“The heart is a bloom, shoots up through the stony ground.”

Wow. How do I begin to describe my weekend in Ireland?

Ireland is an amazing place. The people are very nice, the scenery is beautiful, and the culture is enchanting. This weekend was a time of many "firsts" for me. It was the first time I've been to Ireland, the first time I've flown intracontinentally within Europe, the first time I've stayed at a hostel, and among other things, the first time I've been stalked by cows.

My journey began on Friday morning at 1:00AM. My flight from Frankfurt was set to leave at 6:40AM, so the only way to get there with enough time to check in was to take a shuttle from the train station in Darmstadt at 3:00AM that same morning. In order to get to the train station by that time, I needed to make the hour walk across town since no local transportation was running around that time. When I stepped out of my dorm I was shocked at how dark it was and immediately thought, "This is a mistake! What was I thinking?" Much like in Frankfurt I was tempted to turn back, but I had no choice but to go forward, and so I continued, but not without apprehension. I stuck to the major roads and was on high alert the whole time, using all of the strategies learned from my brother and Shotokan instructors. Eventually, I made it to the station and met up with my two travel companions, Peter and Adam, the two I with whom I traveled to Cologne. They live much closer to the train station than myself and only had to walk a few minutes.

We took a train to the Frankfurt (Hahn) airport in plenty of time to check in, and I was actually able to sleep in the waiting room for about an hour. The two hour flight was relatively uneventful, and we arrived in Dublin ahead of schedule. We caught a bus from the airport to the city center, and then from the city center of Dublin to Galway. When we arrived and for the duration of the four hour trip to Galway, the weather was pretty messy (although apparently somewhat typical), but I was still able to enjoy the view of the countryside. Along the way, I had a really lengthy and pleasant conversation with a young lawyer in training from Galway. He is a member of the Lohan (as in the (in)famous actress) extended family and apparently wishes to disown her as she disgraces the family name. Most importantly, Mr. Lohan was a great guy, strong in his faith and well read in the world at large. We talked about everything from the legal system in Ireland to the structure of government in the US to faith and reason to the importance of family to the history of Ireland. It was a really fascinating and enlightening conversation.

In Galway we didn't have much time to explore as our bus to Doolin was leaving shortly and we needed to get a bite to eat. On the ride from Galway to Doolin, as we traveled closer to the western coast of Ireland, the landscape became much more rocky and, in some ways, more stunning. We made to our hostel in Doolin after the bumpy ride which took a few hours. After checking in, we decided to check out the Cliffs of Moher, following a road up the incline for some time until we found a path that took us closer to the water's edge. The view was spectacular. Eventually, we found a way down to the base of the cliffs which we explored for some time. While exploring, we were approached by a young man named Jon who is entering his final year as a drama student at Julliard and is currently here in Europe because of a fellowship with the Oxford School of Drama for the summer. We invited him to explore with our party and decided to continue up the cliffs as much as time and weather would permit. While the rain had ceased for a couple of hours, the wind was quite strong and we wanted to be careful. Eventually we made it to a bend in the cliffs where the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. We decided to stop for a while and take in the view. I cannot emphasize enough how cool it was to sit there in silence for several minutes, hearing only the crash of waves against the cliffs, the sound of the grass blowing in the wind, and the calls of seagulls as they soared above the cliff.

After several minutes, we decided to continue moving up the cliffs but were greatly started as some cows had taken it upon themselves to stalk and intimidate us. Stuck between an angry cow behind a small electric fence on the one side and the massive cliffs to the other, needless to say we vacated the premises as quickly and safely as possible. As we continued up the cliffs, the weather became a lot more inhospitable, but the view was still amazing. After stepping fully into a number of invisible puddles, we decided to head back before it got dark or before the weather got worse. Once again, the weather seemed to improve the lower the elevation. On the way back, we were able to see a number of interesting ruins on the way back to the hostel.

As it turned out, Jon was staying at the same hostel as us, and after we had cleaned up we headed over to McDermott's, an Irish pub in Doolin, for some much needed dinner. While there we met an American couple who really took a liking to us. There food was delicious and there were some musicians playing typical Irish music who really added to the mood. Since Jon and Tash, a person from England that we had met at the hostel, desired to play along with the local Irish, we headed over to O'Connor's, a dimly lit but lively family pub where Jon and Tash would be able to join with the local musicians. It was really nice to see people of all different shapes and ages come together for a night of simple fun and fellowship.

Talking with Mr. Lohan on the bus to Galway and seeing the families and friends interacting at the pubs in Doolin really made me think a lot about myself and my priorities. I do have a lot of really important goals for my life and for the world at large, but I think that in my efforts to achieve those goals I have tended to lose sight of many of the "little things" in life that are actually really important too. The "Mid-week Specials" with my amazing family, the "Movie Nights" with my best of friends, the walks with my "sister" Jackie (I could go on), all greatly shaped me into the person I am today. Writing about this I am honestly brought to tears. I am so thankful for the wonderful life I have had. I am without a doubt one of the luckiest kids on Earth, and I need to remember that from time to time.

