mine are completely covered in salt which is why Caleb decided to lick the wall. We also got some salt to go from the gift store as well. Post salt mine, we had our first pierogies of many (Caleb’s obsession).
The following day we went on a guided tour of Auschwitz and Auschwitz-Birkenau. It’s a heart-wrenching experience that highlights the absolute worst of humanity. There are also stories of the goodness of humanity, mainly the victims supporting each other and finding joy even in the darkest of times. We were there a few days after the 80th anniversary of liberation. It’s scary to think that the Holocaust was so recent and similarly hateful sentiments are on the rise across the globe.
Back in Krakow the next day, we did some exploring around the city. Walking through the Jewish District, we saw some memorials, synagogues, and quite a few murals. We also passed through Plac Nowy (the old square) where there were some food and goods vendors.
Then we continued on to the new square and admired some of the architecture. We also visited the underground museum which is an interactive exploration of the old old square – the foundations of which are under the new square. You could walk the old streets, learn about archeological finds, and participate in some reenactments. It was very interesting and there was a lot of information you could read.
The next day we did a tour of the Tatra Mountain region. We expected it to be more out in nature, but I think it was the wrong time of year because it was quite cold. The places we went very tourist-heavy with lots of stalls selling toys and souvenirs. The first stop was to try some highland cheese which is smoked over a fire and served with jam. It was very tasty and squeaky like halloumi. Then we went to Zapokane which was very crowded. There’s a super long line to take the funicular to the top (see the view on the left) and then the town itself shops to go into. The last stop was an old wooden church with the mountains in the background.
On our last day in Poland, we went to Wawel Castle which is the royal castle and was occupied by Hitler during WWII. The tour guide told us a bunch of great information, but I can’t remember much. I think my brain was overstuffed with new knowledge from everything we learned on this trip so far. There was also a dragon’s den, but it was closed so we didn’t get to meet the dragon.
Some silly times in Krakow. Slay pierogina!
Poland had some really tasty eats. Caleb made it his personal mission to eat as many pierogies as humanly possible. I lucked out with some of the best vegan food I’ve ever had at No Bones (we ended up going twice). We also tried some vodka. To me, it tasted like vodka, but Caleb enjoyed his flight (left pic). The picture on the far right is the highland chees from our Tatra day trip. The doughnuts (second from left) are from a popular chain called Dobra Pączkarnia. The one with the orange peel is probably the best doughnut I’ve had in my life. 10/10 recommend all the food in Poland.
Edinburgh
After Poland, we flew over to Scotland. We stayed in Edinburgh, but on our first day, we took a day trip to Dunbar which is a little coastal town about a 30-minute train ride from the city. We checked out the port area where Dunbar Castle used to be and Caleb had fun playing with the mini cannons.
We walked through town a bit and came across a statue of John Muir because, as it turns out, Dunbar is his birthplace. For those who may not know, John Muir is a famous naturalist who played an important role in the creation of the National Park System in the United States and was an advocate for conservation. He is credited with a few popular quotes such as, ” The mountains are calling and I must go”.
Perhaps I could have guessed Dunbar and John Muir were connected because we went there to walk the Muir trail. The trail followed along the coast which resulted in pretty views and windy times. It was an out-and-back trail and the furthest point out was at the beach so we stopped there to have our Tesco meal deal lunch and watch a doggo play some fetch. Then we walked back the way we came and caught the train back to Edinburgh.
On our walk back from the train station we passed by the famous pup statue and got great views of the castle.
The next day, we explored Edinburgh with Rick as our guide. We started at Edinburgh Castle, but didn’t go in, and then made our way down the Royal Mile. We made a stop at the Writer’s Museum and learned about some of Scotland’s most famous writers. Then we went into the Parliament Building because Rick told us we could if we asked nicely and he was right. When we came back out, it was pouring so we went to a highly recommended hot chocolate place and back to the hostel to wait out the rain. By the time it had settled, it was time for us to go on our ghost tour which was indeed spooky and you can ask Caleb about it because I’ve done my best to block it from my memory. After the tour, we continued along the Royal Mile stopping to see St. Giles Cathedral, the Tollbooth Tavern, and Holyrood Palace.
Then (because we hadn’t done enough walking?) we walked to Calton Hill and were rewarded with a pretty view over the city and Arthur’s Seat at sunset. After that, we had some food at Edinburgh Street Food and decided to see the Bob Dylan biopic at the theater next door.
The next day, we started out at two of the free museums in Edinburgh- The People’s Museum and Edinburgh Museum. The People’s Museum tells the stories of everyday people in Edinburgh throughout history which was interesting and also, it seems, very stinky at times. Edinburgh Museum is more about the history of the city itself.
Then we continued on to Arthur’s Seat for a wee hike. As we got near the top, there was a full double rainbow! It was beautiful and we stopped to admire it for a bit before the rain started coming in. Then we trekked the last little bit to the summit. It was very windy and rainy at that point so we just turned around to head back down. We stopped at the hot chocolate place again to warm up before heading back to the hostel.
Some more views of the rainbow.
Edinburgh also had some top eats. Caleb’s sister, Megan, gave us a lot of great recommendations. Knoops is the hot chocolate place we went to twice – you could fully customize your drink and it was delicious. Edinburgh Street Food was also great. It’s sort of an indoor market with a bunch of food stands you can order from. One of the best bites from there was pineapple tacos. They’re a big reason we returned there for a second night. We also ate a lot of Tesco meal deals because balance.
The next day I woke up very sick, but we had to get from Edinburgh to Belfast so Caleb pretty much dragged me along on the train to Glasgow, bus to Cairynanne, ferry to Belfast, and Uber to the Airbnb. Taking the ferry was on my bucket list, so I’m sad I didn’t really get to enjoy it, but it was very nice ferry, almost like a cruise ship, which was good because I was able to sleep for most of it.
Belfast
The next day I was not feeling much better, but I had a tattoo appointment so… I got the tattoo. And then slept for the rest of the day. To give a quick recap of the rest of our time in Ireland. Caleb and I ended up getting an Airbnb in Galway for 2 days while I recovered and he rested because I got him a little sick too. Then we spent 2 days with Jean and Niamh at their place in Knocknacarra and met up with some of my friends from the Lighthouse to say our final goodbyes.
El fin
And that’s a wrap folks! We had so much fun during our time in Ireland and on all of our trips. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Belle's Study Abroad 