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 12 & 13

02 June 2007

I’m sitting in the living room at Kinlay. Kenz is here, curling her hair, standing on one of the couches to look into a mirror. We spent most of the day walking around Cork in the misty drizzle shopping, and window shopping and strolling through the English Market (all kinds of fresh meat, fresh fruit, fresh seafood and lots of other amazing foods: cheeses, chocolate, breads. Kenz and I bought fresh pesto. yum.) Kenz and I had falafels for lunch and sat in a little bar/cafe to eat them and have cappuccinos, while the boys went to a pub for brunch. Oh right! The boys…

After Mackensy and I woke from napping yesterday, we went downstairs and made dinner, and when we came back upstairs we met some guys from Wisconsin who were in our room. While Kenz gave them her words of wisdom for traveling through Europe two more guys walked in and it turned out that their beds were right next to ours, literally, like not even a foot of space in between the bunks. Turns out they’re also from Wisconsin. (Hostels seriously must book Americans in the same room.) We talked to the new guys, Brad and Ben, for a bit and decided to hit up the pubs with them. So while they got dinner, we showered and got ready and the four of us headed toward Oliver Plunkett St.

After a bit of walking up and down the road, debating where to go, we stopped in a pub called Rob Roy’s, ordered a round of pints, and sat at a little table and chatted, while trying to follow the rugby match. A guy at the next table overheard our American accents and asked where we were from. Turns out he is from Baltimore, but lives here in Cork where he oversees a division of his family’s business. So he joined us and we drank and talked and Chris, the guy from Baltimore, explained the game of rugby to us. After a few more rounds and a few cigarettes (I know, I know Chris took us to Savoy, a club on Patrick St. which is sort of the main drag in downtown Cork. The downtown area is beautiful during the day, but way cool at night, with color-changing lights lining the streets, and loads of pub-hoppers and clubbers. Savoy was all right with two dance floors and three bars, but nothing special even though we had to pay a €6 cover.(Chris explained the mezzanine was closed, so that was why it kind of sucked). We only stayed long enough for one or two beers before “tour guide” Chris took us back to Oliver Plunkett and into The Old Oak. Known as the best pub in all of Ireland (as Brad and Ben had told us earlier. They wanted to go, but we couldn’t find it! Meeting Chris was fate , it really was a cool place, big dance floor, a couple different sitting rooms, smoking patio, and great music.We didn’t get to stay long unfortunately, because pubs close pretty early, some even earlier than bars in California and we were all a little bummed because it felt like our night had just begun! So we stopped at a little late-night eatery, got “chips” and hung out on the streets with hords of drunk Irish folk. Groups of guys singing and celebrating a rugby win, fist fights, girls dressed to the nines (though horrible fashion faux pas seemed the trend), and the five of us. Though we had just met the boys, and they had just met us and each other, it felt like being with old friends. Kenz and I felt comfortable with them, and Chris made us all feel like family in a foreign city full of strangers. I guess there is something to say about finding a little piece of “home” no matter where you may be, and what that “:home” is, even if it is just one of your countrymen… or countrywomen Overall, we had a super fun night, and before walking back up to Kinlay House, we made plans to meet up with Chris tomorrow (which is tonight) at Rob Roy’s, and said good night. Mel

journal entry . day 12 . Cork

03 June 2007

We woke to a rainy day yesterday, the day we spent walking all over Cork, and today, as we wait for our bus to leave Cork for Kilkenny, the sun is shining and the streets are dry. Murphy’s Law seems to have plagued us a bit over the past week and a half. (At least Brad and Ben will have nice weather to go see Blarney Castle. We just saw them here at the bus station, buying tickets for the bus to Blarney.) But I’m smiling and even laughing ocassionally as I sit in the Busaras, remembering little details about last night…

