Slainte! We embarked on a journey to the green isle this morning and we couldn’t be more excited, nor more ready for a vacation. Mike has been working non-stop for the past 3 weeks, trying to wrap up two major construction jobs (literally working through weekends and past 7pm at night!). And while I’ve not been doing physical labor (besides helping dig for a deck and run the Colfax half marathon last weekend) my work has been insane. We are in full need of this weeks holiday for sure!

First stop on this journey: Boston. Our layover from Denver in bean town was over 5 hours, so you bet your butt we headed out and about. The public transit in Boston is top notch and we took the silver line all the way to Harpoon Brewery for free! Here we had a rye IPA, a levethian IPA, and a regular Harpoon IPA. Delicious! They served pretzels as well, so we popped some of them and had a blast. Needing nourishment before our over the pond journey, we headed to a seafood shack right outside Harpoon brewery & had some tuna wraps before hopping on the silver line back to the airport. A bit of rush hour traffic made for an interesting ride, but all was well and we got to our gate, meeting Mike’s mom, just in time to board.

After only 5 hours, we touched down on the green isle. It was a bit cloudy, so after we scooped up our rental and waited for Mikes sister to land, we jetted off into our Ireland adventure. First stop: the Cliffs of Moher.

Our accommodations were in Killarney, a mere 2 1/2 hours south of Shannon airport. The cliffs of Moher were a meager 40 minutes north. A perfect first day sight, especially due to the proximity. The win whipped as we got out of the car to ascend to the cliffs. After piling a few extra layers of clothing on, we headed up to the breathtaking views. Jagged edges, plunging drops, violent waves meeting the base of the cliff. We took it all in in awe. There were paths that took you dangerously close to the edge, where those who dared could peak over the edge. Truly spectacular and absolutely worth the drive.

Back on the road again, off to our digs. The boys drove the cars, thank goodness because the stick shifts paired with driving on the left side of the road was crazy after having traveled for over 18 hours. After about 3 hours in the car, we arrived and checked into the gorgeous Malton hotel. A beautiful old stone building, with lovely restaurant, grounds and staff.

A quick hour and a half cat nap and we were refreshed and ready to venture out. For dinner at least! The Kenmare fit our palette perfectly and the ambiance was beautiful! But the best was the food!!! Our meals were extraordinary and really set the bar for the trip. Quinoa salad, fresh hake, seafood platter. Plus, a new local craft beer was discovered: Killarney pale ale. Delicious!

With our bellies full, Mike and I ventured out to a local watering hole while the others headed back to our holiday home. Alan, Sarah and Mike’s mom were beat. The music poured out of the pub we popped into and we each had a pint of the black stuff (Guinness). A lovely first day in Ireland indeed!!