The Eire Diaries Finale

04 June 2007

Kilkenny is the Irish version of Newport Beach. Or the nightlife is at least.
After our dinner of pesto pasta and garlic, we stopped at Dunnes and bought a couple tall boys of Carlsberg and drank them by the River Nore, as we surveyed the scene across at Matt The Miller’s. It looked like a good crowd and they were playing excellent dancing music. So we pounded our beers, took some silly pictures, and made our way over the river.We began to feel a little underdressed as we passed cliques of Irish girls in dresses and stilettos. And as soon as we entered the pub/club (we called it a plub) we instantly knew we didn’t want to be there. It was so crowded, I understood what it truly felt like to be sardined. I mean, it was more crowded than Malarkey’s on a Thursday night. More crowded than Sharkeez HB on any night. More crowded than Gallagher’s in HB on St. Patty’s Day. Like, I don’t even think they have Max. Occ. laws in Ireland. Needless to say, we left, and walked back toward our hostel to go to The Pumphouse, which is directly across the street from our room’s windows. We ordered Carlsbergs (our mascot beer, I suppose) and Kenz sneakily swiped a fresh bottle of Heineken that had been sitting on the bar all lonely and ignored.
We didn’t stay long, and crossed the little road to our hostel after sneaking out the side door of The Pumphouse holding our near-full pints of Carlsberg in plain sight the whole, short way. Mel

The sleeping beauties/Irish cuties devolved into loud, obnoxious, drunkety drunk drunk lads as they returned to the room at an unknown, ungodly hour, nearly waking everyone in the hostel with their brazen antics. I’m pretty certain one of them drank my water too. Kenz and I packed up our stuff this morning, loudly, and tried to catch the Rabbit Express bus back to Dublin because it was cheaper. But we waited for a bus that never showed. Holiday weekend. So we went to an internet cafe, with over an hour to kill until the Bus Eireann to Dublin would show. Then we walked to the rail station and hopped on the bus. We slept much of the way despite the loud Irish girl with the annoying scratchy voice.
Finally arriving back in Dublin was a bittersweet denouement, a certainty after two weeks of uncertainties, the anti-climax after a thrilling rollercoaster ride: We have but one night left in Ireland. Mel

We spent that night as well as possible though! After securing beds at Globetrotter’s, (a super nice hostel, on par with Sleepzone) we had lunch at a little place on O’Connell, shopped at Dunnes one last time and relaxed for a bit before deciding we needed to have at least one more pint of good ol’ Irish Guinness before journeying back to the States. So we left Globetrotter’s and crossed Gardiner Streer into O’Shea’s, a hotel/restaurant/pub on the corner of Gardiner and Talbot. We ordered our pints, enjoyed the live Irish music, split a pint of Murphy’s and resigned ourselves to the fact that, all good things must come to an end as the saying goes (thanks Kenz!), and it was finally time to go to sleep, in anticipation of our early morning departure from Ireland. Mel

journal entry . day 14 . Kilkenny & Dublin

05 June 2007

I am sitting on the airplane next to Mackensy. We are on our way back to sunny California. Whether or not it is actually sunny there remains to be seen, but I would pretty much bet my life on it.
We woke just after six this morning, had our fill of the complimentary Irish breakfast and packed our stuff. We walked the short distance to the bus station in the beautiful warm sunshine, OF COURSE, and lamented the end of our wonderful trip. We took happy face and sad face pictures on the bus and waved good bye to Dublin, the city that really did grow on us. We said good bye to Ireland, the country we know well now, the country that has endeared itself in our hearts with every step we took while on its soil. We say good bye, but not forever. One could never visit Ireland and not want to ever return. Or at least I can’t imagine feeling that way. I have such a greater appreciation for this country, its culture and its people, and my distant heritage. I will definitely be back. Eire go bragh. Ireland forever… Mel