After Kenz finished curling her hair we went upstairs to wake Brad and Ben who were napping. On our way to Oliver Plunkett Street, we stopped in Supervalu (no e) in Merchant’s Quay Centre and stocked up on a few tall boys of Carlsberg. Kenz and I decided that tonight we would employ the sneak-a-drink! Brad and Ben were a little shocked, (like they’ve never snuck beers into a bar before!… oh wait, well, they hadn’t!) and Ben didn’t want to do it at all. So we bought six cans, two for each of us minus Ben, hid them in our purses and went over to Rob Roy’s.
It was pretty empty whe we first arrived and Chris wasn’t there but we figured he’d arrive later for the Ireland/Argentina rugby match. Kenz and I got a pint of Calrsberg and an extra glass We’re such rebels. (In the Rebel County too!) Brad got a Carlsberg too, and Ben got a Bulmers and we sat at the same table as then night before. I pulled out the pink cards and we played a few rounds of Asshole (I was the asshole EVERY hand. UGH )as the pub slowly started to fill. We cracked a couple of the tall boys under the table, and Kenz and I had to get up and go to the ladies a few times when it was impossible to be sneaky out in the open. Chris finally showed up and joined us and soon after the place was PACKED. Watching the rugby match in, as Chris informed us, the BEST rugby pub in Cork was such a great experience. Especially having Chris there to explain the rules, and what was happening and why, made it an even more exhilarating experience. Rugby is so awesome to watch when you actually understand what is going on! And to be in that crowd, rooting for Ireland, was amazing. Unfortunately Ireland lost but it was still a great time. Chris’s fiancee Teresa showed up and joined us. (Kenz and I were a little bummed b/c we both ADORE Chris. He is the kind of guy we both want to marry. He’s like, perfect.) Teresa, a cute blonde Irishwoman, was such a cool chick though, and the six of us had a blast together at Rob Roy’s, just drinking and talking and laughing. Kenz and I each took a Carlsberg pint glass with the “Official Sponsor of The Irish Team” logo imprinted on it. We’ve been total pint glass thieves
After Rob Roy’s we walked in the rain to a nightclub. I can’t remember where it was or what it was called; a true testament to my Irish roots! I can drink with the best of ‘em, but don’t expect me to remember everything! Kenz and Brad didn’t want to go in, so Ben and Chris and Teresa and I went inside. It was very hot and very empty, until we explored a bit and found other rooms that were packed. I got a beer and danced with Teresa a bit, even though no else was on the dance floor until we started dancing. Then we went upstairs to smoke and spent the rest of the night there. It was like a completely different place, with pool tables and another bar and an enclosed smoking patio. We talked and laughed hysterically, most of the time because of Teresa and her ecstatic chattiness and cute Irish accent and voice. Ben was dying, he could hardly breathe he was laughing so hard! Suffice it to say, we had a crazy, drunken fun time. After they kicked us out we stopped at the falafel place and got souvlakis and talked and hugged and said our good byes. Teresa and I exchanged email addresses (I hope I can find it) and she and Chris hailed a cab, as Ben and I walked the quiet streets of Cork back to Kinlay House…
All in all, Cork was a blast, brilliant as Chris would say, and I am so glad we came here. So many people told us it sucked, or was lame, or was just another big city, nothing special. It turned out to be two of the best nights we have had so far. (With the possible exception of that night in Temple Bar Now, off to Kilkenny. Mel

After traipsing around Kilkenny for the better part of an hour, in the rain, we got lucky. We were a bit worried at first, as the first hostel we tried, in the Old Methodist Church, was a run-down shamble of a building with broken windows and boxes and furniture all askew in the front rooms. We rang the bell anyway, a sign of our desperation, to no avail. So we walked until we came across the Kilkenny Tourist Hostel on Parliament Street. A beautiful old building covered in ivy, with a huge, heavy bright red front door. We walked in and our spirits were instantly uplifted as the girl at the desk, who had long dreadlocks and wore glasses, told us they had just a few beds left! We sat in the living room by the fireplace while the girl checked us in and relaxed for a moment. Not only was it the June Bank Holiday, but Kilkenny was hosting a huge international comedy festival, so we were certainly lucky to find a place to sleep, and happy that the place was not just decent, but very nice and very homey. We walked into our room and saw a bunch of guys asleep in their beds. So we quietly settled and changed, in the bathroom , and set off to find some food.
We had some garlic cheese “chips” at Uncle Sam’s American Eatery, although not much about the place was American (we would not call fries, “chips”, for one). We tried to find a falafel place but there weren’t any. So we went to a grocery store in a mall (typical of Ireland) and got milk and broccoli for our pesto pasta, and bottles of water. When we got back to the hostel, the “sleeping beauties” were awake and they turned out to be Irish cuties from County Clare They were all dressed and ready to go out for the night. A mixture of men’s cologne permeated the air in the room and I inhaled deeply. Guy smell is such a turn on We talked to them for a bit even though it was slightly difficult to understand them and they seemed a little shy. They invited us for a drink and said they would be at Matt The Miller’s, a pub just down the street near Kilkenny Castle… We’ll see Mel

journal entry . day 13 . Cork & Kilkenny