The Emerald Isle.. a.k.a Melissa's Happy Place

So for the last week of our Easter break our group took a five day trip to Ireland and I loved every second of it. I loved the atmosphere of everywhere we went in Ireland including Dublin and I'm not even a city person. I felt so at peace and just completely blissful throughout our entire trip there and I didn't want to leave! 

Day 1: Getting there (4/23/2011)

Ireland from the ferry

The bus picked us up from our flats at 10:30 am sharp and it was off to Holyhead, Wales to catch the ferry to Dublin. The only ferries I had ever been on were small ones on the coast of Texas but this thing was more like a casino cruise ship. It was huge! It had a casino area, restaurants, stores, a theater area... and that was just deck 4, the main passenger deck. It was a big boat. We took our seats in the big, comfy, seats in the theater area and I was all sorts of giddy. We were on our way to Ireland! The place I had been most wanting to see since I was old enough to know what it was. The place where there was live Celtic music, water, the most green grass you could imagine, and a ton of other people with just as many freckles as I have and are just as pale. I was beyond ecstatic. So we took our seats and for our entertainment they played Pocahontas II. Disney can try and try as they may but few sequels ever live up to the greatness of the originals. Then shortly after the movie was over we were within viewing distance of Ireland! I rushed up to the deck so I could peak around the side of the boat and see my beautiful Emerald Isle for the first time and then proceeded to jump for joy with my friend Lauren who was almost as thrilled as I was. I stayed up there for a few minutes to let my excitement out then went back downstairs because it was extremely windy and my hair was making it hard to see. I gathered my things and eagerly lined up at the door to disembark the ferry. When we were waiting in line to get on the bus my friend Ben turned to me (he had been laughing at my giddiness all day) and said "hey Melissa...we're actually on land now!" and while I know he was slightly making fun of me the smile I already had on my face got even bigger. I was in Ireland.

We took the bus to a place near the hostel and then went to the hostel and sorted out our room assignments and then it was off to see some of Dublin and the Book of Kells. We walked through the streets of Dublin, stopping at a couple statues. There is a tall metal spire built in commemoration of the millennium in the center of town which is kind of random but cool nonetheless. Our main destination for they day, however, was Trinity College to see the Book of Kells. The Book of Kells is an illuminated text collection of the four gospels of the New Testament along with some other texts written by monks around 800 A.D. It was amazing to see a book that had been so well preserved for that long. We also got to see the Trinity Library in which there was not a book there written after 1750 which was also very cool to see. Of course everything was behind ropes but it was still pretty awesome. After seeing the book of Kells we had the evening off so some of us went to go look around in shops but I did not stay for too long because I was not feeling well so I went to go lay down for a bit. After that was dinner and then later on that night some of us went to go hear some live music at a pub near our hostel and that was really cool. I absolutely love Celtic music and wished I cared enough about my violin to get good at it. Maybe one day... but all in all great day. How could it not be? I was in Ireland!

Day 2: Wandering around Dublin (4/24/2011)

Sphere Within Sphere

The day started off with a walking tour of the city led by our fearless leader, Tecwyn. He took us around town showing us where the major tourist districts were, some famous statues, the park, and St. Patrick's Cathedral. One of the statues he showed us was the "Sphere Within Sphere" by Arnaldo Pomodoro. There are only three of these in the world: one in the Vatican, one at the United Nations headquarters, and the other at Trinity College in Dublin. It was pretty cool to see. At St. Patrick's Cathedral Tecwyn left those of us who did not want to see the Guinness brewery to explore on our own so some of us did. Rachel, Shawn, and I went off to see the National Art Gallery and Museum, stopping at some shops on the way. A good portion of the art gallery was closed due to renovations so we didn't stay there long but the archeology and history museum was really cool. That had an exhibit on vikings and another on the Egyptians and they were both really cool to see. It's amazing to me how some things last so long and are so well preserved. But anyways, after that it was almost dinner so we decided to head back to the hostel to find some dinner and then after dinner I just called it a night and read because I still wasn't feeling well. I had a great day, though!

