Hey everyone!
Welcome to another installment chronicling our whirlwind trip to Ireland to celebrate our 20th anniversary.
This one covers Day 3 and I mean, Day 3 was a whole lot. Thrilling victories. Nature. Ice cream. Literally everything.
What do you say we just get right into it?
Our May 2023 trip to Ireland: Day 3
As my loyal readers…
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Reader? Singular?
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As I may remember, I left off last post with us going to bed on Day 2 at an uncharacteristically early 8PM.
8PM. A lot of you might be, understandably, saying, “Oh ok Lamey McLameyPantz. You’re lame. Is what I am saying to you now.”
To which I would say, “Mean. You’re mean.” But I would also say, “well guys, remember. The Celtics were playing that night in Game 6. And being that the game start time at home was 8:30PM, the game was starting at 1:30AM. So we were getting some sleep before having to wake up for the game.”
Also though.
So yeah, up we were at 1:30AM. Our TV didn’t have any casting abilities nor could we figure out how to connect our phones or laptop. So we had to gather around our little laptop screen.
Like our forefathers did.
We were concerned a little bit about the laptop using power because our adapter we brought only had a 2-prong US input. But thankfully, the vending machine outside our room had a 3-prong adapter in it. I ended up buying a few adapters out of the machine since they were like $4.99 each. Well, actually, I ended up buying a few adapters out of a few different machines on a few different floors. Because when I went to buy it out of the machine near our room, it got stuck and never dropped. Of course that happened.
We also bought some candy for the game, like a Kinder Bueno and a Cadbury Wispa.
None of which I got a picture of. Because it was 1:30AM and my brain was like, “nope.” But no worries guys. We buy more candy on this trip. Of course we buy more candy. We are candy monsters.
Now this game you guys. It was Game 6. The Celtics had come back to life from being down 0-3 to the Heat. And, obvs, if they lost this game, they were out. A lot on the line.
And it was quite a game. At the end of the first half, the Celtics were up but it was close. Going into the 3rd, the score was 57-52 Celtics. And while they maintained a lead at the end of the 3rd, it remained a pretty close affair going into the 4th quarter with the Celtics up 7 points.
But that 4th quarter. Oof that 4th quarter. The Heat had a great 4th quarter and caught right up to the Celts. At the end of the game, with seconds left (originally 2.1 but adjusted to 3), Al Horford fouled Jimmy Butler. We were up 102-100. The foul was originally called a 2-point shooting foul but was reviewed and adjusted to a 3-point shooting foul.
Butler made all three foul shots. Which meant they were up 103-102 with 3 seconds on the clock.
Derrick White inbounded the ball to Smart, who missed a 3-pointer. But White sprinted in from the inbound line to the rim and was able to tip the ball in and win the game for the Celtics, 104-102. An INSANE ending.
And White was def the hero of the night.
We were kind of going nuts in the room and had to quiet ourselves a couple times given it was 4:15AM.
Yeah man. We ARE hardcore.
It was a great game though. I really hope they keep up this level of play in Game 7.
He said forebodingly.
Once the game ended, we turned the laptop off and went right to sleep to get at least a little bit of slee…
OK, it’s 7AM and we are up again.
We had a tour today starting at around 9:30 and needed to get ready AND get breakfast beforehand. So yeah…guys…LFG.
We were getting breakfast this morning at BlackRock Cottage, which was a 5-7 minute walk from our hotel across from the diving platform people were actively using this morning.
And when we arrived at the restaurant, we also saw a whole crowd of people partaking in some beachside yoga.
A bunch of these folks btw? They ended up jumping in the water after their yoga. These people were L-I-V-I-N.
Super inspiring.
Anyways. Where was I? Oh yeah. Let’s go stuff our face.
Look at this place.
Super cute, right? And not only was there the main dining room but there was also a take-away food truck out back as well serving bowls and sausage rolls and what not.
But we were here to eat in the cottage. So lessgo.
And, like, yeah. This place was cute on the outside but also…check out the inside. Which is also cute.
And also? Check out the inside.
Of this case.
Of pastries.
Get in ma belly.
We got a table in this room with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over the water. Here’s a look at the menu.
To start, I ordered an Americano and Nickie got a gram-worthy cappuccino.
Both REALLY good. But, I was having some serious FOMO not ordering that cappuccino. Thankfully, this wouldn’t be the last time we visit BlackRock Cottage. I mean, my Americano was good but oof with that cappuccino.
To start off, Owen got a Buttered Croissant. Myles started off with a Chocolate Croissant.
