An Ireland Road Trip: Dublin, Galway, Cliffs of Moher

About two weeks ago, we spontaneously planned an Ireland road with Brooke and Steve, our friends that live in London but are from Seattle. We decided to go this past weekend, but because it was month end and Aaron had to work late, we flew to Dublin so he could catch the last flight out from London.

We spent the night drinking Guinness and a little whiskey, and listening to Irish music at a pub in the Temple bar district, famous for it's lively nightlife and crowds. Saturday morning, we woke up and drove in our tiny rental car across the country (both Steve and Aaron are 6'4"+ so any car would've been tiny).

Our first stop was Ireland's oldest licensed distillery, Kilbeggan. It's in a very small town just off the highway. We did a self-guided tour around the facility which told the process of making whiskey using all the old equipment and then had a taster at the end.

Next stop was Clonmacnoise, an old monastery founded in 544. The property has three stone towers, a stone cathedral and an expansive, eerie graveyard. It is in ruins but sits overlooking the River Shannon. It was actually really beautiful, but the wind was so strong and cold that we didn't stay for too long. We drove along and hit some wild weather. One minute it would be sunny, the next it would be raining or really windy. We even got some slush snow/rain mix.

Our last stop for the day was Dunguaire Castle, built in the 16th century in front of Galway Bay. Unfortunately, the castle wasn't open to visit inside, so we walked around a small and treacherous, muddy path along the outside (the boys idea) and then headed to our bed and breakfast in the city of Galway.

Galway is a college town. It's a pretty big city but has a small-town feel. We went to a stock market bar which was really American of us (prices of the drinks fall or rise every 10 minutes... it was really fun! Aaron totally loved it). Then grabbed dinner at an amazing restaurant and more drinks at an Irish pub after.

The next morning, we woke up early and drove along the windy coast to the Cliffs of Moher. I visited the cliffs when I was studying abroad and it is still one of the most beautiful, picturesque places I have ever been. It was a gorgeous, sunny day so we walked around and took photos. We didn't have a lot of time because we had to race to return the rental car and catch our flight from the Shannon Airport. I was a bit panicked since we arrived only 45 minutes before our flight. But luckily, the airport is extremely small and we were the only people in the security line. Even with returning the rental car, we were at the gate with 30 minutes to spare.

It was a great impromptu weekend trip to one of my favorite countries : ) See a map of where we travelled below!