Ireland Days 1-2

I suppose it's technically been two days, but since I've basically been awake since 6:00 am Sunday morning, it feels like just one. So far, I don't have a whole lot of exciting things to report. We flew from Charleston to Newark on Sunday morning and then spent the afternoon laid over in Newark. All 6 of us girls ate at the Garden State Diner, then Rebecca and I went to the fake Irish pub in the terminal with the 3 boys. We hung out there for a while, then eventually wandered over to our gate. The flight to Ireland was delayed by about 30 minutes, but we ended up getting to Shannon a few minutes ahead of schedule, which was nice. After getting through customs and retrieving our bags, we met our (British) driver/guide, Nigel, who is wonderful.

Our first stop in Co. Clare was at the Cliffs of Moher. I went there on my last trip, when there was much less security than there is now; whereas I was able to sit on the edge and put my legs over the side the last time, we couldn't this time because they've put up limestone slabs as a barrier--slightly disappointing, but oh well. At least I did it last time. One of the guys on our trip told me I was "a little B.A." for doing that, which made me laugh. Hey, I'll take the cool points wherever they come from :). The visitors' centre has also changed since I was there last, which was a more pleasant surprise, especially when it started raining.

After leaving the Cliffs (of Insanity! No, really), we drove to the Burren, a national park famous for its unique flora and fauna as well as the limestone "pavement" that covers much of the park. We climbed all over one park of the limestone down by the water, being careful, though, since the stone was still wet from the earlier storm. We stopped a few times for short picture breaks, then ended up at the Irish Arms, a non-touristy pub (yay!) where I had delicious crispy bangers with creamy mash--fantastic!

Currently, I'm in our hotel in a room with the other girls, sending emails to our families and posting pictures on Facebook. I'm tired, but so, so thankful that I got another chance to come back to this country I love so much. More to follow!