St. Patrick's Cathedral

Day 3: On the way to Galway (4-25-2011)

The morning we were supposed to leave Dublin some of us decided to wander around a bit first. We went down to the end of the Liffe River (the river that runs through Dublin) to just look around, mostly at the bridges because we had three engineering majors with us and all of them love bridges and there was a bridge shaped like a harp that they wanted to see. There was also this really cool tilted building and their streetlights have clovers on them which I thought was pretty cute. After that it was back to the hostel to catch the 3.5 hour bus ride to Galway on the West coast of Ireland. I slept for the first part of the drive but as we got into the more rural areas of Ireland it was truly beautiful with rolling green hills and old stone walls everywhere. I just felt so peaceful and happy inside as I looked out the window. We got to Galway around 4 PM and dropped off our stuff at the hostel and then met Tecwyn for a short tour of the town. He took us to see a really famous salmon river and to the Roman Catholic cathedral and down to the harbor. In the cathedral there was a mosaic of JFK looking up at Jesus. The Irish really loved JFK... his picture is even hanging up in a lot of the pubs in Ireland. Anyways.. Tecwyn pointed out some important areas around the harbor, like the main street with all of the shops and the old Claddagh district. He pointed out the store that has the sole rights to the original Claddagh design and I bought my Claddagh ring there. It's pretty awesome to be able to say I got my ring from the place it started. After that some of the girls and I just wandered around until we got hungry and we went and got some food to cook. Then, after dinner, some of us hung out in one of the lounges and played a really fun card game and just had a good time with a lot of laughs until it was time to go to bed. Another great day in Ireland.

Day 4: Bikes and Cliffs (4-26-2011)

So day 4 was pretty much amazing. We took a ferry from Galway to Inishmore, the largest of the Aran islands, for a day of biking around. We biked around a good chunk of the island and it was so beautiful. It was completely agricultural so you could see everything. It was beautifully green and the the beach was gorgeous and I loved all of the horses and cows around. We even saw a foal! We road in a giant loop, Grant being my partner for the first half of the journey until we reached the cliffs of Inishmore and Dun Angheus. Dun Angheus is a fort that dates back to the Iron Age and is built on the edge of the cliffs of Inishmore. The cliffs are between 300 and 400 feet high and there is no barrier so we had some fun laying on the edge and taking pictures. The water was an amazing color and the power of the sea was apparent as it crashed against the rock. We spent a while up there just marveling at the cliffs and eating lunch. Garrett was nice enough to give me his extra sandwich so that I didn't have to buy anything at the cafe and that was really nice of him. I was super grateful.

After that Grant, Garrett, Deanna, and I headed out to find the wormhole, a natural, rectangular hole in the rock that the ocean flows freely into. We road through dirt roads of the island between the stone fences until we ran into a nice old man who pointed us in the direction we needed to go. We then parked our bikes and as we were heading off in the direction of the worm hole another man stopped to tell us where to go to in order to see the hole. The people in Ireland were just so nice and helpful and it really just makes you smile. But anyways, we crawled down some rocks to a flat bed of rock that the waves were coming up against and just kind of stood there in awe at the size of the waves and of the beauty of the place around us. It was a magnificent site. As the water crashed against some of the rocks it ran through grooves as it fell back down creating numerous little waterfalls on the rocks and it was really just breath taking. We wandered over a little more over to where the hole was and things like that just make you wonder how some things happen. This thing was a perfect rectangle and it just happened to be there. How do these things happen? Oh nature, you are a sly one. We stayed there for a while, watching the waves build and break and it was beautiful. I took way too many pictures and yet I could only bring myself to delete a couple of them. I also took a video which will be going up on facebook later. It was just awesome.

After our oo-ing and awe-ing at the waves we got back on our bikes to head down the coastal path and to see the seal colony. We got to the seal colony but none of the seals were on the beach. We saw a couple heads pop in and out of the water from time to time and thanks to Deanna's super camera with the 36x zoom I could see their faces. It was pretty cool to see seals in the wild... don't have those in Texas! Then it was back down to the docks to return our bikes and get on the ferry back to Galway. It was a beautiful day with the shining sun and light breezes and it was just fun. 

