Bohemian Budapest

Lively, gritty, diverse, unique, cool, eclectic and bohemian.  All words I would use to describe the lovely city of Budapest.

Budapest as a city is split up into two different areas, with a river running between them.  The Buda side is the hilly side, with government buildings, monuments, fancy houses, and a couple churches.  The Pest side is the flat area and is where all the action is - nightlife, restaurants, bars, and people galore.

Our friend Janine from Colorado joined us for this stretch of the trip.  We stayed at an airbnb in the Jewish Quarter which was perfect for us!  There were shops and restaurants in walking distance and our neighborhood had a great lived in feel.

We stuck to Rick Steves advice during this part of the trip as well (because he knows all). Our time in this wonderful city included:

1. Walking Tours - we did two walking tours here (clearly our favorite) - one general tour our first day in the city and then a specific one of the Jewish Quarter.  We learned that Hungary was occupied by foreign forces from 1541 until 1991.  We ended up running into some of the athletes that Janine works with at the Training Center during this tour, which was so crazy! Small world.
2. Parliament Tour - although the tour was pretty short, the tour of the Parliament building was jammed packed with a whole lot of glam.  This building was the most expensive building ever built in Hungary. It's dome is 96 meters high, the exact same height as St Stephen Basilica, symbolizing the equality of church and state.  The building has over 690 rooms and a good part of the inside is decorated with gold!  It was built to celebrate Hungary's independence from Austria.
3. Gellert Baths - as they say, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.  Or, when in Budapest, do as the Hungarians do.  And they bathe.  Budapest sits on a thin layer of earth above hot springs and has over 100 natural springs.  We opted to go to a bathing suit required more "spa-like" bath experience (much to my delight).  There were about 8-10 different pool options, all varying degrees.  It was quite an experience and fun to people watch.  Luckily Rick had warned us about the countless speedos we would see, so we were well prepared for the banana hammocks (and there were a lot).
4. Citadel Hike and View - after soaking in the baths we hiked to the top of the Citadel mountain to see a spectacular view over the river and the Pest side of the city.  The statue of Lady Liberty at the top is the last remaining Soviet statue in the city.  Our walking tour guide said the Hungarians just felt like it was too big and too much of a hassle to take it down.  All the other Soviet statues were removed are in a section a little outside of town.
5. Ruin Bars - Much of Budapest was destroyed during World War II, and the city is still recovering.  In the old Jewish Quarter area many buildings were left to decay.  These buildings have been taken over by bars, who leave much of the building in its decayed state. They fill it with eclectic pieces of furniture, lighting and artwork and create a cozy, unique and super cool atmosphere.  Several of these bars are tucked away and hard to find - luckily I had a recommendation of a place from a girl I had met traveling earlier.  This bar was so cool!
6. Opera - thanks to Rick's advice, we decided to scope out the Opera.  Our first day in the city we went to the Opera house to see if we could get tickets and ended up getting some to one of the rehearsal shows the next night.  We didn't really know what the opera would be about, but figured it would be a fun experience.  That night we were feeling quite fancy and sophisticated and were all picturing it to be the scene out of Pretty Woman.  We even got dressed up, did our hair and put make up on (a big to do these days - and I'm not sure if you can call a dress with Birkenstocks dressed up?).  Anyways, we were feeling hot to trot and upon arrival at the Opera had even landed our own little box (SO Pretty Woman).  The Opera started out innocent enough - some good singing, interesting costumes, and they even had subtitles translating it to English.  Perfect.  Well it went downhill fast.  All of a sudden we were all trying to stifle our giggles and were all in shock at what we were seeing.  It was the strangest thing I have ever seen.  Audience members kept getting up and walking out.  At one point there were about 10 naked men on stage (other than a strategically placed leaf) - we just could not believe our eyes.  It just kept getting weirder and weirder.            After the opera we googled what it was supposed to be about.  Apparently this was a well known opera and they tried to do some sort of new age twist on it.  Well it sure was lost on these three Opera newbies.  So much for our "sophisticated" night out.

Highlights:

1. Meeting another travel buddy, Janine!
2. Hike up to the Citadel Mountain - it was an amazing view of the city at the perfect time of night.
3. Jewish Quarter and Ruin Bars - these bars and this area of town has such a great energy and cool vibe to it!
4. Local Market - we happened upon a local artisan market in our neighborhood on our last night.  We each got some jewelry from local artists - the perfect souvenir!
5. Food!  We found a great breakfast place, Sitka (we went there twice) and a great traditional Hungarian restaurant, Castro Bistro (we also went there twice).  Just a couple of regulars.

Lessons Learned:

1. Not all Operas are a Pretty Woman experience. 
2. The money here is like Monopoly money. They just keep adding zeros to everything.
3. I can confidently say I will never learn Hungarian. I couldn't even learn the one phrase our tour guide was trying to teach us. 
4. I could definitely spend more time exploring Budapest - so many cool nooks and crannies to the city!
5. Budapest was not as "polished" as the Polish cities, but we all agreed that was something we loved about it.  It really felt lived in.

My travel buddies Stacia and Janine in our Airbnb courtyard.  

View from our hike up Citadel Hill.  

Inside of the Parliament Building. So much gold.  

Complex Krakow

Krakow was such a unique, beautiful, complex, and historically rich city.  There was so much to see and do here Stacia and I were glad that we had three and a half days.  Throughout our visit we did walking tours, visited museums, and saw cultural sites which added to our understanding of the events that occurred here and how they impact present day Krakow.  The city is known for churches (there are 160 of them), its universities, culture, art, Jewish Quarter, and history.

