P.S. I love Ireland

Sooooo....
I went to Ireland
And OH. MY. GOSH.
Seriously, Ireland is the best place I have ever been to.
Definitely in my top five favorite things about Europe.
So let me tell you all about it.

Ok. Preface:
The day before we left I was doing laundry, you know, preparing for my trip and I thought
"I have my headphones, I have macky booky (my laptop) I have 2 hours to kill, what should I do? I know! I'll watch P.S. I Love You" seriously you guys, that was my exact thought. Exact.
So I did. I watched it.
And I laughed really hard.
And I cried loudly.
Seriously I think the complete stranger in the laundry room was worried about me.
I just looked at her, tears in my eyes, pointed to my computer, and then shrugged my shoulders. She still didn't understand.
Whatever.
Anyway... I was preparing for how the Irishmen talk and preparing my little heart for falling in love with a handsome guy singing in a pub. Holy cow. I was convinced I would fall madly in love with one.
Like if Hilary Swank can, why can't I?
Speaking of Hilary Swank, apparently one of my professors saw her in New York and got yelled at after he tried to take a picture of her. So there's something hilarious. Use it as an anecdote if you're on a bad first date or something.

So here's how we got there, you guys are going to die.
We took the tube to Kings Cross/St. Pancras
We took a train from Kings Cross/St. Pancras to Luton Airport
We took a shuttle bus from the train station to the airport
We took a plane from Luton to Dublin
We took a bus from Dublin airport to the city center
We walked to our hostel.
Seriously who would have thought I would use public transportation so much?
But apparently public transportation is the best thing in London.
Seriously, it kind of makes your life a lot easier.

Once we arrived at our hostel - which was pretty nice I might add - we got settled and headed over to the pub just across the sketchy alley from us.
The Arlington Pub.
I experienced heaven on earth when I tried their chicken sandwich.
Honestly, I want to go back just for that.
Then (here's the kicker) a guy got up on the little stage and started singing.
Ok this would be good by itself because he's Irish, singing in a pub. But it gets better.
He started singing "Galway Girl"
I almost fainted. I was in love.
Ok you may need to think back on the last time you saw P.S. I Love You.
Are you thinking back on it?
Ok so there's this part where Gerry (Gerard Butler) is singing in the pub and he spots Holly (Hilary Skank.. I mean Swank) in his jacket he had previously given to her. You know this part? Ok now try to remember the song he was singing.. Got it? If you don't. Youtube it. It's awesome. Yeah... that's the one this guy was singing. I was experiencing this in real life.
You can be jealous. But don't hate me too much.

After about 50 million more wonderful songs and a few hours had passed we went outside to get some fresh air and happened upon a little diner that seemed like they might have some delicious shakes.
Well... it did and so I bought one.
It was wonderful.
I would say it was a good night in Dublin.

The next day was just as good.
We went to this place called Carroll's where I bought some souvenirs and whatnot.
After which we headed to St. Patrick's Cathedral.
Ever wonder where St. Patricks Day comes from?
Well there you have it.
I think.
On our walk back from the cathedral Kasee and I spotted an Abercrombie & Fitch.
SOLD.
We walked in and there he was, standing in all his glory, a very attractive Abercrombie model.
You better believe I got a picture with him and it was free so that rocks and I think it's my best souvenir of this trip so far.
Then... we thought it would be fun to walk to the coast.
This is something I don't recommend.
Because the walk is a very deceiving one.
You think you're close to the ocean and then... BAM! You're nowhere near it.
Frustrating to say the least.
Plus while we were walking we were right smack in the middle of a torrential downpour.
With no cover in sight, we kind of just awkwardly stood there and let the rain drench us.
I was unhappy with being cold and wet but most of the peeps that were with me were fine with it.
Who are these people? This is something I ask myself often.
You better believe I went back to the hostel, got some sleep, changed my wet clothing and then pub crawled baby!
It's still fun even if you don't drink.. I promise.
That is definitely something I will remember for the rest of my life.
Real Irish music being played in a REAL Irish pub.
Ahhhhh. It doesn't get much better than that. Unless you're sitting behind a man who is just sloshed trying to keep the beat of a song and can't quite get there. That makes it a lot more fun.
Needless to say, I went to bed extremely happy that night.

The next morning was my favorite. By far.
This is the morning we went on the Wild Wicklow tour.
Ok. The countryside in Ireland? Yeah.. it's better than any picture could show you.
Pictures do this place no justice. You just have to go to know what I'm talking about.
We went to Dun Laoghaire (pronounced dun leery) and that's where we experienced the seaside.
And Seaside by the Kooks was stuck in my head.
Its so pretty.
Then we travelled up into the mountains and I honestly have never seen anything so green in my entire life.
No wonder they call it the Emerald Isle.
I saw where Braveheart was filmed. Which totally upset me because William Wallace was a Scot, it took place in Scotland, and should have been filmed there. Not in Ireland. But it was cool nonetheless.
Then I saw the P.S. I Love You bridge. Pretty rad considering Gerard Butler once stood where I stood.
Holy cow.
Then I saw where Vikings is filmed, which is cool.
And mostly I'll just show you some pics of it cause they'll be better than me telling you what happened.

Yes, we all got matching sweaters.
It's cute and touristy.
It's fine.

Love you guys

XOXO
Sam