Sunday, March 28, 2010

Cheers! Honeymoon in Ireland Part 1

I hadn't planned on blogging about our honeymoon, but we had such a lovely (lov-i-lee) time in Ireland, I thought I'd do a brief overview of our trip. The day after the wedding, we flew back to Chicago, unpacked our bags, repacked our bags, slept, woke up & went back to O'Hare to fly to Dublin. It was a whirlwind travel day & was quite exhausting, but luckily we conked out on our trans-Atlantic flight, missing everything from beverage service to meals & woke up when we landed.

Here was our itinerary:

Days 1 - 3: Dublin
Days 3 - 5: Galway (base point for the Cliffs of Mohr and The Burren)
Days 5 - 7: Dingle
Days 7 - 8: Kinsale

In Dublin, we stayed at The Westbury. It is centrally located on Grafton Street, which is a great boutique street bookended by Trinity College and St. Stephen's Green. I highly recommend checking out the Book of Kells at Trinity. I am fascinated by illuminated manuscripts, and these did not disappoint.


Our hotel room that was bigger than my first apartments in Chicago. Combined :)


Trinity College, home of the Book of Kells - please go see this.


As a Brit Chick-Lit fan, I've always wanted to say "We had Marks & Spencer take-away", Mr. Quiche was more than happy to oblige & we picnicked in St. Stephen's Green.

Out and about in Dublin meant food & flowers. Freshly off flower stalking post-wedding, I loved all of the flower markets & of course, the shock of green that greets you everywhere in Ireland.


A traditional Irish breakfast at Bewley's. The blood sausage might give away that this is Mr. Q's meal - I had oatmeal & cappuccino :)


There was a Starbucks across the street from our hotel & Mr. Q is obsessed, so we had to go :)


Yum.


This is not photoshopped!

You can't visit Dublin without visiting certain cathedrals. Some may pray at St. Patrick's Cathedral, some may pray to another God altogether: Guiness.




If forced to choose another career, I think I'd be an Architecture Historian. Gothic cathedrals, with their pointed arches and ribbed groin vaults, make my hear go pitter-patter. It is truly spectacular.


Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver's Travels, was the Dean of St. Patrick's in the 19th century.

As much as we both like beer, neither one of us had tried Guinness before visiting Ireland! I guess it's appropriate that our first one was at the Guinness Factory.








What a cutie :)

Kilmainham Gaol (jail) is another place that I am so glad we visited. It is a prison made famous for its part in the Easter Rising, which put Ireland on the road to freedom from British rule.





And you can't fully experience Dublin without partaking in the many, many pubs with music twinkling out into the streets. On our first night, we headed to the Temple Bar neighborhood and to Oliver St. John Gogarty. After ditching the nicer restaurant on the top floor for fried food & garlic mayo on the 2nd, we instantly fell "mad for trad" - traditional, live Irish music.




"Singing cockles & mussels, alive! alive-oh!" - Molly Malone, a song about a prostitute fishmonger that you'll hear in every pub in Ireland.

Dublin is such a vibrant, fun city steeped in history, art & architecture awesomeness. Mama & Petey Quiche are going back to Ireland in 2 months & we are super jealous :)

Can't wait to share the rest of our Ireland travels with you!

Where did/are you going on your honeymoon?
____________________________________________
Previously in the Quiche Jamaican Extravaganza:
Ya Mon! Back to Reality
Ya Mon! “Goin’ to Jamaica & We’re, Gonna Get Maaa-arried”!
Ya Mon! Who Zip Lines Before Their Wedding?
Ya Mon! Reggae Sailing
Ya Mon! Practice Makes Perfect
Ya Mon! Rehearsal Dinner/Party/Bonfire
Ya Mon! Jamaican Mornings
Ya Mon! Getting Pretty
Ya Mon! Crewcuts Model (aka Boys Getting Ready)
Ya Mon! The Dress, The Dress, The Dress!
Ya Mon! Our First Look & The Attack of the Veil!
Ya Mon! The Ceremony Begins...
Ya Mon! The Ceremony Continues
Ya Mon! Strike a Pose: The Wedding Party
Ya Mon! Strike a Pose: The Family
Ya Mon! Strike a Pose: The Bride & Groom
Ya Mon! Flowers & DIY Details
Ya Mon! The Reception Begins
Ya Mon! The Reception Continues & The First Dance(s)
Ya Mon! Dancing, a Dress Change, and More Dancing
Ya Mon! Faux-to Booth Fun!
Ya Mon! Let's Trash That Dress*! (Pt. 1)

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