ROADTRIP

So I rented a car in Dublin on Wednesday and am due to return it in Cork on Monday so I can fly back to London. I wanted to see the west of Ireland, so drove to Galway from Dublin (2.5 hours).

The vehicle...aka...'The Marshmallow'

Familiar Voices

While on the road... I was pleased to hear all sorts of Canadian artists on the Irish Radio stations!! Very neat!!! For example: Leonard Cohen, Avril Lavigne, K'naan, K.D. Lang, and Justin Beber all had songs playing on Irish Radio.

Galway

What a beautiful and quaint little town, I would say my favorite visited in Ireland. In the hostel, I stayed in a room with 4 beds, all female, with an en-suite bathroom. I booked it online the night before and was very pleased both nights as I had the whole room to myself!!!!! yayyyy!!!! it was like staying in a hotel!!! I was so lucky!

Getting to know the city...solo style

So I left Dublin on Wednesday afternoon and arrived in Cork on Friday night. During the time, I was travelling solo. It was great! I was a little apprehensive about going out into the town, having dinner by myself, but it was actually really good! The Irish are such nice people, that I was approached and being spoken to! I met this one guy who introduced me to a musician friend of his who was playing the following night, and ended up having the best night Irish night ever (Post to follow). Anyways, I have come to realize I am quite capable of travelling alone, you just have to remove yourself from being self conscious or shy... and to be forward and simply put yourself out there, be friendly, smile, and people will attract to you...and that's exactly what happened!

Renting a car in Ireland

I am so happy I did this despite my mother's apprehensiveness. The wonderful thing about Ireland is that there are small towns every 20km or so, and between those small towns, you have random castles, abbeys, or fort ruins built over 500 years ago. I was given the freedom to stop in the middle of my journey, pull over, and walk around these amazing ruins. I tried picturing what it would have been like when it was up and running, thinking about the people that lived there... so cool, Ireland has such a rich history! Kudos to The Office of Public Works for the upkeep, protection, knowledge&education, and restoration of these sites.

Driving on the other side of the road

It was totally fine. There were a few things I really had to think about or take note of:

-The door to the driver's side is on the right.

-Follow traffic

-Yield & signal & breathe in the massive roundabouts

-The gear shift takes a lot of cognitive effort when doing it with your left hand as opposed to your right

Road Signs

There is a lack of them. And sometimes they're only in Gaelic!!!! I mean, this is fine, because it's an official language, but being as ignorant as I was...I totally thought it was a dead language! Apparently there are people living in Ireland who don't speak any English at all! Neat!