When we got back that evening Amy, Riley, Sheilagh, Teresa, and I decided that we didn't want to deal with cooking so we went off in search of a restaurant where I had the best fish and chips I have ever had (not that I have sampled much fish and chips in my lifetime.. but I'd say I've had a fair amount since coming to the UK...). The short amount of time in which we devoured our food was something that was both impressive and terrifying...but delicious! I guess we were all just really hungry. Then it was back to the hostel to chill until bed again to get ready for the next day.

Day 5: The Cliffs of Moher-a.k.a the Cliffs of Insanity! (4/27/2011)

Dunguaire Castle

We boarded the bus at 10 am for a two hour ride to the Cliffs of Moher, stopping at Dunguaire castle on the way. The castle is actually more of a tower house than a castle as it was never actually used for military purposes.. but still cool. Next to the castle were some really cute houses that I always pictured Ireland being covered in but had not seen many of... the little white houses with the straw on the roofs. I just love them and I finally saw some so that was exciting. We got back on the bus and continued to head for the cliffs and my face was glued to the window for the drive. The views were amazing as we headed uphill! Oh Ireland, my Ireland, can you bring your beauty to Texas, please? We got to the cliffs and were given a little bit of information about erosion and the fact these cliffs are the Cliffs of Insanity in the Princess Bride and the were also used in one of the Harry Potter movies. The guide also gave us binoculars to look down at one of the rocks and see that it was covered in birds. I'm not sure I've ever seen so many birds in one place! After he left we went off to stand on the edge of the cliff. These cliffs are 750ft high and epic. Yet, somehow, I was not that scared sitting on the edge of them.. odd. I laid on the edge just looking down and around the area and all I could think was "wow". They are so big! It was amazing. We took some pretty awesome pictures.. jumping near the edge, Grant pretending to walk off... it was a lot of fun. I wish we could have had more time there. But alas, an hour and 45 minutes later we were back on the bus to go back to Galway. Some of us did some last minute gift shopping and then we went to see the sunset on Galway bay. It was a gorgeous sight and a perfect way to spend my last night in Ireland.

Watching the sunset

Day 6: Saying goodbye, but not for good! (4-28-2011)

9:30 in the morning and we were on the bus back to Dublin to catch the ferry back to Wales. I stared out the window the entire bus ride, missing it already. I had an amazing time there and there is so much more of the country I still want to see. So I'll be back some day for sure. Ireland will always have a part of me.

"May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,May God hold you in the palm of His hand."
- An Old Irish Belssing

Until next time!

<3 Melissa

A week in Corfu, Greece... what could be better?

Bangor University has an Easter break that is three weeks long and during this break many students, especially the study abroad students, take the opportunity to travel. The last week of this break I will be spending in Ireland as part of the program but this post is about my amazing first week of Easter break. I was lucky enough to find a really great deal and go to the beautiful island of Corfu, Greece for a week with my friend Rachel and it was absolutely amazing.

Day 1 (4/8/2011): Getting There

So cheap travel usually means you travel at really inconvenient times... our flight was not until 5:30 pm but the cheapest train to the airport was at 6am so we spent a good part of the day in the airport playing cards. But anyways, we land in Corfu at 10:45pm their time (Greece is two hours ahead of the UK) and we get on the shuttle to the hostel with a group of American study abroad students from London who are travelling during their spring break, some of whom we actually make friends with over the next couple of days. We pull up to our hostel, the Pink Palace, at around 11:30pm and as soon as we walk into the door we are greeted by what seems to be a giant frat party with a guy from New Zealand in a tiger suit yelling "Fresh Meat!!!" and picking up and spinning around one of the shorter guys from the shuttle. The receptionists gives us our keys and a shot of Ouzo and Rachel and I are just left thinking "what did we sing up for...?" The place actually turned out to be a lot of fun but that was quite a welcome. We spent the night talking to people in the hostel... I was slightly terrified by the guys banging their heads with cans and stayed in the corner talking to those who appeared sane and sober. We stayed there until about 1:30am and then called it a night.

Day 2 (4/9/2011): "Hey Melissa..." "yeah?" "We're in Greece!!!"

