Good evening fellow Irish travelers,
I wanted to share my experience with going to Ireland last year in June. It was my first time ever traveling to Europe and solo for my first time. I as very well prepared thanks to the many wonderful people here on this Forum and the wonderful Irish that live there. I was surely nervous and had to real idea what traveling would be like alone let alone in a place I knew very little about. I went to Ireland with the intent to hopefully hear and find about my ancestors in Northern Ireland called Belfast. My grandmother and her parents lived there and wow what a great place she was lucky to know, I tried looking up her parents but her father James Gawley left in the 1900's/.I tool lots of pictures for my mom to see and ironically it had not changed much since he was there till present day.
I travelled when first arriving in dublin to the city centre which I was very happy to see and feel all the wonderful churches, museums. It was very neat all the local tourist places to learn and explore. I loved all the local attractions and just wandering around. I have to admit the city centre was very big and very tourist attractions and well it was a great place to check out but you only need a few days to really see it all, I found it to be a bit large and very easy to get around.I enjoyed it and was something all travelers should experience. I spent time just looking and exploring places either I stumbled on or was told but locals to see. The look and feel of most places wether churches , pubs, zoo's buildings, boats, all had a story to tell and it was like I could feel them at each one. I enjoyed listening to the locals talk and hearing how they enjoyed their days in Ireland. I loved taking the dart and the city buses. I was told in smaller places that if you wanted to catch a bus at certain stops you would have to hail the bus down so they would stop or they wouldn't think you wanted their bus and keep going. That was pretty cool and fun doing at the same time. I was a bit worreid if I didn't get the right one how the heck I was going to get to where I was going?I spent lot of time just wandering around most days. I would walk at least 30 or more k a day. I also ran as much as I could. Running was very neat and so amazing.. I never experienced the way I felt doing this in any of my lifetime of running. It was like something out of a fairytsle. i had to laugh though because of how narrow your streets and roads were in the countryside I was sometimes jumping in the fields just to dodge the cars, It was something I would never forget, Most would get over as far as they could for me. The fields everywhere were magical and so breath taking. I tried to get pics of mysefl laying down in everyone. It was something I did enjoy and lot of. I did lot of sight seeing and took in as much as I could. The local attractions like the zoo the phoenix park the crorke stadium. the many famous churches, the local temple bar, the giants causeway .All brilliant on their own and yet all had a different memory for me.The nightlife of the pubs is something to just wonder around and explore. Getting to listen to tradition Irish music is amazing and something you ill always feel alive and at home for.The tiny countryside are well worth checking out they make Ireland and I can just imagine the way the people that live there feel. I did travel lot and took in as much as I could see. I wrote in a journal everyday and took tons of pictures. The whole point was to see and explore the wonderful history of Ireland. I visited on my last few weeks in a place called Garden village which was not far from wicklow. What a marvelous place, I also went to Greystones a town just about 40 minutes from Garden village but I walked it and well it was worth the walk. The many splendors I saw and found along the way, I fell in love with a place called the Happy Pear and the two twins that own and run this wondeful cafe is something. All vegan food and full of amazing food. My trip was stellar and well worth it. The food. the music, the locals all made my traveling alone and abroad to Ireland the best trip ever. I did see so many things, and met some fantastic people. I can tell anyone wanting to visit this emerald isle do it. Live it large who cares about the money, enjoy it all and take lots of wonderful pictures and talk to all the wonderful people and take it all in. Some never get to experience this and you need to see and do it .I am so happy I met all of you on this forum and all the great advice I received. I only have one question now. When can I move to your wonderful place? Slainte to all I look forward ti my next trip and the wonderful memories I may find along the way. Alison