1. Old Town - The Old Town of Krakow remained intact from the war and the Nazi invasion of the area.  The buildings and architecture are some of the oldest in Poland, dating back to the 7th century.  The area includes many shops, restaurants and cafes.  We did a walking tour of this area and learned that the city used to be walled in and now where the walls stood is called the Planty, a thick stretch of park that encompasses the Old Town.  The large square (built as one of the most powerful trading areas in the world at the time), included Cloth Hall, a large indoor/outdoor mercantile area, St Mary's Church, Krakow City Hall, and many other beautifully kept buildings housing outdoor restaurants and cafes.  Every hour, a trumpeter would play a tune from the tower of St Mary's Church.  The legend goes that in the Medieval times, a trumpeter would stand watch in the tower looking for oncoming armies or invaders and would play the trumpet to alert the town members of imminent danger.  One time the trumpeter was playing to warn of an oncoming invasion and he was shot with an arrow part way through the song - so to honor him they play each hour and only part of the song.  The square was always full of people, enjoying the beautiful sunny 70 degree weather and taking in the merchants, street performers, and many horse drawn carriages offering rides to tourists.  We spent our evenings here, people watching and enjoying the electric atmosphere.  We also went into St Mary's Church, which was one of the most incredible/overwhelming/gaudy churches I have ever seen. It has the biggest alter in Europe and is known for its gothic and extremely ornate interior.  On our walking tour we also visited the Wawel Castle, where the King of Poland used to live in the 18th and 19th Century.  It now houses a museum.  It had extremely unique architecture from Baroque to Medieval to Renaissance all mixed together somehow in perfect harmony.

2. Wieliczka Salt Mine - this was recommended to us by a couple different people when we told them we were going to Krakow.  Located a bit outside of the city, the Salt Mine is 800 years old and was a working mine until 2007.  It is a World Heritage Site and in our two and a half hour tour there we only saw one percent of the mine.  It is over 175 miles long and over 1000 feet deep. Whoa. Once in the mines we could not believe how large they were.  We visited several different rooms where there were sculptures carved out of salt that miners had done - they looked like marble!  The most impressive room was the chapel, which took 70 years to complete and hosts weddings and other ceremonies on a regular basis.  We had a wonderful guide for our tour who had worked at the mine for 24 years!  She was a wealth of information.

3. Jewish Quarter Walking Tour and Oskar Schindler Museum - our evening after the salt mine we did the Jewish Quarter Walking tour and I was blown away at our experience.  Our guide went through the history of the Jewish population in Krakow and how there were over 60,000 living in the city until 1939.  In September of 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Krakow.  The Jewish then were required to move outside the city, to what was called the Jewish Ghetto - an area set up by Nazi troops.  They were taken from their homes, sent to concentration camps and killed during the time of the war.  After the war was over, only 400 Jewish citizens remained in Krakow.  Our guide for the walking tour was excellent.  He had done his thesis on the Jewish Ghetto so was able to eloquently explain what happened throughout history.  He also showed us the Jewish Community Center as well as several current Temples and conveyed the hope and optimism the Jewish community has in the area now.  It was an extremely moving and educational tour to see the neighborhoods where all these people lived.  The next day we visited the Oskar Schindler Museum and learned about the circumstances leading up to the war in Poland, the invasion of the Nazi's into Poland and Krakow, and how Oskar Schindler was able to save approximately 1200 of his Jewish workers from being sent to concentration camps. He was the inspiration for Steven Spielberg's movie Schindler's List (which we watched while on this trip).

4. Auschwitz - going to Auschwitz was an experience I'll never forget, and one that I will reflect on for a long time to come.  I had learned about the Holocaust in school and had been to the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, but to come to Auschwitz had a different impact.  Walking through the concentration camp, seeing suitcases and belongings, looking at pictures, and hearing the individual stories was heartbreaking, horrifying, and emotional.  It was hard to comprehend everything that happened during that time and to understand how it came to that point.  While it made me appreciate everything I have even more, I felt (and continue to feel) a profound sense of grief, sorrow, and sadness for all the people affected.  We had an excellent guide through both Auschwitz and Birkenau camps who, very somberly and matter-of-factly, explained the layout, conditions, logistics and impacts of the camps.  All Polish high school students are required to visit the camps as part of their schooling and I feel like it is an important place for everyone to visit to understand our world's history.

Highlights:

1. Old Town and Old Town Square - we stayed in an airbnb right near the square and had so much fun walking through the streets.
2. Walking Tours - mainly Jewish Quarter but also the tour we did of Old Town was great.
3. Oskar Schindler Museum - a great World War II museum and had information about Oskar Schindler, his workers, and his factory.
4. Auschwitz - while it was very difficult to see, it is something I will never forget.

Lessons Learned:

Throughout this trip I have had nothing but positive experiences.  People have opened their homes to me, given me a helping hand, assisted me with directions, and been welcoming no matter what country I've been to.  Going to Krakow was a harsh reminder that our differences can pull us apart and in some cases, pit us against each other.  As horrifying and shocking as the Holocaust was, at this point it is something we cannot change.  We can only move forward and ensure that we treat one another with the respect and kindness everyone on this earth deserves.  I've recently finished a book by the Dalai Lama and he has a quote that I have found fitting for my time meeting different people, in other cultures, and varied life circumstances. "Whether one is rich or poor, educated or illiterate, religious or non-believing, man or woman, black, white, or brown, we are all the same.  Physically, emotionally, and mentally, we are all equal.  We all share basic needs for food, shelter, safety, and love.  We all aspire to happiness and we all shun suffering.  Each of us has hopes, worries, fears and dreams.  Each of us wants to best for our family and loved ones.  We all experience pain when we suffer loss and joy when we achieve what we seek.  On this fundamental level, religion, ethnicity, culture, and language make no difference."

Thanks for following along.

Old Town and St Mary's Church.  

The Salt Mine Chapel - everything here is made out of salt!  

A memorial in the Jewish Ghetto - there are 68 chairs to represent the 68,000 people who would never return to their homes.  

