Slainte'

This blog post is a first, in several ways. It is the first one posted from Ireland; it is the first composed using free wifi internet in a pub; and it is the first written by a guest author!! This is a special "cross-over" blog entry, written by Alison.

As Dad mentioned in his previous entry, Mom and I are in Ireland with my aunt, cousin, and grandfather, and our access to the internet has been rather spotty. We discovered that we could access it from our apartment in the hotel... if we propped the laptop on a windowsill... and rubbed our stomachs while patting our heads and standing on one foot. Ok, maybe not the last part... but it couldn't have hurt! So we were forced to bring the computer down to the hotel pub, where we had absolutely no choice but to drink a pint of Guinness while surfing the internet.

Internet access in the pub!

We arrived in Dublin on Friday and spent the weekend exploring Ireland's capital. We saw lots of sights, including St. Patrick's cathedral, Trinity College (and the Book of Kells), the Guinness Storehouse, the River Liffey and its bridges, the old jail, and an infinite number of things named after O'Connell. Since we had weekend passes to a "hop-on, hop-off" bus, we could probably give you a great tour of Dublin, hitting all the main highlights!!

On Monday, we took the train across the country to Galway, on the west coast. We spent Monday evening exploring the city, and then today we took a bus tour to the Cliffs of Moher and Burren National Park. The Irish countryside is beautiful and very picturesque... although we found out firsthand WHY the Emerald Isle is so green! In between ducking raindrops and storm clouds we did manage to see the cliffs, although we were unable to catch a glimpse of any leprechauns (which they call Fairies here). Now we are recuperating in the pub with pints and half-pints of Guinness, Smitwicks, tap water, and Budweiser (we'll let you guess who is drinking what!). There is a group of musicians doing live music, and it definitely contributes to a very Irish atmosphere!

Here are a couple of pictures from the last few days:

Alison, Shannon, Jill, Reid, Deb in Galway

The Cliffs of Moher

Grandpa Reid lighting a candle at St. Nicholas Church in Galway, where his grandfather may have been baptized.

~Alison