The Eire Diaries – days 4 & 5

25 May 2007

We saw Pirates! It was sooo good! The theatre was amazing too. I think, other than going to the pubs, that going to the movies is THE thing to do in Ireland, or Dublin anyway. There are six floors to the theatre, wiht cafes, lounges, all kinds of eateries, Ben and Jerry’s, and it was PACKED. Granted we did go on the opening night. When you buy you tickets they assign your seat, and three different attendants checked our tickets as we searched for the correct theatre.
Going to the movies is such a nice escape from reality for a few hours. But at the end of the three hours as the credits rolled, and the lights brightened, reality sank in as we remembered we were not at Big Newport or Triangle Square. “Wanna go to Big Belly?” Mackensy joked. I have to admit, I felt a little homesick! We walked down the empty streets of Dublin in the rain, back to our hostel and went to bed. I hardly slept; the room felt like a meat locker, and top bunks are not my idea of comfortable beds. I think I have repressed memories from childhood, of falling off the top bunk. This morning we woke and went downstairs to breakfast which consisted of corn flakes and instant coffee. (I’m beginning to realize that instant coffee is really popular here, or maybe it is just a cheap hostel thing.) After a bit of email checking and necessity shopping ( & Mackensy realizing she lost her ATM card! ) we headed off for Galway. Ciao! Mel

***

I LOVE GALWAY! It is so beautiful here! It is quaint and charming, even though it is one of the largest cities in Ireland. And it’s relatively sterile when compared with Dublin, especially Temple Bar, where the streets are filthy with broken beer bottle glass in all different colors and cigarette butts filling the cracks between cobblestones. If I felt homesick in Dublin, I feel at home here in Galway.
It was a four-hour bus ride of narrow, winding motorways, through even smaller, quaint towns, like Ballinasloe and Athlone to name a few. The views were gorgeous; luscious green fields, adorned with cows and sheep and horses, beautiful country homes, and acres of land separated by centuries-old stone walls, so intricate and delicate, each stone purposefully and carefully set. They look like they could easily be knocked over, yet many have stood there longer than our country has been a country. Finally arriving in Galway (Gaillimh in Gaelic), I knew instantly that I’d love it. We were dropped off directly in front of Eyre Square, where JFK visited months before his assassination. Our hostel is right in city centre, a few blocks from the square. (And it is SOOO nice! The hostels just keep gettimg better!) At the moment we are sitting in a cafe called Java’s, relaxing after our lunch, and planning the rest of our days here in Eire. Mel

journal entry . day 4 . Dublin & Galway .

26 May 2007

Kenz and I are sitting on the patio of a pub off Quay Street. (pronounced Key). I’m having a pint and Kenz, a cappuccino, while we write and watch people stroll by. Saturday is busy here in Galway, hundreds of tourists and such, walking around and filling the pubs and shops. We went to a wonderful farmer’s market that wraps through the tiny alleyways and narrow streets around the Church of St. Nicholas, where, legend has it, that Christopher Columbus went to pray before sailing the ocean and discovering the “new world”. At the market I bought a little painting of The Quays, a popular bar on Quay Street. The paintor himself, Kevin McCarthy, had a wall of his work at the market, about two dozen paintings varying in size, of pubs, or storefronts, or the river walk (also called the quay), and they were all so beautiful, I wanted to buy more. The painting I got is oil on dental plaster! I think they all were though. It is little and in a frame he made as well. Perhaps one day he’ll be famous and I’ll have an original McCarthy! I went to The Quays, the actual pub, and took a picture, to go along with my painting Mel

***

It is pouring rain. I love the rain, but not when I’m on holiday, and meant to be sightseeing. And not when I don’t rain clothes or at least a heavy jacket. Today has become lazy and sleepy and, as we’ve been indoors most of the day, very boring. I took a long walk a bit ago, towards the quay to see all the swans, but the swans will have to wait till another day. I turned around and went back to the hostel. It is too cold and too windy, and even with an umbrella I was nearly soaked. I’m sitting in the kitchen having tea and eating muesli and wondering what in the world to do with myself. I really don’t even want to go to the pubs tonight, to spend money I shouldn’t be spending, and trying to look cute in the windy and rain. It just takes so much effort and energy, energy that has been sucked out of me by this damp day. Perhaps it rains the rest of our trip?!?! Oh, I hope not, we’ll be quite miserable… Mel

journal entry . day 5 . Galway .

