So its Saturday morning (May 23rd) and I m still running on 'Irish Summer Time' (GMT 1 hour) even though I'm back at Purdue which is 'Eastern Daylight Time' (GMT -4 hours). I've begun unpacking - going through all the souvenirs and gifts ;I purchased. Checking e-mail and posting on the blog and twitter. My pile of laundry is ready to be taken down to the laundry room at Cary Quad (anyone want to do my laundry for me? ha ha).

To simply describe the trip in one word: Excellent! The tour guide (Kevin Kinsella) through Shamrocker and our bus driver (David Lawlor) were a perfect combo - providing us educational information and entertainment (hillarious commentary). The 12 of us (10 from Purdue, plus Kevin and David) formed a crazy family for those 7 days as we journied around the Emerald Isle. Luckly for social networking sites like Facebook, we ll be able to keep intouch with Kevin and David. I hope Purdue University Residences continues to offer travel abroad experiences such as this to students in the future, especially since I would classify this initial trip as a wonderful success.

Well, that laundry pile is sitting there so I guess I better get started...

Slainte,
Frank

An Irish Blessing:
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
And rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Today is our last day in Ireland :(. So three of us decided to finish the day strong, we started by going to breakfast and found, not far from our hostel, a restaurant ;at the Arlington Hotel ;called Legends. There I had a Full Irish Breakfast which included two bacon rashers, two sausages, a ;fried egg, white pudding (a type of sausage), black pudding (a type of sausage), ;and toast - it was delicious. After breakfast we ventured back over to Trinity College to go to the book shop since it was closing while we were their the day before. Then we headed back to the hostel to pack and load the bus ...and we were off to the airport.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2529380&id=13703969&ref=share

Today we wanted to see as much as possible in Dublin, so we got up early (well, relatively early, around 7am) and had breakfast. First stop was to The Old Jameson Distillery. We were told it opened at 9am however the first tour ended up not starting until 10am... so we waited for an hour by going to the gift shop and playing cards. Four of us decided to do the tour and I ended up being one of the volunteers to participate in a whiskey tasting at the end of the tour. The tour showed the different steps for creating Jameson's Irish Whiskey - which is distilled 3 times. The whiskey tasting had us compare a scotch whiskey (Johnny Walker Black), an American whiskey (Jack Daniels) and Jameson's. After comparing smells and taking sips of each we would cleanse the palate with a drink of water. It was a neat experience and we received certificates at the end of the tasting.

Next stop was to the Guinness Storehouse and Brewery, which was about 9 blocks away. At Guinness the tour was self-guided so we were able to go at our own pace. Seven of us decided to walk through the Guinness Storehouse museum. Here we learned the process for brewing the famous beverage created in 1759. The center part of the museum is an atrium shaped like a pint glass. After working our way up several levels we realized we were crunched for time to meet up with the others on the trip for lunch, so we skipped a few levels and went to the sky bar called Gravity at the very top of the museum to receive our complimentary pint of Guinness - delicious!

Lunch was at the Brazen Head Pub, which claims to be Ireland s oldest pub established in 1198. There I had an Irish Stew which was phenomenal.

Our next stop after lunch was across Dublin at Trinity College. There we took a campus tour led by a PhD student studying history. The tour included seeing the Book of Kells in their campus library. On the second and third floor of the library is the famous Long Room, where ancient books are cateloged not by the Dewey Decimal system or by alphabetical order, but rather by the size of the book - try finding a book in that library.

After Trinity College we walked towards O'Connelly Street to see the Spire of Dublin which was built to celebrate the Millennium in 2000 but wasn't completed until 2003 (oops!). From there we walked back towards the city centre and visited Christ Church and St. Patrick's Cathedral. For both the visiting/tour hours were over so we walked around the outside of both churches. Then as we headed to dinner we walked through Dublin Castle, which is home to the Parliament of the Republic of Ireland (basically their version of the US Capitol). Dinner was at Bewley's Cafe and Restaurant on Grafton Street ;(http://www.bewleys.com/grafton-street/).

We went back to the hostel before going out to Stag's Head Pub, a traditional irish pub with live music. After a round at Stag's Head, we got lost looking for O'Donnahue's Pub. Once we arrived, they had already had last call (at 11pm on a Thursday night). So we walked around some more and ended up visiting The Globe Pub, which was a more modern irish pub compared to Stag's Head.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2529323&id=13703969&ref=share

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2529352&id=13703969&ref=share

We started off this morning with a Black Cab tour of Belfast. The tour showed us the Protestant and Catholic areas of the city including the history of the conflict between the two sides. We took pictures of the murals painted on the sides of buildings depicting the conflicts and those who have lost their lives. There is a fence dividing the too areas which was increased in height back in 2005. The guide referred to it as the Berlin Wall of Belfast. Along the fense on the Protestant side, ;there was a memorial with hopes of peace. On the Catholic side there was another memorial. Our guide also took us past murals depicting war/peace from other parts around the world, including one depicting President George W. Bush and the Iraq War. As we ended the tour, I saw a Guinness delivery truck with atleast 30 kegs and took a picture. Then we piled onto the bus and headed back to the Republic of Ireland.

On the way back to the Republic, we stopped to have lunch in Carlingford, which is famous for its oysters. So I had a Guinness and oysters for lunch. En route back to Dublin we stopped at a ruined monastery which is know for its High Celtic Crosses. Once returning to Dublin we checked into the hostel and said good bye to our trip guide, Kevin. Our bus driver, David, was nice enough to let us hop back on the bus and drop us off at Kilmainham Gaol. There we said good bye to David. Kilmainham Gaol is a jail that has been apart of many incidents related to Ireland s history. We took a guided tour through the jail.