For his main, Myles also ordered the Overnight Oats (Strawberry and Vanilla Granola, Strawberries, Banana, Blueberries, Coconut, Raspberry Powder).
And Owen got some Scrambled Eggs on Toast.
I went with the Croissant Benny (Poached Local Eggs, Hollandaise Sauce, and Coffee Infused Streaky Bacon on a Buttery Croissant).
And Nickie got the Protein Buttermilk Pancakes (with Nutty Granola, Whipped Mascarpone, and Raspberry Crumble).
We all loved everything we ate today. Seriously, everything was so good here. And the service was great as well. This was also the first time ever a server has asked me if I was sure I wanted to tip as much as I was tipping. For the record, I think I tipped just over 20%. So it wasn’t like above and beyond, but this happened a few times afterwards as well. Tipping is just not the same in Ireland as in the US I guess.
So yeah, I felt like Daddy Warbucks up in this bizz.
After we finished eating, I ordered up an Uber. Which btw. Heads up. When you use Uber in Ireland, it orders up taxis rather than private drivers. Which is fine of course but I did notice the estimates for when you would be picked up were a little off. It always took a little longer for the car to get to you. I think its because they’re taxis and probably handling other fares. Not a huge deal, but just allow for some extra time or if you can, just order a cab from your hotel or grab a cab on the road.
Since we did have a few minutes until our Uber arrived, we walked around the BlackRock grounds. It was seriously pretty here.
And as mentioned before, a good chunk of that yoga class took the water after it was over.
Our taxi eventually did arrive and took us into Galway to catch our Wild Atlantic Way bus, which would be our hub on wheels for the day.
When we arrived, there were actually two busses. This one, a smaller bus, and another bigger bus. Which was the one we figured we would be on tomorrow for our tour to the Cliffs of Moher. I only mention this because this bus…the smaller bus…was definitely an older situation. The seats were a little worn and, most noticeably, the A/C was not the most effective of air conditioners.
It was kind of warm on the bus. Is what I am saying to you now.
But I just wanna get that out of the way. Because otherwise, this tour was great stuff. Our tour today with Wild Atlantic Way Tours was the Connemara Day Tour. The details of which can be found here. The main stop here was 3 hours in Connemara National Park with a bunch o’ stops and sites on the way there and back.
The first stop listed on the tour was a stop at Peacockes Hotel but with the influx of Ukrainian refugees into Ireland, a lot of hotels were being repurposed to house them, including Peacockes. So this meant we couldn’t stop there for our first pamper stop. And, like, this was obvs squad ok with us. Because I mean, good on Ireland for everything they were doing for these refugees.
In lieu of stopping at Peacockes, we stopped at the Screebe Waterfall. Which was a nice replacement. No matter what TLC tells you.
We pulled over to the side of the road and everyone got out to take some pics.
Our stop here was a little under 10 minutes but it was actually a really pretty spot. I’m glad we didn’t stick to the rivers and the lakes we were used to.
And this was kind of what I was hoping for on this tour. One of the things we were worried about losing with taking a bus tour over renting a car would be these little stops to get out and enjoy the countryside or take in a scenic spot. Wild Atlantic Tours definitely did a good job of balancing their tight schedule with making these little stops to break up the trip.
Our next stop was about a 40 minute drive away from the waterfall but along the way we passed some beautiful countryside.
And our bus driver, Tony, traversed some narrow roads.
Our next stop was the fishing village of Roundstone.
Tony pulled over and told us we had about 25 minutes to explore the town, grab a coffee, whatever. But like quick note – know these Wild Atlantic drivers are serious about their timetable. The threat of being left behind was VERY real. If you do take a Wild Atlantic bus tour, listen to your overlord bus driver.
So we walked down the street, with a plan to…
LOOK!!!
A DOG.
But yeah. This place was picturesque AF.
And the stones here? Not just round. Also quite helpful.
We decided to stop in at O’Dowd’s Café for some refreshments.
And the place offered some spectacular views.
I grabbed myself an iced coffee.
Owen got a Coke, Nickie got a water, and Myles grabbed an apple juice.
Which, like. He was WAY into apple juice this trip. And it made sense. The apple juice in Ireland was LEGIT. Tasted like you were drinking an actual apple. Without the choking that would accompany such an activity.
By noon, we were back on the bus and headed towards our next stop, which was about 30 minutes away. That stop? Mannin Bay Beach.
