Change of plans....

Well it's been a couple crazy days....busy but good :) Last I wrote I was heading to Dublin...got there safely even though my flight was delayed a couple hours. Got into the city during the exciting mess of Ireland playing Wales in rugby...everyone dressed in red and green and going absolutely CRAZY in the streets (even though Ireland lost!). It was a great experience to see public drunkeness at its finest! Checked into my hostel which was in the heart of it all. It was called the Litton Lane Hostel and it was converted from the recording studio used by U2, Sinead O'Connor, and Van Morrison. So you think it would be pretty cool right? Wrong, it was nasty. The bathroom walls were splattered with blood and the showers so gross, I didn't even shower that night, haha. Luckily I was only staying there for 1 night (only place I could get during the rugby weekend). But I went out and walked around for awhile, enjoying the craziness :) Got up early the next day and had to check into my other hostel...I'm getting better at moving around so quickly! Then I toured Dublin all day....headed to Trinity College, Temple Bar, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and ended at the Guinness Warehouse. That was a blast...I took the tour and learned all about how the thick stuff is made and when I got to the 7th floor, got a fresh pint of it for free! And you'll be happy to know that I, avoiding every ounce of temptation, did NOT take the glass home with me :) Didn't want to get caught in Ireland, of all places! It was a great day...walked the whole city and surprisingly, the sun was out the entire time. Came back and met up with Yan, one of my roommates and we went out for a couple beers around the city. Went to a church that was converted into a bar (and of course I forgot my camera that night), Temple Bar, and ended up back near the hostel at O'Sheas for live Irish music. SO many people were out on a Sunday night...I couldn't believe it. I don't know how they get up for work the next morning.....or if they get up at all! It was awesome though :)
The next morning I decided I had had enough of big cities for a couple days so I cancelled my booking at the hostel that night and hopped on a bus to Galway (west coast of Ireland). I was lucky to cancel without getting charged and just booked the next couple nights in Galway instead. Met Leigh, Mark, and Jen on the bus there (all from the U.S. - Leigh is studying abroad in Dublin and the others visiting her) and we spent the rest of the day together, walking around Galway in the pouring rain! It was still beautiful though and such a low-key city (felt more like a town). Favorite part was a cathedral right across the river....just absolutely gorgeous and we seriously just sat there for 1/2 hour staring at the ceiling and architecture. Makes me wonder how I'm going to handle Paris and Rome :) Came back to dry (literally soaked to the bone) and get some food. All of us plan on going out to hear some Irish music (Galway is known for it) and have a couple beers later. There are a few great pubs nearby and also a jazz wine bar which we will hit up as well (Mark found in a guidebook actually). We're also going to take a tour of the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren tomorrow.....it's supposed to be beautiful (even the brochure is gorgeous) so let's hope the weather holds out! I can't take any more rain!! This hostel is so great here too...so clean and definitely a step up from Dublin. Promise I'll post a few pictures tomorrow or the next day....it's been hard trying to upload them on computers here. Anyways, now that I'm paying for the internet, the posts might be a bit shorter ;) Xoxoxoxox