This weekend is part of an age-old tradition in Ireland and the UK. Monday marks the 2007 June Bank Holiday, making this a three-day weekend. There are ten bank holidays every year; people take the time to travel, shop, drink and visit.
I have decided that it’s high time I got out of the city-proper, and the county altogether. I am alighting into the country this weekend! Only, where to go? Please, it’s input time. Weigh in on one of the destinations below!
I have decided that it’s high time I got out of the city-proper, and the county altogether. I am alighting into the country this weekend! Only, where to go? Please, it’s input time. Weigh in on one of the destinations below!
1. Boyne Valley, Co. Meath
This is about an hour north of Dublin by bus. I’d stay in an 18th-century farmhouse stable that’s been renovated and is now a hostel. I could rent a bike and tour the castles and Celtic ruins around the area, and I could visit the two sleepy towns of Drogheda and Slain nearby. It’s a cheap weekend, but I’d probably be traveling Saturday and Sunday, leaving me back in town on Monday.
Slane Farm Hostel 2. Ring of Kerry, Co. Kerry
This trip might be the most expensive. I’d like to rent a car and drive the 4 hours to County Kerry to drive the Ring of Kerry. The Ring is PHENOMENAL. I’ve been twice, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It’s all switchback one-lane roads right along the coast, through forests and fields and mountains and next to the ocean, and the speed limit is 100km (60mph) the whole way, which is ridiculously fast for the kind of driving you’re doing. I’d stay in B&Bs in Kerry one night and probably in the middle of the country the next. The cost of gas, lodging and the car would be expensive (about €300 total, I figure), but it’d be a really fun weekend and I wouldn’t have to worry about getting rained out on a bike in Meath.
This trip might be the most expensive. I’d like to rent a car and drive the 4 hours to County Kerry to drive the Ring of Kerry. The Ring is PHENOMENAL. I’ve been twice, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It’s all switchback one-lane roads right along the coast, through forests and fields and mountains and next to the ocean, and the speed limit is 100km (60mph) the whole way, which is ridiculously fast for the kind of driving you’re doing. I’d stay in B&Bs in Kerry one night and probably in the middle of the country the next. The cost of gas, lodging and the car would be expensive (about €300 total, I figure), but it’d be a really fun weekend and I wouldn’t have to worry about getting rained out on a bike in Meath.
Ring of Kerry3. Co. Donegal
So this trip is my latest idea. I’ve never been to the northwest to Donegal. It’s supposed to be alpine and mountainous and gorgeous. I could bus up there and take a tour or I could rent a car and putz around wherever I pleased. The coast is supposed to be really pretty, and there are little towns all over that I could stop in and visit. Also, this is the only county in northern Ireland that isn’t part of Northern Ireland, which belongs to the UK and uses the £. So, I’d be able to still spend euro. I’ve never seen this area, and the price, if I’m smart, could be somewhere between Meath and Kerry. However, because things are kind of sparse up in Donegal, I risk being bored out of my skull up here, like an Irish Kenosha, Wisc. :)
So this trip is my latest idea. I’ve never been to the northwest to Donegal. It’s supposed to be alpine and mountainous and gorgeous. I could bus up there and take a tour or I could rent a car and putz around wherever I pleased. The coast is supposed to be really pretty, and there are little towns all over that I could stop in and visit. Also, this is the only county in northern Ireland that isn’t part of Northern Ireland, which belongs to the UK and uses the £. So, I’d be able to still spend euro. I’ve never seen this area, and the price, if I’m smart, could be somewhere between Meath and Kerry. However, because things are kind of sparse up in Donegal, I risk being bored out of my skull up here, like an Irish Kenosha, Wisc. :)
Donegal
Anyway, I’ve got a few days to think about it. That’s what’s nice about Ireland—it’s so small, if you want to go somewhere you just pay €10, hop on a bus and in a few hours, you’re there. I just hope I can make this weekend somehow compare to the fun I would have had on Mem Day weekend in Michigan!
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