Today was my first full day in Ireland and it was grand, grand I tell ya!

The flight from JFK to Dublin was uneventful, mostly. Just the mix up with my meal and the two hiccups of turbulence, other than that, all good! I slept for about two hours and watched two movies, Edge of Tomorrow and Maleficient. All in all, a smooth ride.

We landed a few minutes early and then sat on the runway for a bit, headed to customs, then to get my rental car. Get in the car, on “the wrong side”, the shifter is on the other side too! luckily, the pedals are in the same place. Once I got the hang of driving on the left, I was good to go! And as GES said…easier when you can follow someone too! Bottom line, I did it! And there are many more days to come!

First stop was a recommendation, Russborough, a beautiful estate in County Wicklow. The estate is beautiful, housing an impressive art collection, many pieces having been donated to National Galleries. The ceilings were all hand done, no molds and each one more impressive than the next. The artwork, furniture, rugs, all amazing.

Before the tour, I needed a little sustenance, so to the cafe I went. I had a cherry scone, yum! And some black current tea, it was exactly what I needed.

After the tour, I checked out the photography exhibit, it was very cool the people that were hosted at the house, Fred Astaire, Mick Jagger, Jackie O, just to name a few. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russborough_House

I walked out the door and headed towards the walking trail, it went through the woods, by pastures of cows and sheep, ponds with ducks, it was lovely and a few miles long, perfect!

After walking the grounds, potty break! Then to see the crafts people at work, welder, hat maker, the stone carver, who I actually met and talked to for about thirty minutes, a very cool guy!

After a few hours, I was ready to head out and ended up in Wicklow, looking for a cell phone and internet connection. Why? Because something didn’t work when I tried to set up my phone to be international, so when I got off the plane, no phone! I am getting a lot of photos though and the battery is lasting longer.

I booked myself into a Hilton at the airport, I realized that I was just too tired to do much more, I wanted food and bed. I think two hours of sleep is contributing to my very sleepy nature right now! I fought traffic, checked in and went across the way to get a disposable phone, backs to the hotel for some soup and brown bread and up to the room to talk to you and say goodnight!

Oh…with no access, I probably won’t be posting photos before I get back! It will be fun when I do!

Positivity Challenge – Day #22
1 – I am so very thankful I AM IN IRELAND!!!
2 – I am thankful I was able to find/purchase a disposable phone when mine decided not to work when I got here (no big bill for me when I get back!)
3 – I am thankful to get the hang of driving on the “wrong side of the road”