Adventures in Ireland : 10 Days on the Emerald Isle

I have to say, I didn't know the slightest thing about Ireland before I went. (I had to watch some youtube videos to learn about how it's a different country than Northern Ireland, which lead me down a rabbit hole trying to understand what countries make up the UK.) 

The Irish are a friendly, loud, and energetic bunch. It was quite refreshing to be in a place where people smile and say "good day" when you walk by instead of trying to avoid eye contact with you like people do in U.S. cities. People there remain very close (emotionally and spatially) to their families, another nice change from the U.S. They never seem to be in a rush, they don't blare car horns, and they drink A LOT... A LOT A LOT!!!

Suffice to say they are fun people and I thoroughly enjoyed my time with them. :) ​

10 Days on the Emerald Isle

It would have been wonderful to stay a bit longer, but 10 days was what I got, and I won't complain about that. Here's a quick glance at where we went during our trip :

As you can see by the map, we visited 7 different towns, starting in Dublin and going south through Glendalough and the Wicklow Mountains, through Wexford, Waterford, Cork, Killarney, around the Ring of Kerry (and Skellig's Ring), up and around to the Aran Islands, back to Galway, and then returning to fly out of Dublin.

So, let's jump right in!

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