Ireland: Day 5

Sorry I couldn't post yesterday. We had a very busy agenda. One of my favorite stops was the Giant's Causeway. Here are a few pics. More to come later!

The Craic Will Be Mighty! Ireland, Day 4

Our tour director Elva taught us this new word today.  I decided to look it up on Urban Dictionary to make sure I was using it correctly : )

Craic:  Irish word for fun/enjoyment that has been brought into the English language, usually when mixed with alcohol and/or music.  Fun doesn't really cut it though. General banter, good times had by all. Also, a person who is good fun/great company.

Try using it in a sentence......

It was great craic. She's great craic when she gets going. He's great craic when he has a few pints on him. What's the craic? How's the craic? The craic was mighty. 

Tonight, "the craic was mighty!"  A few of us visited a local pub called O'Donnell's.  There was live music, and it was quite entertaining great craic!  Today, I decided to come up with 10 things.  I guess I'm feeling ambitious (or really, the coffee hasn't worn off yet.  I'll probably regret that in the morning when I'm falling asleep on the bus!)

1.  There was too much shopping involved on today's trip.  Expensive shopping.  And of course I had to indulge....you're supposed to buy these things when you're in Ireland!

2.  I really like Australians.  We typically sit with them at dinner.  They were great craic at the pub tonight!

3.  I don't think I like whiskey.  I drank my complimentary Irish Coffee.  But honestly....after the cream was gone, I lost interest.  

4.  I definitely don't like whiskey.  I tried a local drink that Elva suggested, a Patty's & Red (I think that's right....).  It contains whiskey, of course, and a red/pink lemonade.  Not my cup of tea.

5.  I do, however, like Guinness.  I a small sample for the first time today.

6.  I need to brush up on my Irish folk songs.  I know many of the tunes but not the lyrics.  And I'm sure no one would have been impressed if I had sung them in solfege at the pub.

7.  I try to get in some exercise each day.  Today, I rock-lifted.  Adam was not impressed.....

8.  "What's the definition of a bachelor?      Someone who hasn't made the same mistake twice."

     "How can I miss you when you won't go away?"  Just 2 of the great lines we heard in the pub.

9.  Johnny Cash seems to be really popular over here.

10.  We went in search of our pot of gold......unfortunately, there was none to be found.  That's really going to put a damper on my shopping!

Ireland: Day 3

My blogging time is very limited. So for now, I will leave you with 5 things. I promise to write a more detailed account later : )

1. "Keys, Teeth, Husbands," is what our tour director says each morning before we depart for our next destination. Check, check, check!
2. We found the perfect church--if we'd had our wedding in Ireland.
3. Signs are not only practical, they're entertaining.
4. It's getting increasingly hard to stay awake on the bus. We're the youngest people on this tour and the first ones to fall asleep!
5. Adam is on a geological field trip. "Man, I wish I had my rock hammer!"

Pictures are in random order (thanks Blogger app!) Can you match the correct picture to the correct number, haha? (Note: not all 5 have a corresponding picture.)

Greetings from Ireland (We DID finally make it!)

We have now been up for 31 hours.

We literally hit the ground running. I wish I was exaggerating. Since our flights were delayed, we ended up starting our tour a day late. We were crossing our fingers hoping we could catch up with our tour director and group before they left for the next destination. (We don't often stay in the same town for more than one night.)

It turns out that Shannon Airport is a LOT smaller than I expected--nothing like flying into Heathrow! We were the only incoming flight that early, so we were through customs and had our baggage within 10 minutes. I also was able to call my tour director for the first time and found out we had time to meet them in Limerick before they left.

Oh, and our Irish taxi driver, Patrick, was way friendlier than any London cabi I've ever met.

We got to our Limerick hotel in time to meet Elva, our guide, put our luggage on the bus, grab a coffee, and then we were off.

I can't give a full recap right now--I just couldn't give it justice. Here are a few pictures so y'all can see what we've been up to : )

Cliffs of Mohr
Rathburn Farm
Connemara Marble

And let me just say, there has been a lot of geology mentioned on this trip. It made Adam super happy!

Greetings From Chicago!

Let me just say that our honeymoon trip to Ireland.....hasn't gotten off to a good start.  Yet.  I'm hoping we can turn this around or at least make some good stories out of it.  Currently, it's too soon to say.

We arrived at the airport at 8:00am, grabbed coffee with Adam's parents, and were through security by 9:00.  Our flight was scheduled to leave at 10:21, so I had time to buy a new book and eat my pre-flight bagel.  We had not been seated at our gate for very long when the girl at the United Airlines desk broke the bad news:  the plane we were to board for Chicago had been delayed, and there was no way of knowing for how long. Turns out, there was a mechanical problem shortly after the plane took off from the Chicago terminal, and they were forced to turn around.  Not what we wanted to hear.....

Stephanie was the United Airlines representative at our gate, and she was doing her very best to get passengers accommodated on other flights.  Those of you who have flown in and out of Little Rock know that this airport is so tiny--there's only one United Airlines gate. We stood in line at the desk for an hour and a half! The next available flight?  6:30pm.  We were supposed to make a connecting flight in Chicago before departing Newark at 7:30 for Shannon Airport.  Stephanie was able to get us on an American Airlines flight that put us in Chicago by 5:30, but we had to reschedule our other flights. We found United Airways representative when we landed, but it took us a while to get to the correct terminal. This airport is huge!
The worst part?  United only has ONE flight departing for Shannon each day, so we'll have to wait until tomorrow evening before we depart for Ireland.  

It looks like we'll be staying in Chicago tonight. United has put us up in the Hilton and gave us vouchers for dinner and breakfast. We depart Chicago at 3pm tomorrow and leave Newark at 7:30pm. This will put us in Ireland at 7:00am on Day 2 of our scheduled tour.   The problem with this is that our guided tour will be leaving Limerick (our first stop on the tour) that morning for the next city on our itinerary. And the likelihood of us making it through the airport and on the bus before they leave.....isn't looking good.  We might be renting a car to catch up with our tour group....did you know that they drive on the wrong side of the road in Ireland?!? I'm thinking Adam and I will have to flip a coin to see who has to brave the left side of the road. Say a little prayer for us please!

We are off to dinner now. I'm hoping for some Chicago-style pizza! (Trying to stay positive about all of this!)

We also have "Flat Michael" with us on this trip. I'll have to give y'all the story in that too!