The City of Mermaids

I met my next travel buddy from Colorado, Stacia, in Warsaw, Poland! Stacia and I stayed with her former coworker from Venezuela, Tam. Tam had a beautiful apartment right near the city center which was great and super convenient.  We were able to walk everywhere we wanted in the city. Tam had to work during the days we were there (she is an art teacher at the American School of Warsaw) so Stacia and I explored the city on our own. We also caught up on some sleep. Stacia had the excuse of jet lag, I had no excuse. But I never turn down an opportunity to sleep. 

Our high points included:

1. Old Town - although mostly destroyed during WWII, Warsaw's Old Town was very meticulously rebuilt in the 1950s and had a great feel with colorful buildings and intricate architecture. In the middle of the Old Town square sat a statue of a mermaid with a sword.  We learned from Tam that Warsaw is the city of mermaids and that there are several mermaid statues throughout the city.  The mermaid is also on the city's coat of arms. Legend has it that a mermaid was swimming along the River Vistula when she was captured by an evil merchant. A fisherman, Wars, ended up saving the mermaid from this evil man. The mermaid was so grateful she vowed to protect all fisherman, hence why she carries a sword and shield. Wars wife's name was Zawa, which is where the name of the city comes from Warszawa (in Polish). 
2. Warsaw Royal Castle - this castle was also completely destroyed by the Germans during the war.  In order to rebuild, the city put a donation box in the middle of the square and the people of Warsaw paid for the rebuild and renovation 100 percent. The new castle opened in the 1980s and houses many paintings and other memorabilia that was hidden and saved during the war. It was beautifully and lavishly decorated (like most of the castles I've seen) and every room had different hardwood floor patterns. I took a lot of pics of my feet.  I've learned to always look up and always look down in these places - that's often where the best stuff is hidden.
3. Sampling Polish Food - Tam and her boyfriend Mike took us out to some authentic Polish food.  We started the evening with Beef Tar Tar - and I think that will be my first and last time having this unique cuisine.  A guy came to our table and chopped up raw meat, raw egg, and a couple other things in a really fancy ninja way.  And then he served it to us.  All raw. I am glad we tried it, but I really felt like I was just eating a raw hamburger patty (sorry Tam!). After that delightful experience we had some delicious stuffed cabbage and Polish beer, so that was a good way to cap off our meal. 
4. Seeing the American School of Warsaw - it was so fun to see where Tam and Mike worked and to see an international school.  It was a big beautiful building with kids from pre-K through high school. Later on we also were able to meet more of her friends who were teachers at the school as well.

Stacia and I really enjoyed Warsaw and it was so nice to be able to stay with Tam!  

Highlights:

1. Being able to meet another travel buddy - looking forward to this month with Stacia.
2. Getting to meet Tam and Mike! They were great hosts.
3. Having a nice place to stay with a nice shower! I've decided that if I am ever stranded on a desert island I would like to take with me a good shower and a good cup of coffee.
4. Tam had an old school Nintendo at her house, so we may have spent some time playing that...
5. Old Town Warsaw - great energy and beautiful buildings!  

Lessons Learned:

1. Polish is a very hard language.
2. The Polish are not overly friendly.  However, if you greet them with a gin dobre (hello) they crack a smile and are quite friendly after that.
3. It is hot here!  Warmer than I anticipated, it's been mid to high 70s (and don't ask me to convert that to Celsius, I'm still getting the hang of that whole thing).
4. Gin dobre and gin cooya (I'm sure that's not how you spell them but that's how you say them) are the two most important words - hello and thank you. It took us about three days to get these down.
5. I really have no idea what I'm buying at the grocery store. One day Stacia thought she was buying milk for her tea and ended up with yogurt. 

Old Town Warsaw.  

Warsaw Castle and Old Town.  

One of the many hardwood floor designs in the castle.  

Ending in Edinburgh

Arriving in Edinburgh I didn't really know what to expect.  I planned Ireland and Amanda had planned Scotland so we each had a few surprises throughout our trip. Lesson one: its pronounced Edinburra. 

First of all, I couldn't get over how everything matched!  Especially our first night we walked around the New Town area and I felt like we were for sure going to get lost there.  All the buildings were of beautiful Georgian architecture and all the same colored sandstone (some darker than others due to age).  The apartments stood one after the other, looking almost identical other than their colorful identifying front doors.  Everything was symmetrically laid out and built.  I realized here that garden apartments were a thing and now I want one!  Many of the gardens and parks in this area were private for the owners of the apartments which totally reminded me of the movie Notting Hill (yes I love that movie and I'm not even embarrassed about it).

We did a walking tour our first morning there which was a lot of fun and gave us a good understanding of the city's history and layout.  Edinburgh was built in the medieval times around the castle located at the top of the hill.  Our guide took us on part of the Royal Mile, which leads from the Palace all the way to where the castle is.  It is a very hilly city and the Royal Mile in particular has many alleyways which they call closes.  These closes lead to many different things - some courtyards, some cut through to other streets.  They are these mysterious narrow little alleyways which were fun to go down to see where they lead. The city is also known for the arts and specifically writers.  Sir Walter Scott, who has a large gothic style monument in the center of town, wrote books that heavily influenced Scottish independence (among others). JK Rowling also wrote the Harry Potter books in Edinburgh, so we saw the coffee shop where she wrote the first few books and then the hotel (very fancy hotel) where she wrote the later books.  We also saw the school that inspired her ideas for Hogwarts and it really does look like a castle.  Our tour guide said they actually sort the children into the buildings four towers when they arrive.  After walking around the city for a bit, we could see why creatives would be inspired in this city.  We also learned from our guide that the unicorn is the animal of Scotland - I mean, could you get a better national animal?!

Entering into the castle we saw the birthplace of King James, the Scottish Regalia and St Margaret's Chapel, which was the only building preserved from the 12th century and the oldest building in Edinburgh. There was a great overlook of the city from the castle.  I guess it makes sense why this castle was under siege over 26 times in history, making it one of the most attacked places in the world.

Per Rick Steves, we also walked to the top of Calton Hill later in the day and had another great 360 degree view of the city.  It was a great perch to admire the unique and detailed architecture of this city.  Spires from churches and duomos from schools and monuments rose one after another.

