A weekend in Dublin

Ok, well I've been to Ireland and back during the last weekend, so it's time for a post.

We got up Friday morning, myself, Lauren and Katy, and we walked down to the train station here in Angers while it was still dark, around 5 am. After waiting for a few minutes, we hoped on the train that took us west to the town of Nantes roughly 35 minutes away. While I didn't get to see any of the city there, I didn't mind so much, seeing as how I'd be in Ireland is about 2 hours. We took a taxi (like we ended up doing a lot in Dublin) to the Nantes airport and then flew for about an hour and a half on Ryanair to Dublin, Ireland....

So let me start this off by saying that Ireland is better than France in a couple ways: better food (minus cheese and wine), nicer people and better pubs. We rolled into town on the bus and ended up grabbing brunch at an authentic Irish restaurant which was recommended to us by a man in perhaps his 60's standing at the entrance of a hotel. His demeanor and overall kindness blew us away after having spend so much time in France where, basically, they're more closed off to strangers.

After an amazing meal, and me convincing the girls to drink a whole pint of Guinness (earning them my upmost respect), we headed out to Temple Bar, the district in Dublin adjacent to the river where all the best....well, all the best bars are. But that's not where the name comes from. Anyways, we were growing increasingly tired of caring our backpacks around so it was such a relief to sit at a pub, soak up the Irish culture, and rest our weary backs for a time.

The city was amazing by the way, decked out in green, white and orange in every direction and filled with tourists and locals alike all sporting their brightest green jackets and sweaters (on account of the chilly weather). It was one of the most fun things I have ever been a part of. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. When 5:00 rolled around, we met up with Katy's friend Remi, who was half Irish, half French (speaking both French and English fluently, albeit English with a thick Dubliner/James Joyce accent). He showed us around for a while, then we ended up grabbing some Mexican food...I know, shame on me...and found another pub at which to sit, chat, laugh, and share a few more pints together, all the while surrounded by hundreds of people with that very same mission in mind.

We ended up crashing at Remi's that night on the outskirts of town, taking a taxi to get there. Remi and Lauren decided to head out to some more nearby pubs while Katy and I collectively decided our fatigue was just too much. When we woke up at 9...Remi and Lauren still weren't home and didn't end up getting in until about 9:30. Lauren hadn't slept. Remi had merely napped. It was a bit sad really because we soon headed downtown to watch the Saturday morning St. Paddy parade, but Lauren didn't come, as her basic instinct for sleep was her overriding motivation for the afternoon.

In town, the streets where lined with spectators cheering and laughing at various people that paraded by in assorted costumes and floats. It was great, but so stinking cold that after about 45 minutes of parade watching, we wandered back to Temple Bar for some pints and the great heated indoors. Also, there was a big rugby match on TV... Ireland vs. Italy in what turned out to be a route by the Irish. Believe it or not, I'm actually starting to get into rugby...I like it I mean. Strange.

I'll stop here to mention something that brings me great sadness. My poor little camera never made it back with me. Like Fival in Disney's, An American Tale, it was separated from me in a foreign land. But unlike the classic animated children's movie, we won't be reunited (although I do sometimes feel like my life is a musical). I left it at a bar toward the end of that first night, and I went back to see if they still had it the next day, and sadly...there was no word on my little lost camera. So...no pictures, except the ones that Katy took, which she will soon be giving me and which you all will soon be viewing, if all goes as planned They're all fantastic picutres. Sad though, huh?

Well, after the rugby match, for which I was sporting around my shoulders an Irish flag I had bought in a souvenir shop, we went and grabbed some food. I kid you not, we went to a Burger King! Ridiculous. But after that, we went home to collect Lauren, who was still asleep when we rolled in. Later on, we ended up eating at an Italian restaurant that wasn't half bad. After the meal, I ordered an Irish coffee to sip on while we just shot the breeze. I knew they have alcohol in them, but this one seemed to be super strong. They're made with regular coffee, sugar, a shot of whiskey (Jameson's I'm assuming), and whipped cream on top. Super tasty, but I felt really buzzed after drinking it. Anyways, just thought I'd mention that.

