Ireland, Scotland and England in a Week (Part 1)

If you ever have the chance to go to Ireland, Scotland or England, take it. These are beautiful countries with so much to see and so much to offer. If you have a lot of time, spend a week in each and find the little secrets that each country has hidden away. If you don’t have a lot of time, fit it all into one exhausting week.

In the last week of May/beginning of June of 2017, my mom came to visit me in the UK. At the time, I was living in the city of Derby in Derbyshire – a nice place if you’re in a good mood and aren’t too interested in good nightlife. Seriously, the times that shops close anywhere outside of London blows my mind.

Anyway, we decided that since I only had a week off work and that she was only going to be in for that week, we would get a little taste of all 3 countries. Much walking was had.

First, we left Derby and went to Ireland. I have to say that Ireland is one of the nicest countries, not just in terms of scenery, but in terms of the people. Everyone I encountered was super friendly; it had a very different feeling to it compared to England and Scotland, where people tend to be more “nice” to strangers.

We flew to Dublin where we had breakfast and planned our day in Galway to which we would soon take a bus. Transportation was very easy. From the airport, we took the shuttle into Dublin. Then the bus to Galway was 2.5 hours (which is crazy to think about if you come from North America as Dublin and Galway are on opposite ends of an entire country. Granted, it was East to West, but even North to South is only like 7 hours by bus – shorter by car – and that’s from the ends of Ireland and Northern Ireland).

When we got to Galway, which is a beautiful place, we wandered a bit as check in was a while away. There is a lot of history in that small place and lovely markets and lovely people – a lot to see. We decided to walk with our luggage (a bag each) to our accommodation, which was at Corrib Village and very far away after wandering through town (and even more so when Google maps tells you to go a way where the only access is over a fence).

The area itself is nice, but it’s on a University campus so the rooms are dorm rooms and aren’t the best. However, they serve their purpose well, which is to sleep. It was only our first little trip and we weren’t off to a great start. We got some food from the shop/café on campus and had supper then did absolutely nothing else except sit outside when it got sunny (and it did!), and go back to the shop for some treats.

The next day, we had a bus tour booked. So by 9AM, we checked out and walked back into town with our luggage in tow. The best thing was that there was a shuttle that ran from the campus into town, but it would only start running after we needed it.

We got to the bus station and realised we’d be able to stow our bags on board so wouldn’t have to worry about carrying them around everywhere. It was a happy day.

We booked our tour with Galway Tour Company. We (I) really wanted to see the Cliffs of Moher, but decided to book the Cliffs of Moher and Burren tour so that we could see a little bit more in the short time we were there (and it was well worth it). Our tour guide was wonderful and had a very soothing voice (I fell asleep whenever we were on the bus and he was talking, but was wide awake when the “soothing” music was playing). He was very informative and personable (which, I suppose, tour guides should be) and made for an excellent tour.

First, we stopped at Dunguaire Castle and had a short time to explore the grounds and take pictures. The major downside to these bus tours is that it’s all about keeping to a schedule so you have to see everything in a shorter amount of time. I’m a person who really likes to explore and can spend hours looking at every single inch of a place, so the day tour goes a bit against my nature. However, it gives a good taste of a little bit of everything, and I know that I’d like to go back and maybe rent a car, and do it all my way.

Afterwards, we went into The Burren, which I think is just a general name for a large area. We saw various things and heard various tales as we drove by, including the legends of the fairy trees. Ireland feels like a magical place, so that stories of the fairies was very interesting!

We eventually stopped in the coastal town of Doolin where we had a lunch at Gus O’Conner’s Pub. I had the Beef and Guinness Stew with brown bread. Some of the best stew and bread that I have ever had; it tasted homemade and made me melt. Sooo delicious. I still think about it sometimes!

The town itself has a walking trail straight to the Cliffs of Moher. So if you’re inclined, that’s something you could so. It’s something I would do but for the confines of a bus tour. It’s a very picturesque area. And we were very lucky on our tour as it seemed that every time we were on the bus, it was cloudy, but as soon as we stepped off, it was sunny. And sun glistening on the ocean is one of the greatest things.

After Doolin, we were off to the cliffs!

There, we got a full 2 hours (you could spend so much more time there) to explore and pick up our souvenirs. We got to see the cave from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and marvelled at the sheer size of those cliffs. Pictures don’t do it justice. You can’t tell the size just from images (until you look closely and see just how tiny the people are). It’s a very busy place with a lot of inclines, but worth everything.

