When in Dublin

First things first: this is my blog! Welcome, please show yourselves around, get comfortable and what not.

So, I'm not in Bologna. Is it considered cheating to write a "when in Bologna" blog when not in Bologna? I hope not... I'm actually in Dublin, which to the great surprise of my sister, is the capital of Ireland. (Actual email excerpt: "Why does everyone in Dublin speak in an Irish accent? I thought you were in Italy!") Hehe, sorry Ave.

I spent yesterday wandering around in a daze, not really knowing where I was most of the time. (Jet-lag will do that to a girl...) I saw Trinity College and Library, lots of monuments and bridges, and a cool bohemian neighborhood called Temple Bar. Temple Bar is probably my favorite part of the city so far, probably because it reminds me a little of Berkeley. It was pretty cool, filled with hippie shops and thrift stores and what I consider to be an excessive amount of tattoo parlors, not to mention dozens of coffee shops and cafes.

A small miracle: yesterday I received an e-mail from a friend of a friend, who'd seen on Facebook that I'd arrived in Dublin. She said that she recently moved here, and that I'm welcome to stay at her flat for a couple of days. I'm meeting up with her this afternoon, and will stay with her and her roommates until I decide to leave Dublin for another town. I can't imagine staying here too much longer though, it's not really my kind of scene. While I can appreciate the bustling city atmosphere, the double-decker busses, the millions of tourists and the all-around craziness, I'm finding myself completely overwhelmed by it all and am excited to see the more rural parts of Ireland where the pace is a little slower.

Today I'm headed to the outskirts of the city, first to check out a cool lighthouse that I read about, then (time-permitting) a historic cemetary and the botanical gardens. Pictures to follow. Yesterday I took exactly one photo, and that was of the fruit stand where I bought lunch. I guess I didn't have much energy for picture-taking, and I was really hungry, which made the fruit stand the most exciting thing I'd seen all day. I'd post the picture, but I'm sure you can all imagine what a fruit stand looks like!

Ah! Well, it's about time to check out of my hostel, so I'll finish up for today. So far though, I'm alive and happy, and (almost) over my jet-lag already! I was wide awake at 5AM this morning, but I'm feeling awake and refreshed now, and ready to go exploring.

I love and miss you all!

Kalen