Galway
We enjoyed our first trip together to Ireland so much, we decided to return this summer. Here is a picture of us in Ireland from our first trip in 2002.
We enjoyed our first trip together to Ireland so much, we decided to return this summer. Here is a picture of us in Ireland from our first trip in 2002.
It's important to set aside some room in your refrigerator for your guest to add in their own groceries. It's also a nice move to leave behind a little gift such as a bottle of wine or chocolate to furnish your guests with a tasty welcoming treat.
Since you usually have access to a washer/dryer when you do a home swap vacation, you can pack lighter. I'm taking this medium-sized roller bag rather than the huge suitcase I normally would take on a two-week European vacation. It means my back has a better chance of coming back in one piece.
Jessica is at the computer here writing directions on how to use the appliances in our house and who to contact if a plumber, electrician, etc. is needed. Also, there is the contact information of our next door neighbor and a fmaily member that lives nearby, if our exchange partners need help of any kind. It also includes details of the trash pickup schedule.
This is all that remains of the dinner we enjoyed with our Irish exchange partners. They arrived in San Francisco a few days before our swap actually began. So we picked them up at their hotel, hosted them for dinner, showed them around our house and got to know them better. They left in our car, which they will drive from their hotel to our house tomorrow, when our house exchange actually begins.
We put an inflatable mattress in our home office so our exchange partners' son would have his own room.
We put together a welcome basket with a bottle of wine, See's Candy, some gourmet cookies from a nearby gourmet market, upscale soap and some other stuff that would make anyone feel very welcome. The tray also contains a Zagat guide to San Francisco and a book about local hiking spots.
After getting picked up by our exchange partner's friend at the hotel where our bus dropped us off, we arrived and unpacked in what will be our home for the next two weeks. We're very happy with our accomodations.
We don't have to rely on expensive and unpredictable restaurants and hotel room service for food on this vacation. While we certainly will go out and taste the Irish cuisine, when we feel like it, we can eat comfortably at home.
This Mac running the new version of Tiger is our computer for the next two weeks. The Irish family set up a special user account for us so we have our own log in and can only access parts of the computer they want us to have access to. We did the exact same thing for them on our HP PC. Despite the slow dial up Internet service, it's always a treat to use a Mac.
Grocery stores open 24/7 is a great thing for those who suffer from jet lag. It means you can get all your shopping done at 5am, which is exactly what we did this morning. A few years ago, no shops were open on Sunday let alone in the middle of the night.
A few differences between markets in the US. You have to deposit one euro in order to use a shopping cart. And there is no offer of 'Paper of Plastic.' In a government mandated move designed to eliminate waste, each plastic shopping bag costs 15 cents. Paper is not available. It forces people to bring their own bags into the market.
Glendalough is a site about an hour southwest of Dublin in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains. It's considered one of the birthplaces of Irish Christianity ever since Saint Kevin (who did his requisite time living in a tree) set up shop around here in the 7th century. The six story Round Tower, Cathedral and Church in the foreground of the photo all date back from the 11th century. On top of all that, it's in a beautiful lush valley reminiscent of Hawaii. I never thought I'd write that about Ireland.
After taking what seemed like every single wrong turn, we finally got to the middle of the Russborough House maze. Even without Jack Nicholson wielding a knife, it was still difficult. Getting out was easier.
In the distance is the Wicklow Pass, which we drove through an hour after this photo was taken.
We had a dreadful lunch in a pub recommended by the Drogheda Tourist Office. We drove to the city because of a restaurant called Keyside Cafe, which was suggested by Michelin. Unfortunately, we couldn't find it and the gourmands in the Tourist Office had never heard of it. So, we took them up on their suggestion, and walked through the wet streets to The Lawrence Inn, where Jessica ordered Fish and Chips and Josh ordered garlic-fried mushrooms. The platters were covered with chips, which is tasty, but never a good sign. The other tip-off came when Jessica ordered the roast beef medium rare and the waitress said it's alreeady been cooked and that it only comes one way: medium.
Jessica posing on the bridge from the visitor's center in the Boyne Valley.
After a two-hour bureaucratic process to gain access to the Newgrange burial tomb, we were allowed inside for 12 minutes. It pre-dates the Egyptian pyramids by 500 years and if not for the rain we had to endure while waiting outside, it would have been worth it.
Jessica on the DART - here I am coming from our home swap in the South of Dublin to Malahide, where our conference is.
Intervac Board Members: the reason we decided to come to Dublin is because there is a conference for all Intervac organizers. We are the US organizer. Each year we meet to discuss how to improve service for our home exchange customers. The conference is a three day long event in Malahide.
Jessica was out sick for this photo but otherwise this includes the attendees of Intervac's 34th annual general meeting. Lucien Mazik, dressed in the white shirt in the front row, hosted the first meeting in Paris on August 2nd, 1969.