The Eire Diaries – day 3

24 May 2007

I awoke this morning a bit hungover, and very parched. It was early, perhaps 6 or 7, and I got up to pee, glancing into the hall and around the corners on my way to the bathroom because I was in my underwear and a longsleeve t shirt I went back to sleep after returning unnoticed (thank goodness!) and we didn’t wake up till eleven! At least we slept through the night this time. We dressed and checked out. I stopped in a pharmacy to purchase Sudafed, as my ears are STILL very plugged. It is no longer painful, just uncomfortable and annoying, for my hearing is even more diminished than normal.
We are now in a different hostel, in a different neighborhood, near the O’Connell Street Spire. The hostel here, called Browns, is bigger, nicer, and although we don’t have a private room, (we’re in a 20-bed girls only dormitory!) I am so glad we decided to move. It is cheaper, cleaner, the beds are more comfortable, there is toilet paper! the women’s locker facility is huge, and we don’t have to share toilets with guys (ick). And it actually has a “well-equipped” kitchen. Taking a comfortable shower was wonderful and now we are just relaxing. After two days of much walking I think we needed a little downtime. I am sitting in the large dining/living room with lots of tables, a tv, vending machines, and even a pool table. The whole place is like a labyrinth; our dorm is up 5 flights of twisting stairs and hallways. The communal living are and locker rooms are underground, and shaped like tunnels. No windows obviously, but very cool place indeed. Mel

***

We saw a movie poster for Pirates of The Caribbean earlier and the movie opens TODAY! I don’t even think it is out in the States yet…I think we might forego hitting up the pubs tonight to enjoy a little Johnny and Orlando Mel

***

Oh, I met a girl named Cara in the locker room earlier. She’s from Barcelona and we talked for a bit, half in English, half in Spanish. I got in the shower and as she left she yelled “Ciao Mayleessa!” So cute I returned the “Ciao!” eagerly. I love that word, I’m going to start saying it all the time, everyone else does here! Ciao! Mel

journal entry . day 3 . dublin .

The Eire Diaries – day 2

23 May 2007

“Fighting Irish” is certainly not just a quippy mascot at an American university. Kenz and I were woken twice last night. We watched as one guy was kicked and beaten by a group of guys, as he curled into a ball in the middle of the narrow street. After they walked away, he stood up and started yelling at them (screaming that he was Irish and saying ‘fook you!’) just to get beaten down again. Even from two stories up and a few buildings over I could see the blood dripping down his face. He was a mess.
Not even two hours after that, a screaming girl and her quiet boyfriend argued on a stoop across the other street. We had to listen to her shriek for nearly two hours. The phrase ‘fooking asshole!’ was her favorite. As we really hadn’t gotten any sleep, we got up at around five, had some juice and bread from the “well-equipped” kitchen in Cobblestone’s (yeah, not so much), got dressed and walked the streets of Dublin. The only people out were the sidewalk and street cleaners, eliminating the remains of the previous night’s festivities. They stared at us as if we were crazy, to be up at five a.m. without having to be at work. We tried to go into Trinity College but even the campus was closed. Apparently NOTHING is open before 8 or 9 o’clock here. Not even cafes. Mel

***
We walked to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and it is so beautiful. Jonathan Swift is buried there, alongside his wife. The stained glass is just so amazing. It is surreal to stand in a place and to look at something so old, knowing that throughout hundreds of years, millions of people have walked through, history has happened and some of my favorite literary heroes knew it very well.It makes you feel so inconsequential to the world. I was in complete awe.
Guinness Storehouse! After St. Patrick’s, we walked to St. James’s Gate. The tour was very cool. Plus we got cute girl discounts! I didn’t have my student ID, but got the discount anyway. Right now, we’re sitting at a circular glass bar enjoying our free pint of Guinness. Mackensy spotted our new friends, Dusty and Mike, who were on our flight from Phoenix and who are staying at our hostel. She would have, of course! Mel

***

We went on a literary pub crawl, starting at Duke’s, in a neighborhood that was home to many notable Irish writers. I really enjoyed it, especially because it wasn’t about drinking more than it was about James Joyce, Brendan Behran, Samuel Beckett, George Bernard Shaw, W.B. Yeats, and Oscar Wilde. Two actors lead the crawl brilliantly, acting out scenes from works of each writer. They talked also about the history of Dublin and the feelings each writer had, their love or their hate for the city. They took us to four pubs, but also into Trinity College and to the steps of what was once Dublin’s first Protestant cathedral. I was thoroughly entertained, but Mackensy was a little less than enthused. It turned out to be even more fruitful than we’d imagined though, because we met two girls from New Jersey, Heather and Becca, and made plans to meet up with them later in Temple Bar. Mel

***

Oh my, what a night! I haven’t been that wild in YEARS!

