Dublin

Last weekend the girls and I went to Ireland. Originally the trip was meant to be with Kelly but ticket prices from Italy soared last minute. Luckily I was able to convince my flatmates to take a short holiday. :)
We left Friday night after our block Christmas dinner. Here are the girls being silly in the airport while we waited to board the flight.

The flight was less than an hour with beautiful views of city lights as we took off and landed. Here they are in Dublin airport, excited to start our trip.
On Saturday we went out into the city even though it was rainy and cold. Trinity College was our first stop. It was founded in 1592 and its library holds the Book of Kells, which we unfortunately didn't get to see because of admission prices and how crowded it was. It was cool to see the campus though, and wander around the library bookstore for a while.
We also went to St. Stephens Green, a lovely park that was a nice change from the busy city shopping area.




That night, after going back to the hostel for a shower and dry clothes we ventured out to Temple Bar, the touristy pub part of Dublin. We walked around until our belly's ached trying to find an affordable place to dine. We were thrilled when we found a pub/restaurant/club that had good prices and delicious food. They even managed to squeeze us in with 5 minutes left till the kitchen closed. Here we are satisfied with finding the place.

That night we met up with some Irish girls Rachel knows from her gap year travels. They are a bit older, in their late twenties and were so nice to take us around to some good pubs and clubs and even bought us drinks. It was really fun but exhausting. So exhausting that we slept in Sunday and didn't get out of the hostel till twelve! Here's a picture of the 16 bed female dorm we stayed in.
We went to the Guinness Storehouse and it was really cool. One of my favorite parts. I don't really like the taste of Guinness but learning how they made it let me appreciate the free pints we got.


Rachel took a few sips but had to set down her pint in disgust. Haha. Bex was the only one that really liked the taste.
Here's a cheesy touristy picture the girls took of me in the last pub we went to Sunday night where we heard and saw traditional Irish music and dancing (Lord of the Dance style).


The best part of the weekend was just being able to spend time all together before we broke up for Christmas. Now I'm in Manchester staying with Rachel at her mom's house. Then I'm off to Daniels for a few days in Cheshire, followed by Christmas Eve with Bex in High Wycombe, and finally London to meet mom and Kelly!!
Happy Holidays!

Italy

Alright everyone, calm down. Its recap time. It has taken me awhile but here are Italy pictures. There are a lot, so it took a few different times of individually loading each one. Take a look at Kelly's blog which is linked at the right for more detailed re-tellings of these events.

Day One:Charlotte making the pumpkin pie...mm it was so delicious. We ate it for breakfast one day.
The turkey creating quite a spectacle in the fridge.
My lovely accommodation for the holiday. That was my bed in the middle there. It's a mattress called Jaren.
Kelly's desk/my closet.
Neptune in Piazza Maggiore.

Day Two:
The cappuccino I got at such a nice coffee bar. They even made it California style-haha.
On the way to the fresh market.
Meat?
Fruit? Veg?
Fish? (head and tail included)
Our Thanksgiving Day agenda.
The bird still had a few feathers.
All dressed up for the oven.
Pork roast!
The final product, after almost 6 hours of cooking.
The girls and the Italian roomies.
Alessandro carving the bird.
We had all the Thanksgiving necessities and more.
Buffet line.
Chilling after filling ourselves with food.
Chatting in the kitchen-must have been something funny.
Kelly, Alessandro, Guido and I.

Day Three:
On the water taxi, Kelly read Charlotte and I the self guided tour.
Beautiful architecture and the classic gondolas.
On the grand canal.
The church and the Palace.
Some crazy guy getting attacked by pigeons and loving it.
The Dodges Palace.



Mysterious alleyways gave a certain charm to the city.
Cute little restaurants all along the walk.
Venice is known for its masks and blown glass.



Day Four:
A church on Via dell' Indipendenza Kelly and I ducked into on our way home.
Stairs made for horses!


Out to dinner for Andrew's birthday. I was so amazed by and absorbed into eating the huge friendship bowl of pasta that was put in front of us, I didn't take a photo of it.
Group picture of some of us after dinner, before the dancing.
Neptune has a cool shadow.
Hanging out in Piazza Maggoire before saying farewell to the guys.

And back on the plane before I know it to England!