Written for Work...

I've often heard that there Pots of Gold at the end of rainbows in Ireland but I think it really should be Pints of Guinness. At least that's how it seems once you've been there. Going to Ireland from Portland Oregon is an education in many things, but of course one of the most important is beer. In Portland you can have your pick from hundreds of micro, craft or macro brews where in Ireland your typical choices are Heineken, Coors Light, Bulmer's, Smithwicks, Budweiser, Carlsberg and of course Guinness. Usually each pub would have at least two taps of Guinness and many pubs were externally lined with empty kegs of the black stuff. My favorite beer was actually the Smithwicks (pronounced 'smith-icks') but enough about beer...



On our whirlwind trip of Ireland we visited more than just pubs. A few of the beauties of Ireland we took in were the Cliffs of Moher, the Brú na Bóinne, and the Giant's Causeway. I have to say my favorite day trip was to the island of Inisheer (Inis Oírr). It was a 20 minute ferry ride from the coast of Ireland at Connemara to this, the smallest of the Aran Islands. The island has 250 inhabitants and speaks Gaelic as a primary language. It was a gorgeous landscape dominated by bare limestone and green grass. There were hundreds of they typical Irish rock walls on the island penning livestock or just serving as property fences. There were two ruins on the island at it's peak, one of which was an O'Brien Castle (Erik's Grandmothers surname). The view from the ruin was amazing. We enjoyed our time on the island riding our bikes. My favorite part of the island was the wreckage of the Plassey the rocky beach. It was eerie and beautiful to see they way the ship has eroded over time staining the rocks orange and red.



For my first trip out of the country I'm happy we picked Ireland. The people were nice and the country was lovely. But, although we loved our vacation, I am glad to be back. There are things I took for granted like how much more expensive it would be in Ireland, how wonderful the water tastes here in Oregon and how much I like access to the internet on my terms. I guess there is just no place like home.



Here is a link to more pictures.