The next day we visited the National Museum - a massive and really well put together museum with many Scottish art, history and science exhibits.  We focused on the art and Scottish history sections.  Definitely worth a visit if you are in the city!  And all the main museums in Edinburgh are free which is awesome.

Amanda and I had a great trip through Scotland.  There was more open space here, the landscapes were gorgeous and the people were friendly.  And I was so grateful that Amanda could join me for these two weeks!  We had a great trip.

Highlights:

1. Wandering and looking at the architecture - I took a lot of pictures here. A lot.
2. Scott Monument - built in 1846 it is a representation of true Victorian gothic architecture.
3. Edinburgh Castle - had a great view of the city.
4. Harry Potter Highlights - fun to see where she got some of her inspiration!
5. National Museum - gave a great overview to Scottish history.

Lessons Learned:

1. Edinburgh is a lot smaller than I thought it was!
2. One of the best ways to get a feel for the city is to do a walking tour at the start.  Many of these are free (or tip based) and the guides really do a great job.
3. The Scottish breakfast is the same as the Irish - a whole lot of meat, eggs and no fruits or veggies!
4. The accents are definitely thicker in the north than in the city - I could understand what everyone was saying in Edinburgh!
5. Kilts are definitely a thing there - we've seen a lot of guys wearing them and stores selling them!

Colorful doors in Edinburgh.  

The Scott Monument.  

City overlook from Calton Hill.  

To the Isle of Skye and Beyond

After a great stay in Oban we headed for the Isle of Skye, where we would stay two nights in the town of Portree.

On our way we stopped a couple times - first to see Castle Stalker and then to do some hiking.  We stopped at Glencoe in the national park area and did a hike called The Three Sisters.  The landscape here was again breathtaking - thick fog enveloped the tops of the mountains so all we could see was the bright green and rocky bases.  Another wonderful hike, we climbed next to pools and waterfalls in this thick fog and mist.  We started the hike with a bagpiper greeting us at the trail head - quite a Scottish way to head out on a hike!  We continued on and stopped at Eilean Donan Castle, which is the most photographed castle in Scotland.  It looked spectacular in the fog and rain.  So mysterious and almost eerie.  Our drive included greenery, mountains, castles and many lochs (lakes).  Not too shabby. 

After getting to Portree we headed out for dinner.  In this very busy seaside town we scored a table at a little seafood restaurant right on the water.  In the effort of trying to save money, I ordered one of the specials - a fish called a Kipper.  Boy was it special.  This fish literally had the most bones I have ever seen!  I could barely get any meat off the thing and Amanda and I giggled throughout the entire meal as I tried to scrape away tiny bits of fish and dodge eating tons and tons of bones.  When I asked the waitress what a Kipper was, she said that it was often a fish they eat for breakfast, but failed to mention this lovely attribute. So, I'm not sure why the great people of Scotland eat this fish.  I ended up eating a Snickers for dinner instead.  Oh well.

The next day we drove around the Isle of Skye, taking our time and stopping at some of the little art shops and cafes spattered around the area.  Similar to the Ring of Kerry in Ireland (but not as touristy), there were several places to stop and get great views of the sea and surrounding areas.  A highlight for me this day was stopping at the Fairy Pools.  What looked like plain, open mountains from a distance turned out to be something spectacular after a short walk up the wide open hill.  There were waterfalls and pools for probably a couple miles cascading down the mountains, with the backdrop of huge mountains and bright green fields besides them.  We again lucked out on the weather so spent some extra time here soaking in the beauty.

We also had heard about the hairy coos (long haired cows) native to Scotland but had yet to see one.  We finally did!  There was a small group of them in a fenced in area just off the main road (we figured just for tourists reasons).  One of the little guys let us stare at him and take pictures for 10 minutes!  Amanda even fed him some grass.  Clearly, he was used to people taking glamour shots with him.

After a great visit to the Isle of Skye, we made our way to the small town of Pitlochry in the center-ish of the country.  We swung by Loch Ness on the way to see Nessie but to no avail.  The highlight here was our distillery tour of the Blair Athol Distillery.  I never knew I liked whisky, but I sure did develop a taste for it here!  We had a wonderful tour guide, David, who spent over two hours touring Amanda and I around the facility and answering all our silly questions.  We learned so much from him!  Both Amanda and I didn't realize that whisky is distilled in old sherry barrels - that is what gives the whisky its color and is flavor.  We also learned that different barrels of different kinds of whisky are stored around Scotland so that in case something happens to one of the distilleries, they still have stock located somewhere.  Fascinating!  I am an encyclopedia of whisky facts now.  Also, Pitlochry was another adorable town with lots of stone houses and beautiful scenery.  Another place I would go back to!

The Isle of Skye and central Scotland were both beautiful parts of the country.  We had such a good time driving around and exploring.  Next stop: Edinburgh!

Highlights:

1. Glencoe hike - it was magical and so Scottish with the fog, mist, and bagpiper start.
2. Drive around the Isle of Skye - beautiful scenery and so fun to pop in to all the local artist shops.
3. Seeing a hairy coo! He was so cute with his Bieber hair!
4. Pitlochery and our distillery tour - if you go ask for tour guide David!
5. Fairy Pools - unexpected - you can't see how magnificent they are until you get up close.

Lessons learned:

1. Midgies are a thing here.  They are these little annoying bugs that are everywhere.  Luckily they are more prevalent later in the summer so we didn't get bitten or bothered too bad.
2. Before ordering a fish in a foreign land make sure you know what you are getting yourself into.
3. Everything here, similar to Ireland, is a whole other color of green. It is indescribable.
4. They say 'wee bit' here a lot and it makes me giggle.
5. They aren't called pubs here, they are called inns. I don't know why!

Start of The Three Sisters hike.  

The Fairy Pools. 

Isle of Skye cottage and view.  