This place was hella-pretty. And that sand there? Not really sand in the traditional sand sense. Stuff was made from a mix of coraline seaweed and the skeletal remains of sea creatures. So it’s like both beautiful and I mean…kind of creepy and gross.
My kind of beach.
As soon as we got there, Nickie took her shoes off to put her feet in the water.
But that’s easy for her to do on account of she never wears socks. She’s all like, “socks? More like sucks.” The rest of us were bound by our footwear choices to remain dry. We did, however, join her down by the water’s edge.
We were back in the bus and on the road at around 12:30PM headed towards our next destination, which was about 30 minutes away. And yeah – surprise surprise the drive was pretty.
And we passed a lot of these stone walls which Tony told us were made up of just loose stones stacked on top of one another. No concrete. No cement. Nothing like that.
Which really makes no sense to me. Like, how is that possible? I mean I believe Tony of course. Why would Tony lie?
But how the?
It boggles the mind.
Regardless though.
These walls rocked.
AH-thank you.
Our next stop was our last stop before Connemara National Park – The Sky Road in Clifden.
Which offered a whole hell of a lot of view.
It was pretty amazing the weather we were getting on this trip so far. Like, everyone was all “hey its really rainy in Ireland.” And we were all, “You guys are full of crap.”
It was obviously windy though. I mean, at least according to Myles’s hair.
From the Sky Road to Connemara National Park, it was about a 40-minute drive. I should also mention Tony gave the bus the option to choose between Connemara or a full-fledged visit to Kylemore Abbey (though we had to buy tickets if we chose the latter).
He said we would still be stopping by Kylemore Abbey after Connemara for a quick look. But we could choose to forego Connemara for a full 3-hour tour of Kylemore. Which sounded like a real long time to spend at Kylemore Abbey.
So we stuck with Connemara.
Along the way? More Ireland.
Look guys – a castle!
We arrived at Connemara National Park at around 1:45PM.
And being that it was already 1:45, we were definitely in need of some lunch. So we headed into the Hungry Hiker Café on account of we were hungry and somewhat hikers. We placed our order at the counter and found a picnic table out in the courtyard.
Everyone else ordered a Chicken and Cheese Sandwich and I went for the Bacon and Brie.
And guys? This sandwich was ON POINT. Seriously, I mean I don’t know if I was just really hungry or what but this sandwich slapped.
That cole slaw was all kinds of stellar as well.
And everyone else said their chicken and cheese sandwiches were good too. This café had no business being this good.
I also grabbed an Aero for everyone to split as well.
Which was obvs squad good.
Time to hike, you guys.
We had three hours before we had to meet up with the bus. So the plan was to hike the full Diamond Hill trail.
Well, the boys and I were planning on that. Nickie, smartly, planned to hike the Yellow Sruffaunboy Walk, which would take her a little of the way with us and then the rest of the way back to the Visitor Center. Again, this was the smart move on account of it got her a little bit of exercise but also allowed her to visit the pub down in Letterfrack.
She is always right.
I am always wrong.
Let’s hike!
This place, you guys. Frikkin Shadowfax out there.
This map below does a good job of laying out these trails here. As I said, Nickie took the yellow trail to where it breaks off from the blue.
She would walk the rest of yellow back and we would continue on through the blue and then pick up the red all the way to the top and then back again.
Again, she was the smart one.
This was the last pic of all of us before Nickie took off back towards the pub.
That was the moment. The moment where I could have made better choices.
On we went. And man, it was beautiful here.
This was where we were headed.
I just want to state it was hot out. That much I want to make clear.
As you can see in that picture above, everything looks pretty ok at this point. A little sweaty but I mean…smiling. Healthy. Good.
It was 2:30 at this point.
This was still ahead of us.
Nickie meanwhile was on her way back down.
By 3:00, she was back in town.
By 3:05, she was at the bar.
We, meanwhile, were up on a mountain. Which was good I guess. But there was less beer.
I gotta be honest guys. I was struggling on this hike. I know I’ve done longer hikes but this thing was just out there in the sun and I was baking. There were a few moments where I wasn’t sure I was gonna make it.
In fact, funny story. As you saw, there were definitely other people out there on the trail. And one of those people was another 40-something dad like me with his kids. As we made our way up the mountain, we kind of kept passing each other. I’d take a break, sweaty…laying down sometimes…and I’d look up to see him pass me. A little ways later, I’d be walking past him. Sweaty. Laying down sometimes.
It helped to know I wasn’t alone.
In my oldness.
But dude, these views.
This was a toughie though. And this was one of those multi-peak situations. Like every time we got to what I thought was the top?
