Killarney Day 1: "I don't recommend going to Burger King, but...they have wifi."
Though today
started out rough, because there is still no wifi, we eventually found it and
even ended up having a pretty good day. Ice cream, endless tea, and a lot of
exploring in the sunshine almost made up for no internet in the hotel. Almost. Killarney
is a lot better than I thought it would be, though, and I am really happy about
that.
Since there was
no internet to do homework last night, we read until we fell asleep and then
got up around 7AM to go get an early breakfast. I had my first cup of tea of
the day, which would only continue to grow as the day went on. In desperate
search of internet, we wandered into town—which is larger than I thought it
would be, even though it is just as far as I assumed. The little buildings line
the winding streets, all brightly colored. Many of the shops are touristy,
since in the high season, this town is full to the brim with people wanting to
experience “Western Ireland” without actually abandoning civilization.
Even so, there are
some winners amongst the rest. We landed in one of these for wifi. It is a coffee
shop and café called Underground, a cute little space that is, indeed,
underground—we walked down a ramp to enter the main part of the shop, but
windows still lined the upper walls. It was a lovely little spot that we will
definitely be back to. For today, we got some sandwiches, as it was around
11:30, and they were great. I got a veggie wrap with a little mayonnaise, as
well as a pot of regular tea. That held about three cups of tea, so that makes
the total four for one day. We stayed in the café through lunchtime, ordered
another pot of tea and an apple tart (which was delicious) and then finally got
up when our assignments were done and a nice older couple wanted to have a
table in the full restaurant. They thanked us profusely, and we were finished
and ready to explore anyway.
We walked
further into town to do some more scouting. Our professor prepared a scavenger
hunt, so we needed to prepare and find things so that when he actually is able
to post it, we are ready. We visited Murphy’s Ice Cream, a local landmark and
also a favorite of our professor. It was every bit as magical as promised—we got
free samples of every flavor, even if we didn’t ask for them. Then, we paid our
money and received two of the most glorious scoops of handmade ice cream I have
ever eaten. Sorry Whitey’s, this puts you to shame. We also stopped into a wool
store, where I looked at hats for someone I know who likes to wear hats. We
found some that looked really nice, so I might go back and get one eventually.
After
scouting around town for a little while longer, we started our fifteen-minute
trek back to the hotel. At dinner, we found out that our trip to Ross Castle
would be moved up to tomorrow morning, so we are so excited to be visiting it
early! We had planned on hiking tomorrow anyway, so it’s shaping up to be a
great day. Can’t wait! The day might have started out cloudy and sad, but by
the time we left the café, it was sunny, warm, and happy. A wild ride, but
great in the end.
♥
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