Elo, Laura and I woke up bright and early to catch a train to Luton so we could make our flight to Knock. My cousin Jamie picked us up from the airport and brought us to my Grandparent's house in Ballina which is about 45 minutes away. We got all settled in and then went out to the town square. You can't really get lost in Ballina because it has two main streets which run perpendicular to each other. If somehow one manages to veer off these two streets, you will make a circle and end up where you started. While in town we went and did a little shopping. Penny's is Ireland's Primark. That means it is GREATNESS. After we went to Tesco to pick up some stuff for dinner. I made my famous Vegetarian Chili (yes I said vegetarian and chili is the same sentence) and we ate, sipped wine and beer and watched Bride Wars. After we got back from shopping I forgot to mention that the red gate was open. The red gate is never left open. And the front door was open. I closed it when we left. A bit scary and eery right? I thought so too. I was so scared to go into the house because someone else was in there. Turns out it was my crazy Uncle Shay who lives in Galway. He fails to mention when he is coming to town so he will randomly just show up (like he did on Friday, scaring my to death because I thought someone was robbing the house). Anyways...It was a nice and relaxing evening. Later my cousin Gary and his girlfriend Niamh came down to visit.
Saturday
I woke up to have breakfast with Gary and Niamh before they left to go to Niamh's aunts birthday party. We had breakfast at a place called Mocha Beans, I noticed that they had a lot of vegetarian options so I suggested to Elo and Laura that we go again later for lunch. After Gary and Niamh left we went on a walk to Belleek Castle.
The walk to Belleek is about 30 minutes, but it is absolutely beautiful. It is very Twilight-esk. If I was a vampire I would definitely live in Ballina, Ireland as opposed to Forks, Washington...I'm just saying.
The castle has been converted into a hotel, but it was pretty deserted since it isn't the summer season quite yet. We took a stroll along the side and back of the castle and then went down to the garden.
After Belleek we took a stroll to the river where across you can see the beautiful old Catholic Cathedral.
By then it was around 5:30 so we decided to catch the 6 o'clock showing of Sex and the City 2. Elo and I shared a bag of popcorn and Malteesers. If you have never had this combo before you are missing out. It tastes like Heaven. We then went back to Mount Assumpta and wasted some time before going out to Brennan's Lane. We ordered a round of pints, listened to some music and chatted the rest of the evening.
Sunday
Sunday was another early morning. We woke up early so we could catch the 8:30 bus ride to Galway. The journey is over two hours but it is so hard to fall asleep on buses. The chairs are not very comfortable and they hurt your neck. Needless to say we all needed a big cup of coffee with our "Traditional Irish Breakfast." It was a beautiful day in Galway. The sun was out and shining for most of the time we were there. We mainly just walked around the town square surrounding the university. We also went down to the Port.
We followed the trail along the port and ended up along the beach. It was absolutely breath-taking. We decided to take a break and lie down in the tall grass just above the tide. I am telling you, I could have stayed there all day.
It was dinner time by the time we got back. Elo and Laura made Spaghetti and Garlic Bread while I took a walk down to the cemetery to visit Grandma and Pops. That evening we just kicked back and started packing since we had an early flight. Jamie brought over a bottle of wine so we enjoyed some of that and tea before going to bed.
Monday
Jamie brought us to the airport and then my aunt Annie picked us up from the airport when we arrived back at Luton. She invited Elo, Laura and I to her house for a nice home-cooked meal. After we ate and had some time to catch up she brought us back to the train station so we could get back to London. I really enjoyed my weekend back in Ireland, it is always great to see and spend time with family.
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