Blarney PICTURES!

And finally, here are some pictures from our visit to Blarney Castle! And the rest can be found here :)

Inside the castle

The view from up top of the gardens and Blarney House

Looking down into the castle and preparing myself to kiss the Blarney stone!

Kissing the Blarney stone! And us eloquent ladies :)

Amongst the Castle grounds

An awesome tree and the Blarney House

We love nature.

Tree huggers unite! and we found a fun play area?

Playing on the ropes!

Cute little copse along the castle

It's all so pretty!

Messing in the dungeons and a view of Blarney Castle

Cork PICTURES!

And here are a few from Cork, with the rest here!

Pretty church down the street from our hostel (I forget the name) and a freaky mannequin on the street

Our "snack" and on the road to Cork!

Our "dinner" (poor planning on our part) and a pretty castle alone the way

They have Alabama represented! And the other reminded me of Watson :)

St. Patrick's Church of the purple doors

Along the river in Cork!

Our lovely first dinner in Cork, and the pageboy has a secret!

He wanted a kiss I guess, and looking down the bar at the oldest pub in Cork!

Dublin PICTURES!

Included are some fabulous pictures from our experiences in Dublin! And here's the link to the entire album. You're welcome!

In the hostel and ready to explore! And a pic of a Irish band performing on Grafton

A real live leprechaun! and Channing showing the only other women in red. I'm stylish.

Bulmers cider beer = delicious! And the restaurant had an Alabama Slammer!

A gift from a boy at Captain America's: a mini origami elephant! And entering Trinity College

At Trinity College then St. Stephen's Green

Statue by St. Stephan's Green and our first Guinness of the trip!

We found fun masks at the street market

Dublin Castle!

The chairs on the lawn and opening the door to Christchurch Cathedral

Christchurch Cathedral and a fun lamb we saw

The Irish apparently love the vikings and Guiness Brewery!

Whitney Houston died? and a Cinderella carriage!

Irish band at The Celt, and the Irish boys showing us how to dance

Dublin Collage!

Will add photos later but until then, hopefully this will suffice! In the process of adding them online now so I can share them. :)

Getting to first with the Blarney Stone

Yesterday was another eventful day! We got up early while we were still in Cork to go visit Blarney Castle and kiss the famous Blarney stone. And of course, Channing and I took full advantage of our cameras and camera-whored to the max.

Blarney Castle was pretty sweet although some of the staircases were so narrow we wondered how the servants ever made it up them. I guess this is one reason why everyone was so skinny in the Middle Ages. We also kissed the Blarney stone! And were kind of disappointed that it's supposed to make you eloquent, not give you good luck. But we're going to pretend the latter, why not?

After that we got on the bus back to Dublin so we could enjoy our last night in Ireland to the fullest. Upon our return, of course the first thing we do is search out some cupcakes. We had seen some the other night but when we passed by it again it was closed. So we promised ourselves we'd go back and get some (no judgements). They lived up to expectations and the place also provided a delicious and cheap dinner! Hurray!

Then we walked O'Connell Street, getting in a view of the Spire and other statues while also stopping in some stores. And you'd be so proud of us, we didn't buy anything! So next we went on a hunt to find a place to meet some more genuine Irish people. The first bar was a bust so we did a little research to find a better option. Of course, it didn't really occur to us that it was a Monday night and even in Ireland people might not be out.

We did eventually find a place, Pygmalion, with a local clientele who we ended up meeting. We met Magnus (pronouced Man-us, the g is silent), Kevin, and Stuart. Manus is an actor so of course we got his autograph in the event he makes it big so we can say we knew him when! Kevin had a talent for impersonating people in a high pitched voice that had us rolling and Stuart looked like Shia LeBouf. There were a couple others but their names escape me.

All in all, it was a fun night and learned that Dubliners are unfamiliar with the language the boys from the other night taught us. They called them "cultchies" or "bog" because they were from the countryside, so I guess everyone has these prejudices haha. But Channing and I have decided we're going to use what we learned from the cultchies anyway! And we've gotten quite good at impersonating an Irish accent if we do say so ourselves because we've been repeating some of the more memorable lines.

Sorry for lack of pictures so far

So as my mother has so kindly pointed out to me, we haven't uploaded any pictures. But don't worry they'll be coming soon!

I just put some from my camera onto my computer so I'll try to get them uploaded here today. And we'll also blog about Blarney castle while we're at it because we took LOADS of pictures there.

So patience please =) and we're about to be in London!

Cleary, did you cut the cheese?