Tomorrow will be our last full day in Ireland and we will be running around the city of Dublin to see as many sights as possible before heading back to the states.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2529259&id=13703969&ref=share

This morning we left Derry and stopped at a grocery market to pick up food to have a picnic at the Giant's Causeway. Before arriving at the Giant's Causeway, we visited Dunluce Castle. After touring the castle ruins, we were off to the land of the giants. They were amazing to see again. We ate our sack lunches on the rocks of the Causeway. Next we went to Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge - this was great fun. Now we have arrived at our hostel in Belfast and will be going out to dinner soon.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2529178&id=13703969&ref=share

This morning we had to wake up at 5:45am to catch the 7am ferry boat from the Inis Mor island back to the main land (the other, larger island... called Ireland). Technically we were crossing the Atlantic to then make port in Galway Bay. We drove through the Hills of Connemara. Along the way we stopped at Erriff River and took pictures of the Aasleagh Falls. Next we visited the National Famine Monument. Then it was time for lunch in the city of Westport at a small cafe connected to a SuperValu Market (grocery store). Continuing along the way we stopped at DrumClif Church, which is the grave site for W.B. Yeats (a famous irish poet). Lastly before arriving in Derry, we went to An Grian of Aileach, which is an ancient fort built at the top of a tall hill. From there we could see the town of Derry in Northern Ireland while still in the Republic of Ireland. Then we hopped across the border into Northern Ireland (pronounced Nor-Ire-and).

Derry is the oldest city in all of Ireland (founded in 542 AD). It is called the City of Troubles. Tonight we are taking a walking tour of Derry and our tour guide, Kevin, said I should notice a lot has changed (and improved) since the last time I was here 8 years ago.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2528978&id=13703969&ref=share

Today we journied from Galway to Inis Mor (also spelled Inishmore), which is the largest of the Aran Islands. We took a short ferry ride across the ;sea to the island. Once settled into our hostel, we had lunch at Bayview Restaurant. After lunch we went to a sweater museum/store. Next we took a bus tour around the island and went to Dun Aonghasa, which is an ancient fort. Dinner was at Ti Joe Watty s where I had mussels and there was live traditional Irish music.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2528972&id=13703969&ref=share

Today we left Ennis and travelled to Galway (the 'City of Tribes'). On the way we stopped at Paulnabrone, an ancient tomb with several legends about it. Next we visited a fairy ring of a stone formation believed to have mythical powers. In Ireland evidentally they don't believe in lephrucans, but they do believe in fairies. Our next stop was at the Cliffs of Mohr - an amazing sight of 660ft high cliffs along the shore line. Lunch was in the city of Lihinch at a Corner Stone Pub. There were a set of cliffs that are referred to as the 'Stretch marks of Mother Ireland,' since they are in a step-like formation. We alo visited the Burren (called Ireland's lunar landscape and location of several ancient tombs). ; Once in Galway, dinner was at a fancy restaurant called Kirby's on Cross Street where I had a phenominal dinner - Beef and Guinness Stew. Later in the evening we went to The ;Quay pub, which reminded me a bit of 9 Irish Brothers at Purdue's campus.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2528964&id=13703969&ref=share

Today we left Killarney and travelled along the western coastline of Ireland. We stopped at Cloghue Head which is said to be the most western point of Ireland. From there we journied down to the fishing village of Dingle (also the name of the pennisula). Lunch at a seafood restaurant was delicious. Kevin, our tour guide, recommended going to an ice cream parlor called Murphys. There I had Bailey s Irish Cream ice cream and Chocolate Whiskey ice cream... it was amazing. After leaving Dingle, we ventured to Conner s P which is a very steep and narrow road between two mountains. From the top we could see across the pennisula of Dingle. Next stop was to stay a night in the city of Ennis. Dinner was delicious... baked salmon on top of mashed potatoes with a lemon butter sauce (yum!).

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2528954&id=13703969&ref=share

After landing in Dublin, we met up with our bus driver who was waiting for us in the arrivals area. Then we were off to the hostel, but not after first trying to board the bus from the wrong side (the group tried to board from the right side as standard in the US, as opposed to boarding from the left side). Check-in at the hostel went smoothly. Once we got settled into our rooms, we took the DART (train) to Howth - a small fishing village in the northeastern side of Dublin. There we had lunch at a pub called the Ol Abbey Tavern. Then we decided to walk 5 miles around the pennisula of Howth along the seas and cliffs following a city hiking trail. Everyone was quite tired after the hike. We took the DART back to Dublin and rested for a bit at the hostel. For dinner we went to a counter-service place (one of my RAs recommended) that was less than a block away from our hostel called Leo Burdocks.

Photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2528939&id=13703969&ref=share

Over the past few days I ve been collecting all the items I need for the trip. Today I finally started to packing my bags (side note... I love traveling but I dislike packing). The camera batteries are charged... and I m ready to go!

Purdue University Residences has created two 'social media' accounts for us to keep a log of our adventure:

• Blog - http://www.pmc.purdue.edu/irelandtrip/
• Blog Login -

  http://www.pmc.purdue.edu/irelandtrip/wp-login.php?loggedout=true

• Twitter - http://twitter.com/PUtravelabroad

I will be keeping my blog and twitter account updated as well.

We leave in 6 days and I'm starting to get things prepared for the trip. I'll be traveling with a group from Purdue University. During the trip I will try to post updates to my blog (under the 'Travel' topic) as well as my Twitter account (www.twitter.com/fgarofalo). Below is a list of the cities we will be visiting:

• Dublin
• Killarney
• Ennis
• Galway
• Inis Mor
• Derry
• Belfast