Backpacking_Ireland

Backpacking Ireland - Summer 2002

Lorne and I travelled to Ireland during the summer of 2002 for our first backpacking excursion! We had a super time over there exploring the countryside and small towns, finding the best pubs for traditional music and just having a great time in all!

We started off our journey on July 26th. We flew from Houston to Amsterdam and then on to Dublin via Aer Lingus. We arrived in Dublin at about noon and took a city bus straight to the bus depot to get our tickets to Kilkenny. We were in the bus terminal no longer than 10 minutes when a a guy came up talking to us from Labrador city. He was living in Ireland for a 6 month work term. He was in a hurry to catch his bus so we didn't talk long! But how ironic and neat is that.....

We walked around Dublin for a bit taking in the street life. We ended up eating lunch on the corner of Gardiner and ?. This is where Lorne had his first REAL Guinness in the homeland and fish & chips! I stuck to my traditional cuisine of pasta haha. There are 2 street web cams located on that same corner, they can be viewed at ?

I ended up missing most of the bus ride from Dublin to Kilkenny. I had a severe case of jet lag! But luckily, Lorne has it all on video hehe. We stayed in Kilkenny for two nights, the 26th & 27th (Friday and Saturday).

Friday night we walked around the town and ended up at The Metropole Bar located on James and High Street. A band from Cork was playing there. They were 'okay' but not exactly what we were looking for so we kept on moving. It turned out we didn't find any good, happening bars that night so we ate at a pizza parlor and then headed back to our B&B, the Fanad House to call it a night.

Paul Simon was playing at the Smithwicks's Festival on Saturday, which was also Lorne's birthday. This concert was what we pretty much planned our trip around. When we awoke that morning, we walked to the concert site and bought our tickets at the ticketbooth-on-wheels (a.k.a. van). The festival was an all-day event. The following musicians played: Van morrison, Fun Lovin' Criminals, Blind Boys of Alabama, Kila, John Spillane, Menlow Park, Ens and most importantly Paul Simon!!!!! The day was great, we relaxed in the seating area throughout the day and then made our way up towards the stage for Paul Simon.

Far Left: Paul Simon at the Smithick's Festival

Left: Here I am, sitting on a post in the streets of Kilkenny

We decided to move on from Kilkenny on the 28th, Sunday, to Cork. We ended up missing our bus and hitching a ride with the owner of our B&B to some town halfway between Kilkenny and Cork. Then we caught a bus to Cork. The ride was certainly one I'll never forget. Very fast drivers over that way and a lot of nerve as well. The roads were very narrow and winding but that didn't stop people from passing and speeding!!!

As soon as we got to Cork we went straight to An Spailpin Fanac, a pub that Fergus O'Byrne had mentioned to us. We had a pint and then decided on where to stay for the night. We thought we'd be brave and try out the hostel. Let's just say, it was our ONE and ONLY night in a hostel the whole trip! We dropped our gear off at the hostel and then headed back to explore a little of Cork. We saw St. Finbarr's cathedral, The Beamish Brewery, had a drink at the Bodhran and then headed back to An Spailpin Fanac in the hopes of catching a session. And sure enough, we did! Three older men, one playng the whistle, one playing the banjo and one playing the bodhran were huddled in the corner playing a tune. It was really great to see and hear. They played for a couple of hours; by then it was time for the bar to close down, 11:30 p.m. It was raining the whole way back to the hostel, we didn't mind it that much though. We survived our night in the hostel and were very happy to awaken the next morning and move on to our next destination.

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