The Puffin Parade

We arrived in Edinburgh, Scotland after a very early flight and got our rental car which we proceeded to name the red titanic. She was a real boat of a car and I was worried she wouldn't fit on those narrow lanes roads!  We headed west for Oban, stopping in Aberfoyle in the Trossachs area (the dividing line between the highlands and lowlands).  We had a great conversation with an elderly Scottish woman who was hand weaving wool in a cottage (so Scottish) and she said the Scottish will be friendly, but a little more reserved than the "wild Irish."  Haha good to know.

We continued on to Oban and realized our luck with the weather had run out - it rained most of the day but did clear up for an epic sunset in Oban.  We stayed in the YHA hostel there which was located right on the water and had a fantastic view from our second story window.  I'm telling you, these hostels are incredible - cheap, clean, and as long as you can pretend you're back in elementary school and sleep in a bunk bed, totally worth it.

Amanda had signed us up for a boat tour of the inner Hebrides islands.  Way to go Amanda!  This day was jam packed and totally incredible.  We took a ferry to a bus to a boat to get to our first location, the island of Staffa.  Staffa is the "other side" of the Giant's Causway, where the giant Benandonner was said to have lived.  Like the Causeway it has thousands of basalt columns rising up out of the bright blue water.  It is also home to Fingel's cave, a massive cave which we walked along the edge to peer in.  Staffa is an uninhabited island which was pretty small in size but had some amazing topography.  The basalt columns really look like life sized legos!

From Staffa we headed over to the island of Lunga.  Although the weather was not good and it was raining quite hard, Lunga is a place I will never forget.  Our boat guide told us to do a little hike that stretched around the hill and he said we would see some puffins there.  Oh my gosh were there puffins.  We first came over the hill to a whole colony of them.  They spend most of the year out at sea but come to the land to breed.  There were tons and tons of puffins at the edge of the cliff, within an arms length of us.  They were sitting there looking at us, guarding their underground nests.  The guide said the puffins like when humans are there because it scares away the other birds that try to attack them.  So they were quite friendly and let us get right up close to them.  We later leaned that apparently Lunga is the second best place to see puffins in the world.  Whoa!

We continued on the path (after I took probably a hundred puffin glamour shots) and it felt like we were in a different world.  There was bright green grass as far as the eye could see and it was covered in endless bright blue bells and other beautiful wildflowers in pinks and yellows.  Our view past these beautiful hills and cliffs was the bright blue ocean.

Once we turned another corner on the path we happened upon bird island. Thousands upon thousands of birds all on one massive rock. My jaw dropped.  While it was so cool to be up close and personal with the puffins earlier I had never seen anything like this.  It felt like we were in the movie Happy Feet or something.  And luckily I've never seen that Alfred Hitchcock movie Birds or I'm sure I would have been running the opposite way.

On our boat ride back we scored seats under cover on our small boat - luckily because it rained the entire 2 hour ride back and the people outside appeared to be miserably cold, had to wear massive yellow rain ponchos, and looked like they could be on the Deadliest Catch.  We stopped for a quick bite to eat, hot cocoa and whisky (needed it to warm up, obviously) in the town of Tobermory and then continued on the bus to catch the ferry back to Oban.

What an amazing day and trip to the inner Hebrides!

Highlights:

1. Lunga - if you ever have a chance to go to this island definitely do it!  Just beware the birds like it a lot too.
2. Oban - a very cute seaside town, and somewhere I would go back and spend some more time exploring.
3. Puffins - these little guys were so cute!
4. Staffa - the rock formations are incredible, and unlike the Giant's Causeway this is such a remote location, we had the island to ourselves!

Lessons Learned:

1. They do make big cars here.
2. The accents here are thick and sometimes I can't catch a word of what they are saying.
3. It does rain here. A lot.
4. Plaid is everywhere!
5. If you do a boat tour in Scotland dibs a seat inside - it will be worth it!

Thanks for following along!

The cute little guys!  

Beautiful Lunga. 

The lego looking rocks on Staffa!  

Nowhere Like the North

After a great time in the southwest corner of Ireland we headed north.  We stopped at the Cliffs of Moher and had absolutely spectacular weather.  We're not sure what we did to be so lucky, but we know we were lucky!  The Cliffs standing at their tallest point are 702 feet above the Atlantic Ocean.  And we were right on the edge!  Well Amanda was. I got a little scared of heights and stayed well back from the edge.  But either way it was an amazing view and a gorgeous sunny Irish day.  We stopped in Galway for a quick overnight and then continued driving north.

Our next destination was Portrush, where we would stay two nights.  Both Amanda and I were picturing a small, quiet fishing village housing old fisherman with missing teeth wandering around.  Much to our delight and surprise, Portrush was like the Vegas of Ireland!  There were beautiful people everywhere - and everyone was dressed to the nines! (Making Amanda and I in our tennis shoes feel a little out of place).  We went to a restaurant called Ramore which was inexpensive, had the best food, cheap wine, and spectacular people watching.  Does it get any better than that?!  Both of us were just speechless.  We quickly learned from some research and our Airbnb host that the area houses several renowned golf courses (one of which will hold the British Open in 2018) and that Portrush is a resort community, so a lot of people come there from the cities once the weather starts to improve. Good to know!

During our time in Northern Ireland we saw the Giants Causeway, Dunluce Castle, Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge and the Dark Hedges.

The Giants Causeway, a World Heritage Site, is a series of 40,000 interlocking basalt columns which formed 60 million years ago as a result of slow cooling lava flows in what was a water-flooded valley.  The stones have formed into the shape of hexagons, which is the strongest and most efficient shape (hence why bees create their honeycombs this way).  We took a guided tour along the Causeway which I would highly recommend.  We were able to hear about the different type of rock, science behind the forming, the history of access to see the rocks (a Lord in the area used to own the land and would charge for people to see them), and of course the legend of how the rocks were formed.  Finn McCool, a mighty giant, threw the rocks into the sea as stepping stones to make his way over to fight his Scottish rival, Benandonner.  Long story short, after seeing the size of each other they both got scared and Benandonner tore up the stones across the ocean on his way back to Scotland.  We would later see where Benandonner lived in Fingal's cave on the island of Staffa in Scotland.

