After two years of delay, it was finally time to visit Dublin. So, the spirits were high on Monday morning even though the weather wasn’t supposed to be great. After a safe flight and a short taxi ride to the hostel it was time for some food. It was already the early afternoon but none of us had had any lunch, so we went out searching for something to eat. In the restaurant we got our first taste of Irish culture since the waiter called all the girls “darling” and the boys “mate”. Later we started exploring the city with a self-guided walking tour. From the old Dublin City Walls to the Temple Bar area and arguably the best stop, the “Stiffy on the Liffey” we got to see all the main attractions in a short time. In the evening we did what was advertised as a ghost tour, but in reality we just heard a lot of tales about crimes that happened in the Dublin city area. If you’re interested in a funny one, search for “Billy in the Bowl”. Quite exhausted from all the walking and cold air we finally settled in a good restaurant. Before going to bed we went into a pub and were surprised how lively it was even on a Monday. The place was bustling with some live Irish music, and we agreed on trying out the famous Guinness beer (it doesn’t taste good).

Tuesday blessed us with more good weather and free time in the morning to do all the necessary tourist shopping. After lunch we visited the Trinity College Library for the Book of Kells, which was filled with information about the Celtic times and an impressive old library. The place where we wanted to eat dinner was packed so we had to wait around 45 minutes before getting seated. At least we had the live music to listen to and luckily the food was worth the wait :)

Wednesday started out extremely early at 6:15 to collect some breakfast for the bus tour we were doing that day. So at 6:50 we were all tired but settled in the bus and drove off across the country to the Cliffs of Moher. The first leg of the bus ride was pretty uneventful since we all had some sleep to catch. Well rested and excited we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher and were treated with incredibly strong gusts of wind and a stunning scenery. Still, the wind didn’t bother us because the sun was shining and we were all too impressed by the big cliffs. After about an hour we set off again and went to a small town to grab some lunch and head to Galway next. Sadly, we had only an hour to explore Galway, so we didn’t get to see that much of the city but still it was good to finally move your legs again. Unfortunately, Galway was our last stop and we were heading back to Dublin. After a full day of travelling through Ireland we all got out our fancy clothes and went to the no 1 Bar in Dublin “The Bank on College Green”. We paid a lot for our drinks, but the bar was so pretty that we hardly noticed.

We did some more tourist shopping on Thursday morning and were sucked into a crazy candy shop where we bought a good stack of sweets. After more walking through the city, it was time to visit the Guinness brewery where we learned all about the process of making the beer. We could also taste some different types of Guinness but our opinions didn’t change, we all still find it disgusting. Our final evening, we spent in a traditional Irish restaurant again. The food had been good for the whole trip but nothing even came close to the deserts served there. We were all full after the main course but couldn’t get enough of the bread pudding, Bailey’s cheesecake and chocolate cake. The evening ended with a drink in the oldest pub in Ireland, which opened back in 1192. So that Ireland never forgets us, we left our mark with a sticker in the pub, you can look for it if you visit the pub.

On Friday we flew back home and were treated with a storm warning in Zurich. We were lucky though and our flight went by without any major problems. At the airport back home we all said our goodbyes and were happy about the week spent in Dublin.