Final days in Brighton

While travelling is always so much fun, I was so happy when I got back to Brighton to spend time with my beautiful friends before we headed back off to our separate corners of the world. I was panicked when I only had days left in Brighton. There were so many things I still needed to see and do; so many things I was yet to tick off my bucket list. And then, of course, so many goodbyes I needed to say: to places, to things, but (the hardest), to people.

So, three days left. Day 1: I headed into town with Jackie and Michaela, with the mission to eat everything and see everything.

Stop one was Burger Brothers, the iconic burger shop that was one of those things I kept meaning to do but didn't get around to do doing until I only had a few days left. I went for the chicken burger and it was absolutely delicious. While they weren't the easiest things to eat - by the end of it, I think I had more burger on me than in my mouth - they get a definite 10/10 from me. They are well worth the hype.

We sat in the park eating them, sporadically getting sprayed by the waterfall when the wind changed direction and constantly getting harassed by the seagulls. For all the complaining I have done about them, I will miss my white feathered friends at least a little bit.

That's a lie.

After a walk around our favourite places, we had a smoothie and bought some cake to eat on the beach. We also managed to finally get 'that' iconic Brighton photograph. You'll know the one I'm talking about. 

Thursday was the day eight of us committed to ticking our final Brighton things off our list, starting with tea at the Blackbird tea rooms. Cake, tea and scones for everyone: a truly fitting farewell to our favourite pastime. Discussion centred around our lives post exchange (what even is a post exchange life?), our friendships, the food, and our favourite memories from the past few months.

Side note: aren't my friends gorgeous :)

Our next stop was the Ferris wheel. It was one of those things that we'd always had in the back of our minds as something we'd have to do one day before we left, and all of a sudden it was almost (but not quite) too late. 

I'm not saying we sung Taylor Swift songs in line/ on the wheel...but I'm not saying we didn't, either.

While the locals don't exactly swim often at the beach in Brighton, we decided that it was something we had to do. Well, at least dip our toes in.

The Brighton Pier is as beautiful as it is iconic, and we soaked up the sun (thank you England for giving us such nice weather!) as we treated ourselves to fish and chips. And a little bit of Pimms, of course. It's basically a fruit salad anyway.

Everyone I met on exchange holds an equally special place in my heart, but the wonderful Winnie (above) was my next door neighbour and so we shared a lot of things (filthy kitchens, bathrooms that clogged, helping each other with groceries up four flights of stairs and bread loans) with each other over the five months we could call Sussex home. She made constant smoke alarms (including one where I had literally just put a mud mask on and lay back to relax for 10 minutes...it's okay, I got it off before we went outside), dodgy bathrooms and many a late night so much more fun, and it's not good not having her next door any more (side note: we could talk to each other when our windows were open). 

I spent the afternoon wandering around town, drinking tea and looking at a few shops. It was nice to be able to say a (kind of) goodbye to my little home.

Brighton is so, so beautiful. Looking at this next photo breaks my heart a little bit.

Not as much, however, as saying goodbye to everyone did. That's the next post, and be prepared for a lot of sadness and angst. No one tells you how hard leaving your study abroad home is!

Dublin, Ireland

Coach travel within Ireland was the way that I went around, and so at about 1:30pm on Saturday the 6th, I took the coach from Waterford to Dublin airport, where I met with my two travel buddies for Dublin, Hailey and Hillary who had flown in from London.

After a bus and a walk, we found our accommodation and, I have to say, we were absolutely spoilt. Hailey had found us a fantastic AirBNB that was in walking distance from everything important - the Temple Bar area, Trinity College and food shops. Perfect. In the evening, Hailey and I headed out to a few bars to watch some Irish dancing while Hillary stayed in for the evening - she'd had her last exam that morning and so deserved a bit of chill time.

Our first full day in Dublin was spent on a walking tour, because after not having done one for a week I was having slight withdrawals. While we were waiting for the tour to begin, Hillary, Hailey and I had a look around the parliament building. We returned here in the first few minutes of our walking tour, where we were told of the celebrations that had occurred here a few weeks earlier when gay marriage became legal in Ireland.

Trinity College Dublin was absolutely stunning. Yep, I could live here.

Day 2 brought with it blue skies, quaint villages and the Cliffs of Moher. What an amazing day! We kicked things off in a quaint little village, with just enough time to have a look at the harbour and coloured houses before heading off to an old church and cemetery. 

We had a quick stop at some beautiful cliffs (not quite the Cliffs of Moher but incredibly impressive, none the less) and then stopped at a pub for a traditional Irish lunch. I went with the Irish stew and it was everything a stew should be: thick, warm, delicious...and served with a heaping of bread. Unfortunately I didn't take any photographs of the lunch because I was too busy scoffing down my share, but take my word for it: an Irish stew in Ireland is not one to be missed.

And then it was time for the big finale: The Cliffs of Moher. I know there are too many photos (you should see the other 300 that didn't make it onto this blog post) but can you blame me? The weather was perfect, the company was perfect, the ice cream I accidentally bought and ate was perfect...honestly, the day couldn't have been much prettier. 

On the way home we had a quick stop at a little town that also had a little castle (see below) and I managed to make a little bit of time to grab a quick snack for the bus. You've gotta do what you've gotta do.

While everything we saw was incredible, the tour company (Paddywagon Tours) was not one I'd be recommending. I hate to leave bad reviews, however this tour unfortunately did not gather the highest of praise from any of us. A departure from Dublin ten minutes late than planned put our tour guide in a shocking mood and this did dampen proceedings for the rest of the day as he constantly brought this up. You may also have noticed that there is a lack of information detailing about the stops along the way to the Cliffs: that's because not much information was given. However, awkward grumbles by the tour guide aside, we were able to see so much of Ireland in one day (we basically drove across the whole country) and we had plenty of time to explore the Cliffs. All in all, the day was a good one. 

So, my thoughts on Ireland:

Ireland is so, so close to my heart and I really wish that I had had longer to spend there. Four full days was not enough, however it opened my eyes and mind to the beautiful culture and lovely people that this very unique country contains. While Ireland is not famed for its beautiful weather, we had gorgeous clear skies and the phrase '40 shades of green' was so visible in the many fields and woods that we passed on our travels.

After such a wonderful few days, it was impossible not to add more of Ireland to my bucket list for my future travels. Next time, I want to meet more of my family, see where my Grandma grew up in Monaghan, reach Belfast and travel again to Dublin and Waterford. The people in Ireland are so kind, and with the accents, what's not to love?

Ireland, you were beautiful, but it was back to England for a few days for some sad goodbyes to my newfound lifelong friends.

Next stop: Sussex!