After a few hours of listening to music, I headed back with Jon and Tash to the hostel and began to unwind. As I wouldn't be seeing them in the morning, we said goodbye and exchanged email addresses before turning in. In my limited travels I have been fortunate enough to come into contact with some amazing people, and I really hope to be able to see some of them another time. But, I understand realistically that the vast majority of our paths will probably not cross again. I need to be sure to make the most of my encounters and not take anything for granted, even with those I have been fortunate enough to see often.

I woke up early the next morning and ran to the pier that was a few kilometers from the hostel. While the weather was overcast, it wasn't rainy and the temperature was perfect. It felt really good to work out the sluggishness from a long day of travel the day before, and it was really neat to be by myself in the middle of such a strange and beautiful place with the pounding of my feet and the waves across the shore the only sounds in the area. After a moving several minutes at the rocky beach, I returned to the hostel and prepared for my journey back to Dublin via Galway. The weather was much nicer this time around and I was able to get some more shots of the villages and countryside.

When we arrived in Dublin it began to rain, but luckily just as soon as it started it had gone. We found our hostel with no problems and proceeded to make our way along the Liffey River to the Guinness Storehouse. Along the way we also walked through some interesting districts, seeing some of the famous locations such as Christ Church Cathedral. The Guinness Storehouse was interesting, and as part of the tour we were able to enjoy a pint of "The Black Stuff" from the Gravity Bar and soak in the view.

We had worked up a pretty big appetite by this point, so we made our way to Kehoe's Pub. However, it seemed that the owners of the bar catered only to followers of the liquid diet, but they were able to direct us to O'Neill's where we enjoyed generous portions of some delicious food along with some local beverages. After finishing our meal we returned to Kehoe's Pub and, at the request of some family members and the locals, enjoyed a few more pints of Guinness.

While I would have been content to stay at Kehoe's Pub and talk with the locals for the whole evening, we decided to check out Trinity College and as we left, the crowd at Kehoe's Pub was really picking up. Unfortunately, most of the college was closed, so we decided to head to Temple Bar, Dublin's Cultural Quarter and popular night spot, and return to Trinity College the following day. We walked around the busy and wild streets for some time. After a while we were getting pretty tired, so we headed back to the hostel in order to get an early start the next day.

Sunday began with breakfast at the hostel, and then I was off to find a Catholic church which wasn't difficult as there are over two hundred parishes in Dublin alone. Since I would be unable to check out later that morning, I packed my things and headed out. Along the way I was able to see a number of interesting sights. I found a Catholic church in an industrial part of town. Francis Xavier was the patron saint. Since I had about an hour before Mass was to begin, I explored the surrounding area and found a massive stadium apparently where the Gaelic Games are played. I also found Holy Cross College and walked through some pretty cool neighborhoods. At the church, the priest was Jesuit, and I spoke to him after Mass, telling about my connections to the Jesuits. It was really a breath of fresh air to attend Mass in my native language. However, I was troubled that I barely saw any young people, and consequently, the average age of the congregation was probably over sixty-five.

After Mass, I walked though the city to meet up with my companions at Trinity College, checking out Dublin Castle and enjoying the perfect weather along the way. Trinity College was beautiful even with rain clouds coming in. After waiting around for a little while, my companions arrived, and we proceeded to check out the rest of campus including the building which housed the Book of Kells. Unfortunately, photos were not allowed so I was unable to document the inspiring Book of Kells (which is one of the oldest best preserved books in the world) or the Long Room (which housed literally hundreds of thousands of books that would cost as much as my undergraduate education). My favorite part was definitely the Long Room. After touring the building, we took our final pictures of Trinity College and set out to find some lunch. We headed toward the docks where there was a tremendous amount of construction happening. Eventually, as we were running out of time, we settled on eating at a grocery store/cafe in an upscale part of town. We caught a bus to the airport, and our flight from Dublin to Frankfurt passed without incident. My time in Ireland was over.

Waiting for the shuttle from Frankfurt to Darmstadt, I was able to catch the second half of the championship of the European tournament in the airport. Germany lost to Spain 1-0. Spain was clearly the better team. When arrived in Darmstadt the city was still boiling with a mix of joy and despair from the game. There were dozens of police officers about trying to keep order. But, I made it back to my room without difficulty and finished up the night with a Skype conversation with Mom, Dad, and the Decatur Hubbard's.

My trip to Ireland was without a doubt my favorite trip thus far. I have never felt so compelled to return to a place as with Ireland. The people, the landscape, and the culture were absolutely amazing, and I was able to learn a lot about myself and the world around me in my short time there. I really hope to go back one day. Until then, I look forward to heading to Heidelberg tomorrow where I will almost all of the other North American students working in Germany this summer and where I will be able to meet current leaders of German industry. It should be an exciting weekend and an exciting next couple of weeks. Thanks for your patience with all this.