If you leave the actual park, there’s an area where you can risk your life and walk next to cliff edges without any fencing! I didn’t stay there too long. Also, there was someone just letting their dog roam freely without a leash next to the edge. Please don’t risk the lives of yourself, your children, or your pets. One gust of wind and you’re done (it has happened).

Eventually, we were back on the bus and made a few other stops at a few other interesting places. By this time, as soon as I sat down, I was out, so it’s a bit of a blur.

We got back to Galway Bus Station just in time to get on yet another bus (this is a trip full of buses and walking) back to Dublin. Yup, we spent one night in Galway. It felt like much more though since we were able to see so much.

Back in Dublin, we explored a little and ate, then we stayed at Tara Towers. When you go to Dublin, don’t stay at Tara Towers unless you’re into outdated hotels where non-smoking rooms are rooms that used to be smoking rooms judging by the smell. It was very easy to find though and accessible by bus; it was fine for just a night. I mean, we got in at nearly midnight and had to be up at 4 to catch our bus to the airport, so it was a place to clean up and sleep.

In the morning, the bus didn’t come. Or it was late. There was myself and my mom waiting plus a couple and another girl. After the bus hadn’t shown up for a full 30 minutes (it was the bus to the airport. You’d think they’d be a little more schedule conscious seeing as flights don’t exactly wait), the couple called a taxi and asked if we wanted to share (sorry to the other girl… hopefully she wasn’t going for a flight). So we split a taxi and got to the airport in time.

Then we were off to Scotland.

Holiday: Dublin and Galway

My mom flew to the United Kingdom to visit and gallivant with me in 3 different countries. It was half term break (one week) where I am, so we decided to pack a lot into a little.

My mom arrived Friday and I met her at the train station at 3.30PM (ish) to take her back to my England home. Then on Saturday, it was up at 3.30AM (not ish) to catch our bus to the airport where we’d fly to Dublin.

In Dublin, we took a bus to city centre and explored/ate. The good thing about early morning flights is that when you land, you feel like it’s later than it is and still have a whole day to adventure. That’s the entire reason for the early morning flights. In the moment, you wonder why you decided to put yourself through this agony, but you’re rewarded with time, so you look back and commend yourself on your choices.

After we ate breakfast and figured out how to get to Galway, we boarded a Citylink bus and began the nearly-three-hour journey to Galway, Ireland.

Galway is a beautiful place that’s right on the water. When we arrived, it was still too early to check in to our accommodation, which was at the University’s dorms. So, as we did often this week, we explored, baggage in tow.

Both Dublin and Galway are great places for tourists. It reminded me of going to tourist-heavy areas of Thailand or China where there’s tourist information and tours everywhere you look. I think I heard more North American accents in Ireland than I did Irish. There are a LOT of tourists and a LOT of places to accommodate tourists. Both Dublin and Galway economies are very clearly impacted by tourism, which, as a tourist, I like. I’m not sure how people who live there feel.

We walked around Galway, hauling our bags around on our shoulders. We followed the signs and visited an old church, the spanish arch, the Latin quarter, and a bunch of other areas I can’t remember. There was also a market going on. I’m not sure if it’s a regular occurrence, but there was fresh bread, produce, and other foods, interesting clothing and jewelry, and neat knick-knacks of every variety. Again, it reminded me of the markets in Thailand.

While it had been pouring in Dublin, resulting in a slightly damp bus ride to Galway, the rain stayed away when we got off the bus. It was cloudy, but warm and bright. This would set the tone for most days during our break.

I don’t know how many hours we walked, but our legs were done even before we decided to find the University. With the help of Google Maps (my BFF when I travel) and a little bit of back-tracking, we eventually found Corrib Village where we were staying.

Now, it’s nothing super fancy seeing as it’s university accommodations, but it gave us a place to sleep and shower. Thinking about it, it feels like we were there a lot longer than we actually were.

We got to Corrib Village in the late afternoon/early evening and stayed there because our legs were done and we were tired. All of our evenings were pretty much spent where we were sleeping!

We got dinner from the onsite cafe and spent some time outside in the sun, which decided to also make an evening appearance, before we went to bed.

While we were eating in Dublin, we were trying to figure out how to see the Cliffs of Moher and decided on a tour with the company aptly named Galway Tours where we would get to see the Cliffs as well as many other things.

So, in the morning on the second day, we trekked down to the bus station and began our second adventure of the trip.