Lessons Learned

As it turns out, the second flight had a few issues for me, like a lumpy seat, as well as not being able to sleep. There was some pretty good plane food and a couple of good conversations, but otherwise nothing special other than a chocolate pudding. The flight seemed to be over before I knew it though and suddenly we were landing in Shannon 40 minutes early at 5:40. Silly me, I was under the impression that there would be taxes and buses galore... no. Apparently there isn't even a sunrise until around 7:30, and most people are fine getting started on the day after that. Fortunately a friend who had flown in at the same time had rented a car and we decided to start our day out together. We drove up (on the left) to see Dunguaire Castle, only to get there and find it closed. So we hung out, went to a market for some food, and I napped in the car. When it finally opened we walked through and around, getting a couple of nice pictures along the way. Then we decided to make our way over to the Cliffs of Moher. That's where I found out that I didn't pack enough clothes for how windy it was up there. My friend very kindly lent me a sweater to get me through so I could see this marvelous sight. There was a visitor center carved into the hillside with a wonderful interactive area for kids, and a cute little gift shop, but the real attraction was at the top of the cliffs. Once reaching the summit there was a small castle type tower with a spiral staircase winding to the very top, and up there was just an incredible view. So, after taking a totally reasonable amount of selfies, and soaking in the view, it was time to climb down the hillside and move on with the day. So on my friend and I went, headed to the next destination, only to realize how late it was in the day, that he had already passed his check-in time and I was only a few hours away from mine. He kindly drove me back to the airport so I could get an estimate on a car (I quickly abandoned that idea) and realized that my idea of five sights in one day would have to be abandoned. I booked a bus to Cork where my first hostel was located, hugged my friend goodbye, and promptly had an anxiety attack about how my trip would go. I realized later that my breakdown might have had something to do with the lack of sleep and food. Finally, the bus arrived, and I basically slept my way through 95% of the ride, waking up only long enough to know I wasn't missing my stop, or think "what lovely landscape" before promptly falling asleep again. My first few steps in Cork were such a relief; I felt like I could finally relax. I found my way to my hostel with the help of someone at the bus station, and checked in with ease. I finally got here, and although I just wanted to lay down and sleep forever, I decided I should probably go get some food. Full on fish and chips, I made my way down the street to my hostel (and bar) to have a drink, and ended up staying there for a couple of hours chatting with someone else staying at the hostel. It was so nice chatting with someone, and it made me realize that although my plans didn't go as I may have wanted them, I'm still having my U.K. adventure, I'm still seeing things I've never seen before, and I'm going to make sure I have a great time no matter what is thrown my way.Read more