View from the balcony 

View from the door

That became our mantra for the trip. We just could not believe we were actually in Greece! I woke up that morning and the first thing I did was go to the balcony of our room and it was stunning with the turquoise/blue water, the tree-covered mountain off to the side, and the sun shining everywhere. It was paradise. It was only made better when we left our room and saw that we were in a valley with trees everywhere. It was absolutely gorgeous! We went downstairs for breakfast and then it was off to the beach! Word of advice- buy your sunscreen BEFORE going to Greece because you will most likely only find it in your hostel or in a tourist shop and it will be extremely expensive (15 euros for a 150ml bottle). I guess the Greeks have a built in tolerance to the intense sun or something.

But anyways.. the beach. I was SO happy to be on a sunny beach! Tried to get into the water but it was a bit cold so I stuck the beach while Rachel went mermaid on me and played in the water. The sun felt amazing and I was just listening to the waves crashing and it was just the idea of perfection. We were joined by a very sweet, and very pregnant dog, which I loved. I really miss having a dog. The hostel actually has a few dogs that hang around it and they were super cute and fun to play with. Anyways, we spent about three hours down on the beach just marveling at our surroundings and then we decided to try and explore the town. We went up the hill first and that was an amazing view of the area but we wanted to wander around the town and see what there was so we went back down and explored. Apparently we had come about two weeks before season started and absolutely EVERYTHING was closed. There were some people airing out their businesses and doing touch ups but nothing was open so we just kept wandering through the town until we hit the beach again and walked down the beach and met up with the two girls who were on our shuttle the previous night. They were building a sand castle and Rachel and I, being like 10 years old inside, joined them. But it was soon time to go back to the hostel for dinner so we all went up and hung out in the lobby/ bar area until dinner was served. That night after dinner we learned some traditional Greek dancing which was hysterical and turned into a really fun mess. After that we all just hung out until bed. The Pink Palace is in kind of a remote area so the only thing to do at night was to hang out at the bar which was fine most nights. They generally had good music and cool people to talk to and it was usually a lot of fun.

Lesson of the day- double check that you put sunscreen EVERYWHERE! Two words: lobster boobs. I also had random burnt patches and a really bad burn on the top of my left thigh. Ouch!

Day 3 (4/10/2011): Toga! Toga! Toga!

Rachel and I 

Day three was another beach day. Again I tried to play in the water and though I lasted longer than the day before I still chickened out while Rachel went at the waves full force. We spent most of the day on the beach except for lunch time. It was just a really relaxing day. Later that night, however, the Pink Palace had a toga party! The togas were a pink silky material and I don't know why but somehow everything just seems more fun if you're wearing a toga. We even busted out some limbo! It was just a really fun night.

Day 4 (4/11/2011): ATVs!!!

the group for the day

Rachel had had a very late night so she slept that day but some of the guys that we had met were renting ATVs for the day so I tagged along with them and it was so much fun! Granted I got stuck with one of the only 50cc vehicles and the others were 80cc so I was a little behind and going up hills sucked... but the guys went at the pace of my vehicle and we saw some really amazing things! We went through a village and all up into the mountains. I love the buildings in Corfu... they're just so artful and colorful and surrounded by flowers. There also seem to be lemon and orange trees everywhere! Amazing! I would love an orange tree... And then from the top of the mountain we could see the coast of the end of the island and some mountains off in the distance on the other side. It was absolutely gorgeous!

We did, however, have some technical difficulties. One guy, Sam, got a flat tire and couldn't get his engine to start. We had to call the Pink Palace and wait for someone to come and find us. We eventually got Sam's engine started and were all going to go and wait for the guy at a lookout point not to far away but then we could not get another guy's engine started so three of them went ahead to the look out point and the other three of us waited in the woods for about an hour and a half. The guys were cool so it wasn't too big of a deal and it actually was really amusing. We had some pretty hilarious conversations. So anyways, the guy from the Pink Palace came and started Sawyer's engine and put Sam's ATV in the truck and drove him back. Most of the group was too frustrated and didn't want to keep going but we still had almost two hours left on the machines and so me and two other guys kept going. I also switched ATVs with one of the guys who wasn't going and it was so much faster! It was a blast. One of the guys I was with kept trying to steal it when we would stop at lookout points. We went through a nearby village called Sinarades. It probably was a bad idea on their parts to let me lead because I did not know how to get back or where I was going in the first place.. but we found our way back in time. It was really just an awesome day. The island is really beautiful and I just soaked up every minute of it. It was the last night for that group we came with on the shuttle which was kinda sad because they were really cool people but it was fun while it lasted and we added some of them on facebook so we can talk later :)