Dunluce Castle was a castle in ruins on the cliffs overlooking the sea.  It was established by the MacQuillans in 1500.  It changed hands many times and finally was left abandoned to ruin and in 1928 it fell into State guardianship.  Back in the day it was a castle and town - complete with a brew house, stables, lodgings.  The audio tour and placards took us through what the castle interior, town, and village would have looked like when it was in use as a residence.  Here we were also on the very edge of a cliff.  Yowza.

Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge was a bridge strung 30 meters above the sea for over 350 years to allow fisherman to have access to the best places to catch migrating salmon.  It is used now as a torture mechanism for tourists.  Only kidding.  Kind of.  The bridge leads to a small rock of an island and is terrifying to cross.  Being semi afraid of heights (as you can see by now) and definitely afraid of unstable bridges (as my friends who traveled with me to Thailand can attest to) my legs were shaking and I was sweating, but I made it across.  Along with about 100 other tourists.  Luckily, I was not the largest person crossing so I figured my chances were slim to none that the rope would break when I was on it.  Whew.

The Dark Hedges were awesome and said to be one of the most photographed areas of Northern Ireland.  The avenue of trees were planted by the Stuart family in the 18th century to impress visitors as they approached the entrance to their Georgian mansion.  And boy do they impress.  It was a filming location for Game of Thrones (another TV series I need to watch...) and I can see why.  The trees were absolutely massive - and do look like they were straight out of a movie.  It was a quick stop, but definitely a highlight of the north.

We had an amazing visit in Ireland. While we saw a lot of sheep, rolling hills and farmland (how I pictured Ireland) we also saw some amazing and quite unexpected landscapes.  The people were wonderful - so friendly, kind and jovial.  It was a great visit.  Now, onto Scotland!

Highlights:

1. Giants Causeway - one of my top highlights in Ireland.
2. Cliffs of Moher - couldn't have asked for a better day.
3. Dark Hedges - these trees were magnificent.
4. Portrush - an awesome little town with so much going on - and a really great restaurant! I would definitely come back here.
5. Dunluce Castle - right on the edge of the cliff these ruins were worth a visit!

Lessons Learned:

1. Go to Portrush and you will see some Irish glam.  Most women were in heels and dresses and men were in button up shirts.
2. Nature is just spectacular.  From the Giant's Causeway to the Dark Hedges to the Cliffs of Moher - I was left speechless and in awe after seeing these locations.
3. The Irish don't say th's - it's tank you very much!
4. They are just the friendliest people here. We met a group of ladies in Portrush and they exclaimed 'oh we love Americans!' and proceeded to tell us all about their trip they had planned to Disney World. So cute.
5. The Irish are quite chatty - they always have time to tell you a story. I loved them!

The Giants Causeway. 

Dunluce Castle.  

The Dark Hedges.  

Swinging Around the Southwest

I started our trek to the South driving on the left side of the road, trying to channel November/December when I had done it in Australia and New Zealand.  It definitely takes some getting used to.  Also, while in Dublin, Amanda had the great idea of buying a tin whistle after being inspired by our musical pub crawl.  Luckily we agreed that she was only allowed to play in the car for a very limited amount of time as she had not quite mastered it yet.

Amanda and I both used Rick Steves guides for our planning.  Pretty much every day we would say "Rick Steves for the win."  He really knows the best things to do and see.  Per his advice, on our way to the Southwest corner of Ireland we stopped at Kilkenny and Rock of Cashel.  We didn't spend much time in Kilkenny but stopped at the castle which was just unbelievable!  This turned out to be my favorite castle we visited in Ireland.  The castle has been in existence for over eight centuries, so it had a great mix of different architectural styles.  The castle was built during the first decade of the 13th century and then became the principle residence of the Butler family for almost 600 years.  They presented it to the people of Kilkenny and the family sold almost all of the contents of the castle in 1935.  The interiors have been restored to present different time periods in which it was lived in.  All the detail in the decor and architecture was stunning.  Across the street was an awesome arts and crafts area which was so fun to look through.  From there, we stopped at Rock of Cashel which was a jaw dropping castle that when you turn the corner just came out of nowhere.  Perched high on a hill top it was truly a spectacular sight to see.  Unfortunately, due to poor planning on my part, we got there too late and didn't get to go in.  But we salvaged the visit by basking in the glorious sunshine and Amanda took time to paint the breathtaking landscape while I frolicked around with the sheep.

Our landing spot for the next two nights was Dingle, an adorable little seaside village and we scored an Airbnb right on Main Street.  A very quaint town, Dingle had a couple lively pubs with live music and Irish dancing.  We had a fun time people watching and strolling through the streets here.  We also had the opportunity to see the Harry Clark stained glass windows - the best stained glass windows I have ever seen!  They had an incredible amount of detail and because of how the church is set up you have the opportunity to see them up close.

While in the area, we visited Muckross house, drove the Ring of Kerry and through the Gap of Dunloe and the Black Valley (a section of the Ring of Kerry) that looked nothing I would have imagined Ireland to look like.

The Muckross house was something we discovered on our Heritage Card (card that gets you into a variety of sights across Ireland).  It is a 19th century Victorian mansion within Killarney National Park. It was built as a private residence but its claim to fame is that Queen Victoria visited the property in 1861.  I didn't really have any expectations going into this but was shocked at what a good tour we had! Our guide was great (and had the kind of Irish accent we could actually understand) and she toured us through several of the rooms, where the Queen stayed, adaptations that had been made for the Queen's visit, as well as the kitchen and servant area.  Man was hosting a dinner party back in those times a lot of work.  Not only was this house sweet on the inside, it had the most beautiful garden - and the most massive rhododendrons Amanda and I had ever seen!

