At this point I’m starting to sound like a broken record but I promise you I’m not lying when I say that I find something new to love about this place and these people each and every single day. This weekend, in particular, was an experience I’ll never forgot. I mean WOW. If that word alone qualified as a full blog post I would merely leave it at that. Let me backtrack for a moment, though, and give a brief internship update: I absolutely love my job! Currently, I’m conducting market research on Business-to-Business Incentives. It’s my responsibility to compile qualitative and quantitative data that I’ll begin turning into an eBook early next week. If all goes according to plan, I’ll have my very own published eBook on the Allgo website by the end of July!
A few photos I took this week in the office and during my commute.
Okay, now time to talk about the weekend. I began my Friday being woken up by none other than Cat Dineen. That girl has energy on loan from God — seriously, she is caffeine in human form. After my lovely wake up call, Bella, John, and I made our way down to the bus. Huge shoutout to John for carrying our bags like the gentleman that he is (we forced him to do it).
John dutifully lugging mine and Bella’s bags to the bus
One long bus ride later – give or take a photo op or two – we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher. As we approached the edge of the cliffs, I found myself at a loss for words. We could not have visited this location on a more perfect day. All around us was sunlight, greenery, crashing waves, and you could see for miles. In total, we got to explore the cliffs for about three hours before heading to our next location, the Burren. I spent the entirety of our time there hanging out with Dean Kepner and Prof. Wilck’s daughters, Lily and Hannah, looking for rocks to throw into the crashing waves below us. Luckily, we found a few good ones and I chucked them in while the girls judged the size of the splash.
Views from the Cliffs of Moher and The Burren. Some pictures with my wonderful roommates, too!
After the long day had Friday the last thing we needed to do was go out and explore at night. Yet, we still found a way. We had an amazing evening filled with live music, dancing, and hilarious conversations with the locals. The next morning we set off for the Aran Islands. With the exception of the ferry ride there, this was by far my favorite part of the weekend. We got our pre-rented bikes upon arrival and set off almost immediately with no clue where to go or how to get there. Ms. Human Caffeine (ie. Cat) convinced a small group of us to adventure out into the hills and thank goodness she did. It was insane. We spent the remainder of our afternoon biking, hiking, and exploring abandoned ruins in the hills surrounded by wildlife. For someone who was complaining all week about the fact I couldn’t workout over the weekend, this quasi-Iron Man race Cat had us complete had me sore for days.
Everyone (Ariana, Cat, John, Evan, Cole) exploring the ruins and rock formations in the hills of the Aran Islands.
Sunday we visited two places that will remain in my heart and mind for months — both for separate reasons. We began the day at Kylemore Abbey, a castle nestled in the most beautiful landscape I think I’ve ever seen. On my way into the castle I noticed a sign listing a few different events going on throughout the day; one of these events was Sunday Mass. I’ve been meaning to go since we arrived in Dublin but haven’t had the time so I was thrilled when I saw they were offering it. It’s not atypical for me to cry during mass but something about this service was so moving that I couldn’t control myself. I was an absolute wreck. As Father Cillian’s homily came to a close I felt a tap on my shoulder. When I turned around, I was met face to face with a nun who was holding out tissues to me. She gave me a hug and whispered “God bless you” in my ear and the tears flowed even faster.
Some interesting views from the castle
After the castle we headed over to a sheep farm! I can tell you right now I did not have as grand a time as Hannah Wilck did. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the time we spent there I was just hungry, tired, and covered in blisters. As I limped my way through the mile walk from the bus to the farm, I realized I hadn’t eaten anything that day and it was nearly 2 PM. We made it to our desination and watched as one of the men who worked there instructed his Border Collie to herd the sheep. Once the sheep had been herded he showed us how to sheer one then took us to feed and hold little lambs. Ivy was getting photos of everyone holding the lambs and suddenly I had one in my arms too. Then, I felt something warm and wet spreading across my forearm. I was peed on by a baby sheep. Thank you Galway for a weekend I’ll never forget!! Slainte to our next adventure 🥳🥳
Moments before tragedy.
