A Postcard From... Ireland
Five days solo traveling through Ireland
To be completely honest, I debated writing this for the past week or so—hence the absence of “postcard” posts last week. After finishing the Camino de Santiago, I spent the rest of my summer traveling around Europe with my roommate from home, Ami (more posts on that to come). That said, before meeting up with her, I had a handful of days to fill in a non-“Schengen zone” country for visa/travel purposes. Enter: Ireland.
I know a ton of people love Ireland—so much so that I even met a woman who visits every year because she adores it so much. But that wasn’t me. I’m sure it’s a great country with plenty to explore, but I wasn’t in a great mental headspace while I was there. After spending the last month walking every day in beautiful, sunny scenery with four people who became my best friends, the transition to being alone in a country cloudier than Oregon in the winter was rough.
Still, it was part of my trip, and not every part of travel is glamorous. Therefore, I decided to keep it real and write about it anyway. So, without further ado:
I planned my trip to Ireland before I even left for Europe—that was mistake #1. I’ve solo traveled before, hopping from place to place every few days, so I planned to do the same this time: spend a few days in Dublin, a couple in Galway, and a couple in Cork. What I didn’t anticipate was how physically and emotionally exhausted I’d be after the Camino. Moving every few days with large bags turned out to be the last thing I wanted to do. I also didn’t realize how small Ireland is—if I’d based myself in one location, I could have taken day trips to visit the other cities. If I ever go back (or if anyone reading this plans to visit), I’d definitely recommend considering that approach.
Because I’d changed my flight out of Santiago to be a few days later, I ended up flying into Dublin in the evening, spending the night, and catching a bus to Galway the next morning—skipping any real exploration of Dublin altogether. Maybe I’ll go back one day, but for now, it’s nowhere near the top of my bucket list.
Galway - 2 days
Galway was cute. I arrived in the early afternoon and was able to drop my bags at my hostel before check-in, giving me a few hours to explore the town bag-free. The town isn’t massive, so I felt like I covered most of it in that time. I’m sure there’s more to see, but I was so tired that I was ready to check into my hostel and take a nap. I found a nearby grocery store, grabbed a few items to make myself dinner, and decided to book a last-minute trip to the Cliffs of Moher—the big Irish attraction—since I needed something to do the next day.
Ireland felt absolutely freezing, with a high of 60 degrees and a constant drizzle (not exactly what I was hoping for in mid-July), but thankfully I had some warm clothes packed for future summer plans. In the morning, I made my way to the tour bus, an easy 10-minute walk from my hostel, and prepared to be chauffeured around for the day. On the bus, I met a professor from Philadelphia who was teaching a three-week course in Ireland and was on the tour for her day off. She loves Ireland so much that she visits at least once a year and has been to the Cliffs of Moher more times than she can count. Apparently, the tour I booked included some sort of cave visit, and she was so excited about it she couldn’t stop talking. Meanwhile, I had absolutely no idea what was going on—I was just along for the ride.
Sure enough, we stopped at Doolin Cave, a cave system formed over thousands of years by slightly acidic water eroding limestone. I can’t say I shared the Philly professor’s level of enthusiasm, but it was cool to see. Eventually, we made it to the Cliffs of Moher, which were stunning but packed with tourists (myself included). There’s a ~12-mile walking path along the cliffs that I wish I’d had time to explore—mainly to escape the crowds—but since I was on the tour’s schedule, I walked around and explored as much as I could.
On our way back to Galway, we stopped for lunch, and I ended up eating with the professor. She told me about her favorite ice cream place in the world, so when we got back to Galway, we went there together to try it. It was pretty good, but since I seemed to be on a European Ice Cream Tour, it wasn’t the best I’d had (though I didn’t dare tell her that). I really appreciated her taking the time to show me around and share all her Irish knowledge, especially since I hadn’t been ~loving~ Ireland so far. It was a good reminder that everyone has their own opinions and experiences. She was so passionate about it all, and I was genuinely happy to listen.
Cork – 2.5 days
I took a morning bus and headed a few hours south to Cork. It was a rainy day, and I was still exhausted, so once I arrived at my hostel, I hunkered down for the afternoon. From the outside, the hostel seemed nice—it even had a small movie theater in the back. I joined a few other guests there to watch a movie while waiting for the rain to pass before heading out for dinner. I probably should’ve sucked it up and explored the town in the rain, but my body was still catching up on sleep after the Camino. I grabbed a quick bite to eat and went straight to bed.
Unfortunately, my room was absolutely awful, as were the guests staying in it. Even worse, what I thought was a “good dinner” hit me with a nasty bout of food poisoning—a nightmare when you’re sleeping on a top bunk in a room with nine other people. At this point, Ireland was really testing me.
By morning, I decided I couldn’t handle another night in that room. I found a hotel near the airport to check into later that evening, which worked out perfectly since I had an early flight the next morning. However, I still had the day ahead of me and couldn’t check in until later, so I decided to walk around town since it wasn’t raining.
I discovered a lovely walking path where they were setting up for the Cork Triathlon that morning. It was cool to see everyone preparing for the race. The path turned into a scenic 10-mile loop, and along the way, I stumbled upon a fantastic arts and food market where I stopped for a late lunch. It was the highlight of my time in Cork.
Afterward, I returned to the hostel, grabbed my things, and caught the bus to my hotel. Honestly, it was the best decision I could have made.
After showering and settling in, the fire alarm went off—something I’d never experienced in a hotel before. However, it led to meeting a kind, older woman from Canada who invited me to join her for dinner in the hotel restaurant later that evening. The final match of the Euros—Spain vs. England—was on, so we watched the game while having a wonderful conversation. She’s a semi-retired art teacher from way up north in Canada, and her husband is an expat police officer in the Netherlands, where she had just finished visiting him for a few weeks.
Since I love printmaking, we spent much of the evening talking about that and other art projects we’ve tackled over the years. It was a lovely way to wrap up my time in Ireland.
Although it was a rough week for me personally, I made it through and saw the country to the best of my ability. That said, I was beyond excited to meet up with Ami and kick off the next few months of our summer adventure!