It wasn’t the top.
We did eventually make it to the top at around 3:20PM.
While we were up at the top, we FaceTimed with Nickie. Who, again, was in a much nicer situation.
The boys and I spent a couple minutes at the top catching my breath so I wouldn’t die enjoying our little victory.
But eventually, we started making our way down.
And these paths. Narrow as all get-out.
But it was insanely pretty.
And I mean, we were on our way down now. So, like, I was gonna make it you guys. I was gonna live.
And we saw a bunch of super-loud sheep.
Seriously. We heard that dude before we saw him.
It was a really nice walk down. While on the way up, I couldn’t be bothered to remember how to speak, the way down was all bonding and what not.
And we didn’t just see sheep and little horses out there. We also saw some goats, yo.
I also have to give Owen credit for some of these pictures. I mean, not ALL of them. Slow down, everyone. But some of them. Dude’s got a good eye. Actually, he has two of em.
We were down the mountain by 4:15. And we ran back into our old friend, Shadowfax at the end of the trail.
Honestly? It was a tough hike for me that day. But I would 100% do it again. The views were crazy nice. And the sense of accomplishment and all that.
But I also loved experiencing those views and that sense of accomplishment with Myles and Owen. I mean, moments like that always feel fleeting. But with Myles living most of his life somewhere else these days and Owen’s days with us feeling more and more numbered as his junior year looms, these moments feel extra fleeting. I’m lucky to still have some to hold onto.
Ahem.
After we made our way off the mountain, we walked into town to meet someone else I enjoy having moments with.
Nickie. My wife. How did you guys not get that?
We met up with her at Veldon’s Seafarer Bar & Restaurant, where she was sitting outside finishing up her drink.
We didn’t have much time left until the bus was expecting us, so a drink was out of the question. But when we got there, Nickie told us she bought us all surprises. Including this bad boy for me.
We also walked over to the market next door where Owen bought a pint of ice cream and Myles got some Milka OREO bites.
When we walked out of the market, the bus was there so we hopped right on.
Connemara National Park though. Definitely worth a stop. Must go. 5/5 would recommend.
As I mentioned before, Tony said we would still be stopping by Kylemore Abbey even if we chose Connemara National Park for some quick pictures and to pick up the rest of the passengers. Kylemore Abbey was less than a 10-minute drive from Connemara National Park.
And yeah. This place? Also pretty.
But legit no sign of this guy.
Yet with the “more” suffix, I came in expecting a whole bunch of Broflovski.
Not cool, Ireland. Not. Cool.
We were back on the bus by 5PM and back on the road and back driving by pretty things, this time in the Lough Inagh Valley.
At 5:20, we pulled off at a scenic viewpoint on Lough Inagh. And yeah, Lough Inagh? Super scenic.
But across the street, this sheep was just sitting there. Waiting to be photographed.
And our attention was totally diverted. For the next few minutes, I was…um…famous photographer guy. And this sheep was…erm…famous model person.
Sorry. I’m b-a-a-a-a-a-a-d with metaphors.
Great with puns though.
Sheep was a natural.
After our quick stop at Lough Inagh, we had one more stop to go before Tony took us back into Galway – the Quiet Man Bridge.
…
…
It’s a movie.
As we pulled up to it, we were faced with a reminder of why we did the whole bus tour thing instead of driving.
These folks were visiting and had rented a car. I guess when they were on the road, they had to back up to let another car by and backed right up into this ditch on the side of the road. No one was hurt, thankfully, and they all seemed in a pretty ok mood. Which like, good on them. I can’t imagine the spiraling I would have been in the midst of had a tour company stumbled upon the car I just drove into a ditch.
And, like, before this trip Nickie was like, “I hope we see some sheep.” Her hopes were met and exceeded. Many many times.
Ireland has a lot of sheep, you guys.
We spent about ten minutes or so exploring the area and the bridge. And this bridge?
Not all that quiet, man.
And that was it. That was the tour. Tony dropped us off in Galway at around 6:30. And yeah, I’d highly recommend this tour. Sure, the bus was a little old and hot and what not but we saw A LOT today. The full 9-hour tour cost €40 per person, which like…a good deal, no?
And now, it was 6:30. Which meant we had a little bit of time to explore Galway and get some dinner.
Galway is definitely a cool town. Lots of little restaurants and shops and live music all over the place.
Being that we had been in Ireland for the past 9 hours and not had one drop of alcohol, it was definitely time to remedy that.
We stopped in a pub called Taaffes on Shop St.
