last easter break post

aaw, back home. sad that vacation is over, but glad that I'm back to real life. My brain, my liver, my pancreas, and my wallet are all glad that I can start my regular routine again.

Weds, Apr. 15- Nenagh, Kilkenny
Today might have been one of the most fun days of my life. Em and Karen and I started off the day by sleeping in, and then settling down to an amazing breakfast that Mrs. Geaney set out. At around noonish, we drove down to Kilkennny, which is apparently where our family is from, and wandered around for a few hours. The way there was un, in that the directions we had were in direct conflict with a construction site, and road closings, when we asked one of the construction guys how to get to Kilkenny, he gave us a paragraph of oral directions, then laughed, and said “Welcome to Ireland, its an adventure! You’ll find where you want to be eventually!” We did make it, and it was an adventure, and actually also really pretty along the way. Karen and Emily helped me navigate by waking up from their naps to yell LEFT or RIGHT. Helpful. We went to Kilkenny castle, which was really pretty, and then wandered around the medieval town for a bit, taking pictures, and visiting Blackstone Abbey. We headed back up to Nenagh, had some true Irish dinner, Bacon and cabbage, and then headed to the local pub, which plays traditional music. The pub, Paddy Rohans, was tiny and comfortable. The girls who were still there came by, and our party eventually filled up the entire back room (which is half of the pub.) Caoimhe’s dad came out to the pub too, and joined in the drinking and singing, and it was “great craic,” as they say here. The owner of the pub, coincidentally named paddy Rohan, came down, and partied with us, and we partook in a Paddy Rohan tradition of making it Karen’s birthday. Paddy Rohan came out with his signature birthday platter, which consists of slices of cheddar cheese with birthday candles in them, and jelly fruit slices. We sang Karen happy birthday, and danced, and she got to blow out her candles. After that, Paddy hung out with us, and we had some great conversations and songs and dances, (of which there is video, the girls teaching Karen and Emily how to jig!) and Paddy ended up talking to me about America, Maryland, and politics, which ended up with us singing the national anthem and waving a miniature American flag around. He asked me where my family was from, and I eventually told him Kilkenny. Paddy also took me aside, gave me a present of Irish orange marmalade, and wrote me a note on the envelope, which states: “To Sean Brennan, of Maryland and Kilkenny, from Paddy Rohan of Nenagh, County Tipperary Greetings from the Emerald Isle” Needless to say, its getting framed. We ended up closing down the bar at 330 in the morning, and Caoimhe, her dad, Karen, Em, and I all ended up staggering home at about 4.

Thurs, Apr. 16- Driving to Dublin, Dublin
We all woke up around noonish, only slightly worse for wear, had some breakfast/lunch, and packed up the silver hornet. We figured we had plenty of time to make the two hour drive into Dublin, to have the car back by 5, but we neglected to take into account the terrible directions we had, and Dublin traffic, which apparently is the equivalent of trying to get from one side of Manhattan to the other at 5 pm. We asked for directions, called the rental car office, and eventually, after almost 2 hours of driving in lost circles, (stop and go traffic, of course,) we got the car into the office at 4:55. We met up with Karen, another Fulbrighter who is in Dublin, and took the train back to her house, made dinner, had some drinks, and then passed out.

Fri, Apr. 17- Dublin
This morning was a little cloudy, but we got up early, and headed into the downtown area with the plan for the day in hand. We started off going to Trinity College, and went into the library to see the Book of Kells, which was amazing, and incredibly intricate, as well as the exhibit about bookmaking and the history of the Book of Kells. After that, it was after noon, so we headed to the old Jameson Brewery for the tour. We went through the tour, and Emily got selected to be a taste tester, which meant she got even MORE whisky than the rest of us, which actually worked out well, because she doesn’t like whisky, so she shared all of her samples with Karen and me! While there, we met an American family, who was in Ireland for a family reunion. Towards the end of the tour, after the tasting, they assembled for a picture, and called themselves the Brennan clan. My eyes got pretty big, and I told them I was one too. Apparently their family is from Galway, so we might be related, (and probably are,) but who knows for sure. After that, we stumbled over to Brazen Head, the oldest Pub in Dublin, which has apparently been there since 1198. We had some great bangers and mash, and then headed off to the Guinness storehouse, otherwise known as heaven. The tour itself was fun for me, because I love Guinness, but I suspect the girls didn’t have as much fun as I did. At the end, we all got free pints, which meant more drinking for me, being that Emily also does not like Guinness. I also got to finish Karen’s pint, and then I buzzed my way back to other Karen’s house to hang out and cook dinner. We had decided to have a “night out,” so we headed out to a club/pub around 11, where we met one of Karen’s friends Dustin, and hung out for a bit, had a few pints, and then made our way to a club to do a little dancing. The music was strange, and the club was packed, but it was fun going out and relaxing a little bit. Plus, I got to get my dance on, which is always fun for me, and probably amusing to everyone around me. We got home pretty late, and I’m about to pass out. Tomorrow is our last day of vacation, and it makes me sad.

Sat, Apr. 18- Dublin
Today was absolutely gorgeous, it was sunny and warm in Dublin, and everyone was outside, enjoying it. The group of us, the Karens, Emily, and I, walked around downtown, in St. Stephen’s Greene, and Grafton street, a big shopping/outdoorsy area. We wandered around downtown for a bit, looking for various things, and then went café hopping. We ended up in two great little cafés, one panera-type place, and then another one called butler’s chocolates, which, coincidentally, makes chocolate. We hung out and had some great (and very funny) conversations, before deciding to head back to Karen’s to relax, and for us to start packing to go home. Lesigh. I had plans to meet up with Aibhistin, one of my old friends from BC, who now lives in Dublin, but he ended up getting in late, so we went out to a pub instead. We started off at a nice little pub, caught up on life a bit, and then went to a club, and met up with a couple of his other friends, all of whom were really nice. Before I knew it, it was 4am, and I had to head back to Karen’s, in order to grab my stuff, and head out the door at 5 to catch my plane back to Göttingen. Needless to say, got on the plane and passed out.