Right after, we walked across the parking lot to a bar called the Orchard. This place was amazing inside. It was possibly the coolest bar we visited. It was toward the outskirts of town, closer to Remi's, and it was a relief to walk into it on account of the wind. It had been incredibly cold and windy since we arrived. It actually didn't rain too much though, which was nice. At the Orchard we drank pints of beer dyed green with food coloring, which then proceed to stain our lips and tongues green. We ended up hanging out with a bunch of local Irish who were all plastered (St. Paddy's remember), but who held their beer quite well. People were singing songs and clinking pint glasses together in such a picture perfect way I thought I was in a movie. It was hard to think about leaving on Monday morning.

We ended up stoping by a dance club later on where, unlike the Orchard which was generally a slightly older crowd, a couple hundred young kids crowed to drink and dance until about 2:00am. I really enjoyed taking a seat and just observing them all. They were Irish and I wasn't one of them. But somehow I felt welcome and at home, which is how the Irish tend to make a person feel.

Well, we got back home late and were glad for it because the cold windy night was no place for us to be, as we realized while waiting for a taxi outside the club. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the throngs of Irish girls who were barely covered up. I also couldn't help but feel surprised at how little that actually seemed to bother them.

When we woke up the next day, we went into town and did a little shopping. The weather was reminding me of the Willamette valley that afternoon based on how inconsistent it ended up being. I could see blue sky in the east, dark clouds in the west, and twenty minutes later, they would have switched places. In between, 5 minutes of light rain would splash the streets, interrupted by more sun, then an inevitable downpour that lasted 10 minutes, always ending in sunshine again. However, when it started to hail, we jumped into the nearest pub and grabbed a few pints. We proceeded to hangout there through the moments when the hail stopped and started again, all the way through the moments when it began to snow (it was colder than I realized). Leaving there, having sat through a whole soccer match, we headed out to dinner at another pub, and ended having another fantastic Irish meal. I ordered a very hearty stew to accompany my pint of Guinness.

Afterward, we went in search of some good Celtic music near Temple Bar and ended up finding
a great place to sit down, have a pint, and soak in the countless years of tradition. We stayed there for a while, and had no intentions of leaving as long as we could still see the snow flakes falling past the window that looked out on the empty street. I guess everyone had the same idea: indoors and beer. It had been snowing off and on for the past 5 hours or so.

When we finally decided to head back around 1:00am, we grabbed the first taxi and prepared ourselves for about 4 hours of sleep, seeing as how our plane left the Dublin airport at 7:00, and we had to be there at 6:00. Unfortunately, we nearly slept through our alarm and woke up when the taxi arrived at 5...and none of us had even packed. We were in a pretty big hurry as we said goodbye to Remi and jetted out the door and into the taxi.

Everything went smoothly at the airport and flying back to Nantes and taking the train back to Angers, save the annoying America lady in her 50's on the train who'd been living in France for the last 13 years, embittered by politics and overly opinionated, wanting to talk to 3 exhausted kids with nothing much to say about Bush, the war in Iraq, or the bright red lipstick smeared all over her teeth. We got off the train as quickly as we could when it finally stopped, not only to ditch our unwelcome traveling buddy, but because since it was Monday, we actually had classes to get to. In fact, we had already missed a few, all in the name of cultural enrichment in the form of pint glasses and shamrocks. No regrets though.

Well, that's my weekend in a nutshell. I'll see what I can do about the pictures, but until then, I'll just continue hanging out here in Angers. Actually, my host brother and I might go see 300 tonight if all goes as planned. Take care everyone, and comment lots. Tell me how jealous you were, are and will be based on all I have in store for me here before I finally see home again. I miss you all!