This morning, I woke up at 4am, likely still jet lagged by the 8 hour time difference between LA and Dublin.  I spent a couple hours using my laptop in the lobby of the hostel.

In the lobby, a Nigerian traveler was chatting up a girl who had arrived at the hostel recently.  This stood out to me because I had seen this guy having conversations with five different girls in the past 24 hours.  He was a master conversationalist, something which I couldn’t help but admire.  At about 5am, the girl finally left to sleep.  At that point, another male traveler entered into the lobby and the Nigerian traveler started chatting with him about where he’s headed (London) and potential extra security at the London airport.  After that traveler left the hostel, he began chatting with me about my trip, why I was awake, etc.  He was an emotionally intelligent conversationalist who carried on a conversation naturally in a way that made the other person feel comfortable and not judged.  He was literally chatting with someone every single time I saw him between 9pm and 4am.  What an enriching, fulfilling way to spend time.

At 7am I boarded a tour bus near the hostel for the Cliffs of Moher day trip.  The first three hours of the trip were spent driving from Dublin to Galway, and the last three hours of the trip were spent driving from Galway to Dublin.  The tour guide gave us a 45-minute walking tour of Galway.  Galway is a small, older city which now is mainly a tourist town.  There are a few blocks where only pedestrian traffic is allowed, and it’s a beautiful environment to walk around in.

After the 45-minute tour, we had about an hour to ourselves to walk around and enjoy the town.  I grabbed a latte, listened to a few street buskers, and then ordered a sandwich from McCambridge.

 

 

After Galway, we continued driving to Cliffs of Moher.  On the way, the scenery was lush green landscapes with granite-like rocks dotting the landscapes.  We passed by Lisdoonvarna, a town that hosts an annual matchmaking festival.  We also passed by ancient castles, cemeteries, and more.

 

At about 2PM, we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher.  The Cliffs tower 200 meters above the Atlantic Ocean and are similar in a lot of ways to Big Sur.  The combination of the green clifftops, dark-colored cliffs, and dark blue ocean are beautiful.  There is a trail that heads in two directions from the parking lot that follows the edge of the cliffs for several miles.  The wind was extremely strong at the top of the cliffs, but I could still hear the sounds of the waves breaking on the rocks 600 feet below.

After visiting the Cliffs of Moher, we drove 8KM to the nearby town Doolin where we had a one hour lunch break.  I was still full from lunch, so I just picked up chocolate which was tasty and kept me filled up until 9PM.

At 9PM, I walked into the dorm room at the hostel, and Eric and Delaney (siblings from Oregon) asked me if I’d be up to check out Temple Bar.  We went out with two German girls also staying at Abigail’s hostel.  Over the next few hours, we visited four bars and listened to many live songs, including Irish songs, Ed Sheehan, and classic American songs.  It was a great experience and had such a great time.

At about midnight, we stopped by the hostel and went out with the Nigerian guy to a club.  Eric and Delaney left while we were waiting in line at the club, so it was just me and the Nigerian guy dancing until 3AM.  The club was AMAZING, probably one of my top-5 club experiences period.  Lots of dancing, people interacting with each other, indoor-outdoor dance floors, and good-looking girls.