Off to the Emerald Isle

Hard to believe the time will soon be upon us - we're heading to Ireland!  This time when I say "we" I mean my cousin Heather and I.  She is amazing and just graduated with her Masters, so we're celebrating with our passports.  While this is not my first time to step foot on the Emerald Isle (it is for her), it will be my first time driving there (fingers crossed it goes well).  I did do some driving on the left side of the road while living in Australia, so at least that won't be a first.  It has been an interesting trip to plan since I've never planned a roadtrip before, and certainly not one overseas.  Actually, now that I typed that it might not be 100% true.  I did sort of do a roadtrip down the East Coast of Australia, but I didn't plan it and I did drive.  Georgie planned everything for me and it was a bus trip, so a bit different but I guess technically a roadtrip.  Anyway,  I was trying to use a new road trip builder website I recently found called RoadTrippers, but it seems suited more for the USA than for overseas.  Hopefully in time they get their other countries beefed up a bit.  After spending a decent amount of time trying to use their website for our trip I gave up.  Then, I stumbled upon a delightful new Google Maps feature that lets you do what I was trying to do with RoadTrippers - Kevin And Amanada's blog post explains it all.  So, as we prepare to leave (I haven't even started packing yet, which is a bit strange for me), I've still got to figure out how to download an Ireland road maps onto my GPS, among other things.  And if all else fails I guess we'll be kicking it old-school with a paper map.  Seeing as I'm "directionally challenged" that would certainly make the trip more interesting.

My last trip to Ireland was in 2007, on school break, while studying in Italy with Saints Bible Institute.  Six of us decided to do a quick tour of Paris, London, and Dublin during our week off school.  I'd already been to Paris, but it's such an awesome city that I didn't mind returning.  We didn't spend much time in Ireland, less than 2 days, but the most memorable part was the day we spent in Bray, a small coastal town south of Dublin.  It was incredibly charming, and I'm hoping to at least stop by on our drive up to Dublin before we go home, just for old-times sake.

Bray, Ireland - November 2007

Bray, Ireland - November 2007

road trip (noun)

a journey via automobile, sometimes unplanned or impromptu; a journey involving sporting game(s) away from home