Ireland - Day 2

On Saturday we had a bus tour booked. It started at 9:55 so we got up at 8:30 to get ready. Our hostel provided breakfast so we ate and then walked to find our bus. We were getting picked up at Trinity College so it was really close. Being the planners that we are we got there about fifteen minutes early. It was extremely cold that day but another one of the tour bus drivers from the same company let us sit on his bus while we waited. He assured us he’s let us know when our bus arrived. I was afraid he would miss it but sure enough it got there and he told us when to get on.

The tour we booked was to take us through the country side to Wicklow Valley. We had one of the best tour guides I have ever had. She was so fun and helpful. To get to our first stop we had about a two hour drive. As we went along she pointed things out periodically and told us some stories. We made one stop on a bridge for some magnificent views of the country side. There was nowhere to get off so we had to stay on the bus. As we made our way farther along we got to see tons of Christmas trees. They were especially beautiful because they were golden. We really came to Ireland at the perfect time. Even though it was extremely cold, the scenery was exceptionally beautiful with all the leaves changing. We lucked out too because this year fall was about three weeks late!

We continued to make our way up the hills and our tour guide told us to start praying that the fog cleared up so that we got a great view. And as we made our way up it did just that! We stopped at a viewing area where they let us off to take pictures. We only got about ten minutes but it was more than enough time. It was so cold we took our pictures as fast as we could and got back on the arm bus! At the top it was a little foggy but still very pretty.

From there we had a short drive to Wicklow Valley. We had about an hour and a half to explore. We could go off on our own or with our guide for a short tour. We went with our guide. Here we got to see an old cemetery. It was especially neat because they don’t do a lot of up keep on it on purpose so that it maintains its original structure. Then we saw an old tower that was really pretty. It got struck with lightening once so they know there are seven floors and might have been used to store things at one point. Besides that they don’t know much about it. Today it is fully repaired and has had a lightening rod installed.

Next we went into the old church and made our way to the last building. The last building is a bit of a mystery because there is evidence that it was once either a church or a kitchen. It was pretty close to be another church but it did have a baptismal area. It seemed too small to be a church to me, but I guess no one will ever know for sure! Before we ended our mini tour our guide told us some interesting information about the tombs. First of all, all of the crosses have circles around them. No one particularly knows why. Our tour guide said she liked to believe it symbolized the everlasting life in Christ. Her husband on the other hand said it could have been a structural thing. I’m thinking I like her meaning better! The other interesting thing she told us was on some of the back of tomb stones you can see writing upside down. This means a person never paid for the stone so the stone mason would pull the stone out, turn it around, and use the other side for someone else! I thought it was pretty interesting!

When our mini tour was over we still had about a half hour to explore. We walked around outside a bit more and then down to the creek. It was time to warm up after that so we went in a craft store before heading back to the bus. We then had about a forty-five minute bus ride to the next location up windy roads. We were headed to Avoca Mills. It is one of the oldest woolen mills around. As soon as we got there we got to take a tour of the mill and got to actually see them making some scarves. It was absolutely amazing how much work went into making them. Watching the guy make the scarves was one of the highlights of the day.

We saw another machine all set up. Just to set it up it took more than eight hours to string the whole thing. Not surprising if you saw the machine though! It was a short little tour since the place was tiny but it was neat to get to learn about the weaving process. Afterwards there was finally some time for lunch. I got some of the best tomato soup with cheese break I’ve ever had and a tasty carrot and walnut cake for desert! When we were done eating we got to shop around the store before it was time to head home. On the ride home we took the highway so the scenery wasn’t so great but we got home pretty fast. We got into Dublin at 5:00. The tour was absolutely fantastic and we thought it was worth it, especially with such a great guide.

When we got back we decided to do some souvenir shopping. We looked around and eventually found a Celtic Whiskey shop. Jeana wanted to get some for gifts. They had free tasting but I wasn’t brave enough to drink it. Jeana tried it and from her face I was really glad I didn’t. I did end up dipping my finger in her cup to get a really small taste and I’m glad that’s all I tried. It was pouring when we left so we went to find a pub. Our tour guide recommended one where we could watch the rugby match that was on. We went in and walked around but it was super crowded. We had our backpacks with us only making things more complicated. Instead we decided we would just go back to the hostel to watch the game as it had a really nice common area where lots of people hung out. On the way we picked up some food to make for dinner and headed into our nice, warm, dry hostel for the evening. We watched some of the rugby match, I read for a little while and then we headed to bed a little early since we had another super early departure for the airport the next morning.