Day 5 (4/12/2011): Corfu Town

On the way to Corfu Town

Rachel and I decided that we wanted to see the main city on the island and getting there and back was really half the fun. The closest bus stop to the Pink Palace is in Sinarades, about a 5km walk up the hill and it was a really lovely walk. The sun was shining, there was a light breeze, and again everything around was beautiful. The area is covered in wildflowers and beautiful buildings and so many trees! I loved it. The town uses the public buses as school buses so we did not actually get into Corfu town until about a half hour later than we thought we would but it was fine... we were just confused as to why the bus driver was driving all around the little village until we looked at who was getting off at every stop. So we get into Corfu town and what is our first stop? An ice cream shop. We had both been wanting ice cream for a couple of days and boom! There it was right when we got off the bus so that was a good start to the trip. Then we just walked through the town and looked around. It was really a beautiful town, mostly filled with souvenir shops and restaurants, with the Old Fortress at the end of the main road. We weren't able to go in because it was closing but it was really cool to see. After that we popped in a couple more shops and I bought a couple of small souvenirs, only souvenirs I've bought since coming to Europe other than a small Welsh flag, and then it was time for food because we were hungry and dinner wasn't going to be until 9pm. We found a small gyro shop and oh my goodness are gyros amazing. I'd never had one before coming to Greece but it is definitely one of my new favorite foods, hands down. By the time we had finished eating, however, it was almost time to leave so we looked around a bit and then started to try and find the bus station. We took a few wrong turns but eventually found it and were on our way back to Sinarades.

German Shepherd on the Roof!

We took our time going back to the Pink Palace because the day had cooled off considerably and the walk seemed much more peaceful. When we were almost to the Pink Palace we passed a building and heard some barking, looked around, and there was this large German Shepherd on the roof of this building running back and forth. It was so funny! I was so confused as to how he had gotten up there but then I remembered that the building was on a hill and felt kind of silly... but it was still a funny sight. After we got back we cleaned up and went downstairs to hang out a bit and we actually met a Canadian guy who, when wearing his sunglasses, looked like Tom Cruise. We talked to him until dinner and then after dinner he gave everyone his rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody which was just extremely entertaining with his added in comments... I think he was a bit tipsy. All in all another great day in Corfu!




Day 6 (4/13/2011): Wandering Around

Rachel on a Rock

Rachel and I decided that we wanted to explore the entire beach, not just the area designated for the Pink Palace so we spend a few hours doing that. We climbed over some rocks, found a couple of caves, and just enjoyed a really nice walk. We would have kept going but we got to a certain point and were ambushed by five barking dogs so we thought it best to turn around. I picked up some cool, small, funky rocks along the way for my step-sister.. those kinds souvenirs are the best kind I think. It's rare now that I find souvenirs that I think are worth buying.. a lot of them just seem tacky or meaningless or way overpriced.. just my ramble of the day. But anyways we went back to the Pink Palace portion of the beach we decided we were going to try and chill there for a bit but it was really cold and windy so we went back up to the room for a bit to wait for the wind to calm down. I read a little bit and wrote a couple of post cards but then I got really sleepy and fell asleep for about three hours and by then the sun was starting to set. I couldn't believe I had slept the rest of the day away! At least it wasn't our last day there. That night ended up being lame for a while. Some new guys, ironically from Austin, Texas, got everybody playing drinking games and since Rachel and I were both broke, as well as I'm not a drinker..., we sat out and were extremely bored for a while. So then we went to go bug the night receptionist and he was really cool. His name is Armando and he is from California and he's been travelling around Europe for two years, jumping from job to job at different places he wants to go and just learning languages. Sounded like an extraordinary life. So we talked to him for a while and that was fun but we made that night an early one and went to bed around 12:30 or so.

