Ireland has always been on my bucket list – it might be the bit of Irish blood running through my veins or just Ireland’s rich heritage and jaw dropping natural landscapes. What better way to experience it for the first time than with family. Jacob and I met his sister, Alissa and her boyfriend, Omar in Dublin for a quick weekend holiday. They had been traveling in Paris, so it was the perfect opportunity to see them and check off another box on our long list of places to visit.

We had a late evening flight into Dublin from Manchester after dropping Brindle off with our lovely dog sitters. We took a bus from the airport to our Airbnb in the Temple Bar area, located in the heart of Dublin. It was great to catch up with Alissa and Omar as we hadn’t seen them since Christmas. With them living in AZ, an 8 hour time difference makes it a bit harder to FaceTime as often as we would like. So naturally we stayed up a bit too late, but enjoyed our time together.

We were up early the next morning to catch a bus that would take us on a day trip to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway. We grabbed a quick breakfast on our walk to the bus stop and were waiting patiently with our coffees for the bus to arrive. The pickup time inched closer and there was no sign of the bus or any other people around us, so we started to question if this was the correct bus stop…it was not. We quickly found the right bus stop on a map and realized we would have to run to make it on time as it was a few minutes away. We all took off, coffees in hand, attempting not to spill as we raced our bus to the stop. We made it with a few minutes to spare and only lost one coffee in the excitement.

After a 3 hour bus ride, we made it to the Cliffs of Moher. We lucked out with a clear sky and sunshine. Even with the wind, we had the best views. We enjoyed exploring the area and taking in the vast cliffs and sparkling water. Nature has so much beauty to offer and the cliffs did not disappoint. After we left the cliffs, we drove along the coast and stopped in Galway where we had a chance to find food and walk around the harbor city before making our way back to Dublin. That evening we were in a pinch for dinner, trying to find a restaurant or pub still serving food. We ended up at an Italian place and paired a bottle of wine with our traditional Italian dishes and of course split a warm chocolate brownie and gelato dessert.

Our last day in Dublin included a yummy breakfast at a local cafe, a tour of Trinity College Library, and one of our favorite activities – a tour of the Guinness Storehouse.

We can attest to the fact that Guinness really does taste better in Ireland. We were able to learn the history and process behind making this dark delicious beer and even learned how to pour the perfect Guinness (I may have won our friendly competition 😊). We also got to appreciate the views of the city from the Guinness Gravity bar as we enjoyed yet another pint. Our last stop before the airport was a pub that was playing the F1 British Grand Prix. For those of you who don’t know Omar – he is quite the fan and literally dragged us out of the Guinness Storehouse to make it on time for the start of the race. We enjoyed each other’s company, good conversation, a bit of food, and in the spirit of F1 – a few shots before it was time to catch our bus to the airport. We were fortunate enough that Alissa and Omar were flying back with us to spend a couple nights in our hometown before continuing on with their travels so we all got to head to the airport together. We were delayed a bit, but made it back safe and sound.

We had a relaxing morning after our travels, but decided that our guests couldn’t leave the UK without seeing a castle, so made our way to Conwy Castle in Wales. This was a new place for Jacob and I as well, so we enjoyed taking in this amazing and well preserved fortress. It was constructed between the years 1283 and 1287 and contains the most intact set of medieval royal apartments in Wales. We were able to walk through the castle and climb its narrow staircases all the way up its tall towers. The four of us also enjoyed a walk around the town Conwy for some lunch and pastries before we headed back to pick up Brindle.

Brindle was excited to see guests again and loved showing Alissa and Omar around our town as we took an evening stroll before heading for our final dinner together. We concluded the night cozied up under the lights of our garden patio and it felt like the perfect ending to another great trip and time spent with some of our favorite people. Thanks for visiting Alissa and Omar!

Thanks for reading,

-Amber