Taking advantage of this free wifi to describe our evening in Dublin with the Irish boys.

We started by going to Sinott's (at the top of Grafton Street) to watch the Champions League final (GO BLUES!). The place was packed and if course, the males heavily outnumbered the females which was not a problem at all. We found a place to stand that wasn't too in the way and asked some lads what we had to do to get a drink. A good opener, no?

This group of boys all had VERY Irish names: Sean, Conor, Niall, Darren, Barry, and Mark. They were pretty fun and hilarious so we didn't mind spending time with them. Eventually we got tired of not being able to move so the boys persuaded us to come to another pub with them. Neither Channing nor I would chug the rest of our beer so... We smuggled them outside underneath our coats. Can't say thats the first time I've done that either but oh well.

We waited outside for the others and eventually started to walk towards Flannery's? We never made it there so I'm not sure how it's spelled. We were walking with Sean and Conor an they decided to take us to The Celt "a true Irish bar" and who were we to say no? So off we went!

What resulted was a fun night and us learning a lot of the Irish lingo which I will now impart to you:

Bagel: a weirdo or really big jerk
Tuned in: someone who knows what's going on
Kickety mare kickety foal: like father like son
Bacon: corned beef
Brashers: bacon
Make it large: turn the volume up
Feeders: breasts
Shifting: kissing
Simple: not very bright or smart, idiotic
Hurling: Irish sport which looks like field hockey on crack
Tirty-tree: thirty three
Craic: a good time, enjoyable person or experience

Also one of the best stories about the lads: we're in the cab and all of a sudden it smells pretty bad. Conor accuses Sean, "Cleary, did you cut the cheese?" and Channing and I have a giggle-fit. Because, who says cuts the cheese anymore??? And with the Irish accent, it's just too much. Then Sean is all "I swear, it weren't me!" and Channing I definitely aren't the culprits so Conor accuses the cab driver! Who doesn't say a word... So I guess we know who the guilty party is!

Through recounting this story countless times Channing and I have become quite good at our irish accents. Or at least we think so haha.

But there's the highlights from that night in Dublin! We're on the bus back to Dublin from Cork at the moment and still savoring our tour of Blarney Castle and our smooch with the Blarney stone. More to come soon!

Legs. Are in. Pain.

Well, Channing and I had another successful day in Ireland! Too much walking but I'm sure our legs will recover! Or they better.

We started out the day with a trip to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells, and ended with a tour of the Dublin nightlife with some real Irishmen (but more on that later).

The Book of Kells is pretty neat and it's amazing to think how well preserved it is and how detailed when you think of how old it is. But I guess some monks had a lot of time on their hands. Err... Or a "saint" did.

After that we got distracted because we saw TopShop (fabulous British clothing store, look it up) and ran to it! I didn't end up buying anything because it indulged myself yesterday at Zara (love that place!) but Channing got a fabulous dress. Definitely going to make someone ask where it's from so she can go "Europe!" We are achieving our goals =)

Then we took a tour of St. Stephan's Green which is a pretty cool little park with a lot of greenery! There were some really fat seagulls which was a little disconcerting but you know, when in Dublin...

We also made our way to ChristChurch Cathedral where we were sorely tempted by the amount of baked goods surrounding it. Fortunately we stayed strong and were repaid with a fabulous traditional Irish meal at a pub called Harry's near Grafton Street. It was delicious! And paired very well with the Guiness's we both ordered. Yum.

Dublin Castle was next and that was cool to see buildings like that in the middle of the city. But overall, it was a little underwhelming. The highlight was definitely when we finally found the Chester Beatty library (the signs wanted to take us through buildings you couldn't go through...), and there's a beautiful green right in front of it. And on said green there were three random chairs we're guessing were from an event that morning. Of course, we wanted to get a picture sitting in them because they were so out of place, so... We did. And we just ignored all of the odd looks. Go big or go home!

We then decided to leg it to the Guinness Brewery to buy some souvenirs for people. Funny thing is you can't really get in without a ticket but we persuaded the nice Irish lass to let us in because we only wanted to visit the gift shop and she obliged! Once up there, true to our word, we only visited the gift shop but believe me when I say we thought about doing the tour. There wasn't another ticket checkpoint so we could have just caught up with a group! So here's a travel tip to those going to the brewery in the future: just say you want to go to the gift shop and they'll let you up!

Well that was most of our day, but there's so much more to tell from the evening's activities. We can provide you with a nice list of Irish slang that we learned but that will have to wait for later. I don't want to overwhelm you!