Day 7 (4/14/2011): Our Last Night
After breakfast we tried to go down to the beach and play in the water but the wind and waves were so strong that we couldn't even get past the breaker waves. So then we tried to just lay on the beach but it was too windy so we went inside. Rachel ended up going back outside to lay on the sun deck.. something she later regretted.. while I stayed inside and read for the rest of the day looking out the window. Rachel got a massive sunburn because she had forgotten to put sunscreen back on before going out and was out there for a few hours. The Greek sun is either the same as or more intense than the Texas sun... she was extremely red. I felt so bad for her! That night was a lot of fun, though. At around 6pm we went downstairs and sat a table with a couple of new people, Brandon and Tahnee, that we had met. They were also from Canada and had been travelling around Europe for almost two months and they were really cool. They were both hilarious and just a lot of fun to hang out with. Later on the DJ kept putting on all of these major sing-a-long songs and old dance songs like "Summer Lovin'" and "Dancing Queen" and people actually danced! The whole week we had been there nobody danced and that is what I like to do!...even if I may look like an idiot doing it sometimes... I was so excited and had a blast! Armando asked me if I was drunk because I was so goofy and happy (I was completely sober...) but I was just having a really good time. It was probably the most fun night of the week for me.

Day 8 (4/15/2011): Kayak Safari and Saying Goodbye
So our last day the sea was finally cooperating enough so that we could do the one thing we had really wanted to do the entire trip: kayak safari. It was so much fun! They were two-person kayaks and I got paired up with the Canadian Tom Cruise, Steve, and Rachel was paired up with a Scottish man named Johnny and it turned out we were really lucky for that. Steve and I were team "Top Gun" and Rachel and Johnny were team "Nessie". Apparently Steve is some kind of martial arts master and was extremely strong and Johnny was runner up to a rowing team that was going around the world... so we were pretty ahead of the game and because of that we got frequent breaks in order to let the others catch up which my arms were extremely grateful for. The water was unreal and it seriously looked fake. It was extremely calm and clear. We must have been in a place that was at least 50ft deep, if not more, and you could still see the ocean floor. The water had made this wavy pattern in the sand and it was amazing to see. And the color was something that pictures would not do justice. It was almost the color of Listerine... maybe a little more turquoise. It was beautiful. We started off going to a small island with a monastery and ate our lunches. The legend has it that you ring the bell at the monastery once for love, twice for money, and three times for happiness and almost everyone rang the bell three times.
Then it was back in our kayaks over to a private beach. Steve decided it would be a good idea to ditch his swim shorts so Rachel stole them and put them on a rock further up the beach which gave everyone a show when he decided he wanted them back. Only in Europe. Everybody got in the water for a little bit but I felt near hypothermia when I got out because I could not get warm. I ended up burying my legs in the warm sand and that helped a little bit. Then we were back in the kayaks and on to our last activity of the day: the cliff jump. The rock we were jumping off of wasn't too high so it was still fun... my fear came mainly from having to jump back into the cold water. But, alas, I did it and I even stayed in the water and swam for a bit. It wasn't so cold that time for some reason.. maybe because I was already shivering when I jumped in. I felt warmer getting out of the water than I did jumping in. One girl had a waterproof camera with her and I hope I can find her on facebook and get some of those pictures from the day. I was scared of bringing my camera because I didn't want it to get wet. After we had all jumped off the cliff it was back in the kayaks to head back to the pink palace and I can definitely say that my rowing speed slowed down a bit. My arms were hurting a bit after a day of kayaking.. but I had a lot of fun. We got back to the hostel around 6 and our shuttle back to the airport left at like 7:30 so Rachel and I changed in the bathroom, no showers because we had already checked out, and just chilled in the common area with our new friends until it was time to leave. We said our goodbyes and got on the shuttle waving goodbye.

Us with the Canadians we had met

We got to the air port around 8:30 and checked in but our flight wasn't until 11:45 so we had to wait a while. The flight landed at 1am in Manchester and the next train back to Bangor was not until 5:50am so we ended up spending the night in the train station. Apparently, if I'm tired enough, I can fall asleep on my own lap. Who knew! By the time we got back I don't think I had ever been so happy to see my flat. I passed out for a good five hours.. would have been longer if I hadn't set my alarm. This trip, however, was worth everything. It was absolutely amazing, a ton of fun, and I'm glad I got the chance to visit a new place. I hope one day to go back to the Greek Islands and see more of them. Well, until next time!

<3 Melissa