And we found a table back in the corner near the bar.
To make up for lost time, I ordered a pint of Guinness and a shot of Jameson.
Nickie ordered a pint of Smithwick’s, Myles a half-pint of Guinness, and Owen got a Coke.
Plus, the dude behind the bar charged my phone for me while we enjoyed our drinks. Which was a big plus on account of I had been on a 9-hour tour and, as you all saw, I can take MULTIPLE pictures of one sheep. So battery was low.
Taaffes was a good time but we were getting hungry, so we decided to head out into the street looking for food things.
We asked around for the best fish and chips spot in Galway and everyone we talked to pointed us to the same place.
McD….something.
Ugh what was the name?
No no…not the Golden Arches.
Hrm, no. Not the Golden Arcs either.
That’s the stuff. McDonagh’s.
McDonagh’s is set up like an “order at the counter” type of place. And, like, it seemed like a popular spot with the lines and what not.
While we were in line, check this out.
Massholes represent represent.
The beer selection was pretty limited.
In that it was Carlsberg.
Just Carlsberg.
But eh. I mean, I like Carlsburg. So everything worked out. For me.
Everyone except Nickie ordered the Fish and Chips. We all went with cod but there was actually a pretty large selection of fish to choose from. But we stuck with the OG.
And this was some good fish and chips, guys. The fish was super flaky and fresh and the fries were VERY good. Highly recommend.
As she doesn’t really love seafood, Nickie went with the Chicken.
Which I think she liked. I mean, the fish is their specialty here. But I think the chicken is a good option for those who don’t dig on fish.
We also ordered a side of onion rings and a side of mushy peas. Both were good. But those mushy peas were a thing of beauty.
All in all, the locals didn’t steer us wrong. This was some stellar fish and chips.
After dinner, we headed back out into the streets of Galway in search of dessert.
Dessert tonight was at Murphy’s Ice Cream.
We had heard a lot of talk about how good Murphy’s was so we were excited to try it out. Well, to be honest, when we were walking over, I was sort of not planning on getting dessert because I was so full from dinner but once we walked in there, I caved.
I’m not made of stone you know.
I’m actually made up largely of ice cream.
They had a lot of really unique flavors to try – like Chocolate Whiskey, Irish Brown Bread, Honeycomb Caramel. And they let you have as many free samples as you need to make an informed choice.
After trying out a couple flavors I landed on a scoop of their signature Dingle Sea Salt and a scoop of Butterscotch.
I don’t wanna toot my own horn or anything but toot, toot. Because this was a pretty solid combination. The Butterscotch doubled down on the sweetness of the vanilla in the Dingle Sea Salt to bring the saltiness of it down a notch. It was pretty perfect.
Nickie and the boys also got….
…
Ice cream.
Yeah, I know. I’m the informativest.
We took our ice cream out into the streets of Galway to enjoy while we listened to some live music. It was a beautiful night, with my beautiful family, eating my beautiful ice cream.
After our cones were finished, we grabbed a taxi to take us to one last location of the night. Well, a couple of us did. Nickie and I wanted to hit up O’Connor’s Famous Pub because we knew they’d have live music AND it was the bar on P.S. I Love You.
The boys were not as interested in such things so the plan was to have the taxi drop us off at the bar and then, since it was pretty close to our hotel, the boys could just walk back to our room. And this bar was cool because it had a bunch of s**t on the walls like that bar Farva likes with the mozzarella sticks.
Yup, that’s the one.
It was deffo a cute little place. For drinks, Nickie ordered a Coors Light and I got a sipper of the Connemara 12 year, which was pretty good.
For entertainment tonight, they had this dude Jukebox John playing.
Talented dude. And he took requests. So I asked him to play “Hey Jude” to see if we could get the bar singing a little bit. He said he loves when people ask him to play the Beatles so he obliged gladly.
And I mean, it got some people singing. I saw some folks at the tables around us mouthing the words but it wasn’t the grand sing-along I had hoped for.
Ah well.
After we finished our drinks, it was pretty clear we were getting tired so we headed out onto the promenade for the walk back to the hotel.
It was a nice night for a walk and all that, especially when I had such a pretty girl to hold my hand.
We were back at the room by 10:30PM and, given we were tired AND had another early day tomorrow, we showered up and went to bed.
But yeah, quite a Day 3 right? I mean, thing started at like 1:30AM and we packed a TON into it. Wait until Day 4. It’s another doozy you guys.
Hope you can handle Moher.
See what I did there?
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