But top of the morning to you from our bus to Cork! We'll be there soon ad then we'll be smooching the blarney stone! =)

Our first adventure

So we made it safely to Dublin AND had our first adventure today!

It all started when our flight to London was delayed in landing because apparently Heathrow was really busy (wouldn't they know these things beforehand since it's one of the busiest in the world?), but eventually we were able to land. And then we had to find out what terminal we should be on for our next flight. As luck would have it, it wasn't the one we were currently on.

So we take the nice little 10 minute bus ride over to terminal 1 from terminal 5. This is about 11:30 when our flight is at 12:05. So we get off the bus and are like well I guess there's no stamping of the passport? Wrong.

We wait in line while the lady grills us about how long we'll be in the UK, to which the answer is hopefully not much longer since our flight leaves in 30 minutes. So a little flustered, we make it through only to find out we have to go through additional security checkpoints. So a face scanning, bag scanning, another face scanning, and 15 minutes later, we're on our way to gate 84. Easy peasy, right? Wrong.

I think we walked (err... ran) at least a mile because this terminal was so huge, and empty. The signs told us it would take 15 minutes to reach our gate from the current point we were at, and challenge accepted! So we run/walk all the way from gate 1 to gate 84. And have about 5 minutes before our flight is supposed to leave.

When we get there, we see a crowd of people and THEY HAVEN'T EVEN STARTED BOARDING YET. I'm glad we got that memo before we ran the whole way there. But never fear, we made it. We handled all the stares from the other passengers and were A-Ok.

So long story short, we ran but we made our flight! So we're currently in Dublin, all cosy in our hostel and happy after a good meal :)

2 DAYS!

So Channing and I have both somehow come down with some sort of sickness. Timing is everything apparently. But at least it's before we left so I could go to the doctor and get the drugs necessary to get rid of this nasty sinus infection. Thank goodness for antibiotics!!!

In other news... 53 HOURS TO BLASTOFF! It still hasn't hit me that I'm going to be in Europe this time in less than 3 days. But I'm pretty much all packed and ready except for a few items that I'll need to use before leaving Thursday. So crazy. I'm worried I don't have enough but of course I've probably packed too much. Such is life right?

And to manage expectations, I hope to update as much as possible which may mean a picture here or there and a post every two days or so. Hopefully. But depending on internet availability it may be longer than that.

Thanks for coming along for the ride and hopefully I'll have tons of fun stuff to update on!

Security! I got a complicated order

So as the day gets closer and closer (4 days!), Channing and I are in the midst of planning our packing. One thing I have decided is that I hate terrorists. Because of them I can't bring my normal sized shampoo, conditioner, body wash, face wash, etc. In addition, I can't bring a razor or fingernail clippers. In effect, terrorists are making my goal of staying clean while traveling very difficult. So not fair.

However, since I ended up not having to work bootcamp last night, I did begin packing! I suppose that shows how excited I am for us to embark on this journey. I think I've identified what all I need to take and have planned accordingly, but it stinks that I can't bring more. But I suppose that's a blessing in disguise because then I'd have to lug around all those extra pounds.

But I digress, nothing and no one can bring me down because in 80 hours I'll be on a plane to Europe! And that only just now hit me that the number is in the double digits. Huzzah!

I caved.

I blame Amy.

7 Days and I can't focus

I'm supposed to be working on my white paper. Especially since the direction I'm taking with it was changed today. But you know what I'm doing? Shopping. For Europe.

It's not like I really even have money to buy tons of things to wear but I just want to look good while I'm representing America overseas. Is that too much to ask? And now I must beg the question, why aren't clothes less expensive?

However, I'm going to try to stem the urge to buy clothes here in the US so I can buy fantastic European clothes. And then when someone says, "Oh that's cute! Where did you get it?" I can be all smug and go "Oh, just you know, Europe." Ha, that will be so much fun! So, I think I will save my money so I can do that. Yeah, I will.

9 DAYS

I've come to the conclusion that I'm so ready to be done with school. I take Channing to the airport tomorrow and then I won't be seeing her until May 17th when we leave. So sad! But it gets me thinking about what I'm going to pack. For 3 weeks and one bag, this is going to be quite the challenge; but as Barney (HIMYM) says, "Challenge accepted!"

I've already decided on one sundress because it seems indestructible and what better to have while touring Europe than an indestructible dress? I guess I'll go from there and try to pack things that 1. can be layered and 2. go with a lot of things.

So much to think about! But I'd much rather be thinking about this than school. It's gross.