The Ring of Kerry is a scenic drive that takes about 3 hours and takes you through beautiful mountainous areas, coastal landscapes, and tiny seaside villages.  It is quite varied with beautiful landscapes.  We luckily asked at an info booth for suggestions (those people really know what they're doing) and the woman suggested a great hiking area near the Torc waterfall and told us which way to drive around the circle (crucial to avoid massive tour buses coming at you on single lane roads).  The hike we did ended up being pretty difficult - we called it the incline of Ireland - but it was beautiful.  It was essentially stone steps all the way up to the top of the mountain and then we had an overlook of a huge part of the Ring of Kerry and the Muckross property and gardens.  We huffed and puffed our way to the top of that sucker but the views made up for it.  Continuing on our drive we stopped at a cafe at a lookout point called Ladies View (me to eat and do nothing productive and Amanda to paint a beautiful picture).  The name apparently came from the admiration of the view given by Queen Victoria's ladies-in-waiting during their visit.

The Gap of Dunloe and the Black Valley were, again, something we had heard on our Rick Steves audio guide so we decided to make the extra effort to get there.  After our hike we continued on to find this little area of Ireland.  Gosh was this worth it.  Lots of one lane roads, sheep, horses, some rain, and a couple scary traffic encounters on very narrow roads we made it to this isolated and incredibly beautiful area of Ireland.  The mountains were not something I'd ever seen before - so green, mossy, grassy, and rocky all combined. Definitely one of my highlights of Ireland!

Highlights:

1. Gap of Dunlop/Black Valley - a must do if you are in the southwest of Ireland!  It was extra driving, but so worth it to see these stunning mountains.
2. Dingle - an adorable town with tons of charm.
3. Muckross House - the tour really made this one!
4. Kilkenny Castle - my favorite castle in Ireland due to the restoration of the inside - it really gave you a taste of different times in history.
5. Rock of Cashel - even though we only saw the outside, it was worth it!

Lessons Learned:

1. There's a reason the cars are small here.  The roads are small.  Really small.  Sometimes it felt like we weren't going to fit with the cars coming at us the other way.  Quite a treat when you are focused on staying on the wrong side of the road.
2. Sheep, sheep and more sheep! They were everywhere.
3. Listen to Rick Steves.  Always.
4. Guided tours can make all the difference - Amanda and I agreed if we had just walked through the Muckross house on our own we wouldn't have been as impressed. It was fun to hear all the stories!

The Rock of Cashel on a bluebird day.  

Ladies View.  

Adorable Dingle.  

Dublin in a Day

Amanda arrived in Dublin on May 14th and we really packed everything into a one day whirlwind tour of Dublin.  Luckily I had done some recon while in the city earlier so had everything planned out. To the hour. (Lucky Amanda).  But, there was so much to see and do in Dublin I wanted to make sure we didn't miss anything in our short time frame!  We stayed at the Dublin International Youth Hostel for two nights which was amazing.  It was an old convent so the (now) dining room was the old chapel.  It had big beautiful wooden tables, ceilings, beams, and stained glass windows.  They even had a loud speaker that would carry throughout the place each morning - "Good morning boys and girls, checkout is 10am, blah blah."  It was awesome.  A total mix between Sister Act and Harry Potter.

After talking to pretty much every info booth in town I (along with the great employees at these places) determined the best way to see the highlights of Dublin in one day would be on a good old tourist Hop On / Hop Off bus.  Now, if you ever go to Dublin definitely consult with me first because I think I explored every option possible. I could probably work at one of the tourist info centers by now.

We started our whirlwind tour on the bus and stopped first at Trinity College to see the Book of Kells and the Long Room.  The Book of Kells is a lavishly decorated copy, in Latin, of the four gospels which was written by monks off the west coast of Scotland over 1000 years ago.  It is associated with St Colum Cille who founded a monastery in Iona in 521-597 AD.  It has been kept out of harms way for all those years and has moved locations a few times due to Viking raids and other disasters to ensure it's safety.  It finally came to Trinity College in 1661.  The exhibit for the book was quite interesting, detailing the drawings and materials used in the book.  While it was amazing to learn about this book, the real highlight was the Trinity College Library, specifically The Long Room.  There has been a library at Trinity College since 1592, when Queen Elizabeth founded it.  It is considered to be one of the world's greatest research libraries and holds the largest collection of manuscripts and printed books in Ireland.  The Long Room is 215 feet high and houses about 200,000 of the library's oldest books.  It is breathtaking.  For you Star Wars fans, you might recognize it from Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones as some sort of Jedi library (I had no idea....I've never seen Star Wars).  On the walking tour I did learn that George Lucas asked for permission from Trinity College to film in this room for the movie and they told him no as they thought the filming equipment would damage the fragile books. Apparently, George Lucas then set in filmers with hidden cameras who took thousands of pictures of the space against their wishes.  Trinity college sued George Lucas but of course the movie grossed hundreds of millions of dollars so he gladly paid them out of his earnings.

After checking out Trinity college we made our way to St Patrick's cathedral, which was founded in 1191.  The thing that struck me the most was that the Guinness family contributed over 150,000 pounds for the restoration of the cathedral (in the 1860s) and now they have their own private section at the front of the church!  (I'm not sure if this was what I should have taken away from a cathedral visit, but its what I remember the most. Oh well).  After that we headed to the Dublin Castle tour (because we are in Ireland and of course need to scope out the castles).  I couldn't get over the decor inside the castle.  It was mostly from the 18th century and it was a whole lot of gold and a whole lot of detail.

Rated as one of the top tourist attractions in Ireland, we decided we had to visit the Guinness storehouse.  With neither of us being huge beer fans we weren't quite sure what to expect.  Boy were we shocked at what we found.  The place was absolutely massive with seven floors of information, interactive activities, history, and of course tastings.  We only had about an hour at the whole place, so skimmed the levels and then headed straight for the tasting (obviously).  Guinness is so much better in Ireland than it is in the U.S.!  And it is everywhere.  It was a great experience and you could definitely spend a whole day here.