After meeting up w/ the Jersey Girls, we went to a crowded pub called Oliver St. John Gogarty’s, named for one of Ireland’s famous poets. We had to sneak Heather into Gogarty’s because she’s only 20 and they were actually carding! Whatever, we got her in, and headed straight to the bar. Apparently they DON’T know about Irish carbombs in Ireland, as I had to explain how to make it to the Irish bartender. As he did, we noticed we were being watched by, as it turned out, a few Austrian guys, who were amazed by us American girls and our drinking abilities. They watched in awe as we dropped the shot into the Guinness and down the entire drink. They loved it and bought a round for us and themselves. And then they bought us TWO MORE ROUNDS! We were so wasted. We ended up meeting a whole bunch of people, some guys from NYC and Kentucky, of all places, two guys from Liverpool, two Italian guys from Uruguay ( LOL), and yeah, even a few Irish people, although I couldn’t possibly remember most of their names. The British guys were cool, and I thought they were gay. Apparently I was wrong, when one called Paddy got a little touchy-feely and tried to kiss me. I was so shocked by his heterosexuality (or bi), I couldn’t even fathom kissing him. He was gay, I swear! An hour later when I was even more intoxicated, I ended up making out with an Irishman. (Mackensy ended up making out with Manuel from Uruguay!). Paddy was not pleased with me, and kept throwing me dirty looks. Ah, oh well! We danced and sang all over that hot, sweaty pub, and after last call was announced, Kenz, the Jersey Girls and I stumbled laughingly through the cobblestoned streets of Temple Bar. Mel

journal entry . day two . Dublin .

The Eire Diaries – day 1

22 May 2007

So far traveling to Ireland has been a tedious journey. I can’t imagine anyone enjoying the 16-hour travel time from California (w/two layovers and no downtime) to Dublin. Especially with a relentless runny nose and horrible sore throat. Mackensy jinxed me when, a week ago, she told me to start taking airborne. I got sick the day before we left. UGH
Dublin is pretty much like every big city, dirty, busy, confusing. I must admit that we are a bit disenchanted so far, but we’ve only been here a few hours and have not slept. Currently we are relaxing in our (icky) hostel in Temple Bar, a hip neighborhood, where the cobblestone streets are lined by pubs. We aren’t sure what we’ll do next or how long we’ll stay before venturing off to Galway. Mel

***

I think we were just a little grumpy this morning. Dublin is quaint, (parts of it anyway) as much as a city can be, I suppose. We took a long nap at Cobblestone’s, our hostel, and it was very much needed. After we woke we walked around a bit, got some tea at O’Brien’s, which I guess is Ireland’s version of Starbucks (although they do have Starbuck’s here, just not all over). I feel a little better, my ears are still plugged however, and the dreadful runny nose and phlegmy cough prevail. Ha ha, sorry, that’s gross. At the moment we are sitting in The Auld Dubliner (!!!) in Temple Bar, having our first pint of Guinness. It is amazing how different it tastes from Guinness in the States. I overheard an Irishman tell an American woman that the reason is because the thick beer doesn’t “travel well”. Then I wondered if they make Irish Carbombs in the pubs here, and if they do, do they just call them carbombs? Mel

***

The cobblestone streets are beautiful, but the streets in general are confusing. Street signs are not obvious and pedestrian traffic can be overwhelming. Today has definitely been a sort of orientation. We walked through St. Stephen’s Green, a lush park with a pond and gazebos and couples making out like teenagers. Vista points are littered with cigarette butts, almost like fallen leaves from trees, which is unfortunate. In fact Dublin isn’t very clean at all, but so goes city life, right? There is so much history, everywhere I look. To be an American in a foreign country is incredibly sobering. Reading books and watching movies seems so superficial when compared to the reality of the world. I feel so uncultured when it comes to the Europeans traveling here, who speak like ten languages and dislike us, just for being American of course. The only nice people we’ve met so far, have been American. Mel

***

It is almost 10 p.m. here in Dublin and the sky has only just begun to darken. It turned out to be a beautiful, sunny day, after the fog lifted, spotted by just a few cirrus clouds. After our pint we walked the streets of Temple Bar, looking at menus displayed in cafe windows. We stopped in a market and bought some groceries to make dinner at the hostel. We have a big day planned for tomorrow, so tonight is a chill session. Mel

***

We’ve talked to more Americans in Ireland than Irish people. And many were on our flight from the States. Two guys are even staying at the same hostel. Random. They’re pretty cute, too

***

journal entry . day one . Dublin .