OK, so our time in Dublin was fun and informative, but I was itching to see the Ireland I only see in postcards sent by my drunk Irish friends who go to visit the 'home country'.
On our 3rd day, the boy and I got our rental car and headed south to meet up with some friends of his, Castro and Alice. It was the perfect opportunity to learn to drive on the left side of the road! It was a little adjustment and all was well until I encountered my first roundabout. God, I hate those effin' things, but I have to admit, it facilitates traffic beautifully. As we started south, the countryside was revealed and it was glorious! Even in the wintertime, it was green and fresh. I could only imagine what it looked like in full bloom!
We finally got to Wexford in the south, a waterfront town that is just the cutest, to pick up Castro and Alice and we headed out to the Irish National Heritage Center to find out about life in the Stone and Bronze ages and other ages I can't remember. It's so weird to be in a country that has more than 300 years of history. Our guide was super knowledgeable and we learned a ton about Ireland in that short period of time.
I should mention at this point that it is freezing and we start the drive up to Carrickmacross, north of Dublin, which will be our home for the next few days and where the wedding of Sean's friends, Janet and Potso, will be taking place. Wouldn't you know that as soon as it got dark it started snowing! Not even a day earlier someone asked me if it snowed in Ireland and I was like, nah, it never gets cold enough, so now I was speechless. It was good snow too, the kind you use for really good snowballs. We finally get to Carrickmacross and check into The Lodge Bed & Breakfast (run by the sweetest woman on earth) and proceed to meet up with all the other travelers at one of 22 pubs in this small town of 2000 people. Yup, you do the math...
The next day was spent recovering from the last few days of boozing and touring so a rest day was in order. The boys had their 'stag' party for Potso, which entailed boozing at a local pub all day and Alice and I got manicures :) Once of my favorite days of the trip came on Saturday when Sean, Alice, Castro, Tim, Laura and I headed north to Carlingford for the day. Just when you think you can't see anything prettier or quainter, here you have it! A castle on the water, rolling hills, and quiet town center, what more can you ask for?
I've posted the wedding pics on the right side for you to peruse since I'm running out of time for posting since I'm leaving in a few hours for Bangkok. As you will see, the wedding was a gorgeous affair that left me with a nasty hangover. I still don't know how people were ordering drinks at the bar the next day. With a heavy heart I said goodbye to my new friends, Irish and Australian alike and drove back to Dublin with Sean for a night at the oh so classy Travelodge. We woke up early and caught the earliest flight imaginable in the morning back to Philly. The trip was incredible and only fueled my desire for more international travel!
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