UK and Ireland Trip (a little late!)

Grace and peace to all in Christ from the beautiful city of Madrid, Spain!

I hope you are all doing well. I apologize for my lateness in updating my blog – it’s been a crazy first two weeks in Madrid! In this post I'm just going to talk about my UK/Ireland trip, and in the next one I'll talk about Madrid!

So, I left the States on August 20 with a high school friend, Julie. We are both studying abroad this semester in Madrid and decided to travel around before our programs started on August 29 (me) and September 3 (Julie).

We first flew to Madrid, dropped off our luggage in the consignas (storage lockers) in the Madrid airport (my first experience in Spain – it was exciting, even empowering, to be able to communicate without problem to the luggage storage people! You know, it’s the small things…). We waited in the (massive) Madrid airport for a few hours before flying to London.

In London, I especially enjoyed attending a gorgeous evensong at Westminster Abbey (and St. Paul’s the next day), where I got to discuss a little theology with a Church of England priest after the service. It turns out the Westminster Confession was written across the street from Westminster Abbey, as a break away from the Church of England in the 1500s. He stressed that the teachings of Calvin and Luther were inconsistent with the teachings of the Church of England. Even though the Church is technically Protestant (because Henry VIII broke away from the Vatican), it is ideologically more Catholic than American Protestant – say, Reformed. Interesting!

Julie and me in front of Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

I love this picture. I didn't photoshop it or anything -- London is just naturally very gray and frankly, dreary. After visiting London, I understand the song "Foggy Day (in London town)!"

I also got the chance to see Les Miserables on London’s West End (both Julie and I had forgotten how depressing of a musical it is!) and take a tour with the famous Beefeaters at the Tower of London. We also managed to fit in the British Museum, Buckingham Palace (although the Changing of the Guard was not happening the day we went!) the London Eye (like a big ferris wheel overlooking London), and the National Gallery, where we had high tea – delicious!

Houses of Parliament

View from the "London Eye"

London's Jubilee Walk at night

The next stop was Bath, from where we took a day tour from of Stonehenge, the Avebury Stone Circle, and two adorable Costwold villages, Lacock and Castle Combe. I was expecting to be less than impressed with Stonehenge, but I actually enjoyed it very much. It’s quite amazing how, without any form of modern technology, these people moved 5-ton stones all the way from Wales!

Stonehenge

Castle Combe ("coom"), a small Cotswold village

Traditional Cotswold cottage -- gorgeous!

Also, Bath is a site of ancient Roman baths (hence the name). I loved walking on the same stones that saw the Romans 2,000 years ago. If only walls could talk!

Roman baths in Bath, England

We then made it up to Warwick (pronounced warr-ick) Castle, near Birmingham. It was a little touristy, but so much fun. We enjoyed watching a trebuchet show, climbing along the walls of the castle, and listening to small British children. I officially love listening to foreign children talk, except Spanish children because the 3-year-olds are better at Spanish than I!

Jumping, with Warwick Castle in the background!

"Ah! It's almost as scary as actually being in the Middle Ages!!"

After 5 nights in England, we made it over to Ireland for 3 nights. Our first stop was Cork. The first day in Cork we took a bus down to Kinsale (kin-sale), a charming seaside town on the southern coast of Ireland. We took a 45-minute hike along the coast up to Charles Fort, which was a military built in the late 1600s and used until the early 1920s.

On the hike to Charles Fort -- you can see the fort in the background

Looking from Charles Fort into the Kinsale harbor

We got a short history from a worker there before hopping around the walls of the 400-year-old fort. It was right on the coast, so it was beautiful! I decided that it would be a good idea to roll down this big hill (a family looked like they were having fun!). I failed to realize, however, that it was a muddy mess at the bottom. So, of course, I became a muddy mess and had to walk all the way back to Kinsale and then ride the bus back to Cork in muddy jeans/sweatshirt! Fortunately, there was a washing machine at the hostel and we were able to get all the mud out.

After foolishly rolling down the hill!

Back in Cork, we enjoyed the pub scene, took a tour of the Cork jail, walked around the campus of UCC (University College Cork), where my cousin, Ian, attended for a semester, went to an art gallery, and then picked up some noodles/sauce at the local market to cook our own food back at the hostel that night.

Pretending to be a prisoner in the Cork City Jail ("Gaol" in Gaelic, or Irish)

Just a cool street in Ireland


UCC, or University College Cork, where Ian went to school


UCC front gates

That night, we had the wonderful opportunity of seeing a traditional Irish dancing show entitled "Dancing thru the Ages." It was astounding. I was floored by the ability God has given these people to dance so quickly, precisely, and masterfully! The music was wonderful and traditional and the dancers were just a joy to watch. Everyone in the show was just a master at their respective talent, and it was an unforgettable Irish experience!

"The Firkin Crane," where we saw the "trad" (traditional) Irish dancing show

The next morning we hopped on a bus to Dublin. I only had an afternoon there, so we hit the two highlights: Trinity College and the Guinness Storehouse. Trinity College was really interesting – we took a short tour of the campus from a student tour guide (he was quite humorous!) but didn’t go in to see the Book of Kells – for an extra 7 euro just to see the book, we figured we could look at a picture!

Mid-walk at Trinity College, Dublin

We also made it over to the Guinness Storehouse, where Guinness beer is made. It was a wonderful museum, quite interesting, and at the end we went to the “Gravity Bar,” which is a circular room with all windows that overlooks the city of Dublin. We had a fantastic view of the Wicklow Mountains and the rest of Dublin.

View from the Gravity Bar on top of the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin

Temple Bar area, center of pubs/nightlife in Dublin, last night in Ireland

The next morning, I woke up 54 minutes before my plane was scheduled to depart from Dublin to Madrid. I don’t know why I didn’t wake up to my alarm! After a stressful cab ride to the airport (where I completely perpetuated the cab driver’s stereotype of Americans – stressed, in a rush, etc.!), I ended up missing the flight and having to take the next flight later that afternoon. It actually worked out well because I got to spend more time with Julie in Dublin, and I ended up missing only about 3 minutes of the very beginning of my program’s welcome dinner in Madrid. Funny how God works those things out, eh?

"May God grant to the living, grace, to the departed, rest, to the church and the world, peace and concord, and to us sinners, eternal life." -- Inscription on outside wall of Westminster Abbey, struck me as profound