Our next stop on the line was the Kilmainham Gaol (jail).  My airbnb host had recommended going here and I had heard about it from a couple of the info booths.

The jail was the location they held local prisoners and was also the location of the 1916 Uprising executions.  The stories were quite moving and gave us a better understanding and appreciation of Irish history.

To cap off our busy day, we went on a musical pub tour in the Temple Bar area (recommended by Rick Steves).  Turns out, the rest of America also reads Rick Steves.  We had probably 40 or so people in our group and almost every single one was American!  I couldn't believe it.  But, as usual, Rick was right.  This musical pub tour was a real highlight.  Two musicians took us to three different pubs and played music, told stories, and gave us an introduction to traditional Irish music.  They were extremely entertaining and even got us singing along at points.  Amanda and I really loved this part of the day!

We had a little church, some Guinness, jail time, castle, and music - a true Irish day.

Highlights:

1. Musical Pub Tour - although pretty much all Americans on the tour, the introduction to Irish music and getting to know the musicians was so cool.
2. The Long Room - such cool architecture and I was speechless when I walked in the room!
3. Queen of Tarts - a lunch spot located across from the Dublin Castle and quite possibly the best frittata I have ever had! Still dreaming about it.
4. Dublin Castle - great to learn about Dublin history and hear the amazing stories of this castle right in the heart of the city.
5. Our hostel - although standard bunk beds in the room, it was so cool to stay in a building that had been repurposed for something new.

Lessons Learned:

1. Dublin is pretty touristy - especially the Temple Bar area.  But that is where a lot of the live music is!
2. In Ireland, if you don't drink Guinness, you should learn to drink whisky.  So I did.
3. Doing a whole city in one day is exhausting! But it was fun for one day. And then we needed a vacation from our vacation.
4. The tour guide makes a big difference - I had actually done a tour earlier of the Dublin castle and was unsure if it was something we should do - our guide on my second time through was so good and really made the experience!
5. If you want to do the tour of the Gaol, book ahead!  They sell out a couple weeks in advance (luckily my host had told me that).

A typical Irish pub. 

The Long Room.  

Interior of Dublin Castle. 

Good Old Galway

Walking through the cobblestone streets of Galway is like going back in time.  The medieval influence is very prevalent through the stone architecture of these ancient streets and in parts of the city.  Sections of the original wall they built to protect the city in the 13th century still stands today.  The Latin Quarter and shopping district is everything you picture Ireland to be - colorful storefronts housing restaurants, music shops, wool items, and of course lots of pubs.  Irish flags and banners are strung across the streets to show national pride and add to the charm of the city. 

At every turn there is live music by way of street performer.  It really makes you feel like you are walking through a movie with your own soundtrack - I mean, who doesn't love that?!  From Irish music, to 90s classics, to one guy that just hooked up his own karaoke machine and started jamming out (he sounded pretty terrible, actually).  It reminds me of New Orleans.  And they have a similar music scene here as in New Orleans - where in pubs and restaurants anyone can join in and play, there's no set band playing each night.  The small streets come alive around 10am and staying lively well into the night.

Galway, a town of about 75,000, is Ireland's third largest city.  The city, like Ireland in general, has gone through many ups and downs throughout its history.  Due to its location on the west coast and access to a port the city endured several invasions, infighting and power struggles.  Now a hub for tech businesses and a main stop for tourists its economy is quite strong.  The city has a lot of young people as there are two universities, so it seemed to always be a buzz.  Now it is considered to be one of Europe's fastest growing cities.

On my second day in the city I did a free walking tour which helped me to get a feel of the city, it's history and things to do here.  One of which included a pub crawl...quite the experience!  Everyone on the crawl was American except for my French roommate.  They took us to the local pubs which were all playing traditional Irish music (and one band that had non-stop 90s hits!).  It's exactly as you picture - everyone in the pubs were drinking Guinness and singing along.  It was glorious.  Not so glorious was how I felt the next day.  They sure know how to drink here in Ireland!

My walking tour guide also suggested to visit the local museum, where I learned more about Galway's history.  I also visited one of the local Clauddagh cottages which portrayed how people lived in the area over 200 years ago. 

My favorite thing to do in this city was just wander.  I wandered around the Latin Quarter with all the shops and restaurants, went down by the water and to the beach, listened to music on the street, went to the farmers market, and enjoyed the good weather.  They had a great path that ran along the river right through town that I frequented as well.  I was lucky enough to have an extended stay here - four days - and then Amanda and I also had a quick visit on our way up North from the Cliffs of Moher.

Even though I spent a lot of time here, I would come back!  It was quintessential Ireland - the city was a good size, it wasn't too touristy, the people were friendly, and it felt lived in.  A real Irish experience.

Highlights:

1. Walking Tour - it was a great way to hear the history of the city and find other things to explore. 
2. Beer and pub crawl - I had my first Guinness and boy have the Irish been holding out on us - it was soooo good - way better than Guinness at home.  It was also a great place to see the Irish pub experience. 
3. Live Music - it was everywhere and amazing (minus the karaoke guy).
4. Farmers Market - I happened to be here at the right time and got to go to the market. Local food and arts and crafts were being sold. So cute!
5. Wandering and people watching - the best thing to do in this small town!

Lessons Learned:

1. When the sun is out, no matter the temperature, the Irish head outside. It was maybe 50 degrees (but sunny) and people had their shirts off and were wearing bikinis!
2. The Irish can really drink.
3. Ed Sheeran had a song named Galway Girl (yes, I should have know this...showing how un-hip I really am...) and his music video was just released - it shows some great areas of Galway!
4. There are a lot of Americans visiting Ireland! 

The waterfront in Galway.  

One of the adorable streets!  

One of the street performers - Irish to a tee.