Preamble about the trip

Ellen and I make quite a pair. The two of us have been friends since high school where we ran cross country together. Our friendship developed because of our mutual interests as well as our similar backgrounds.

But if you look closely, you'll see our personalities stand in stark contrast to one another. Ellen is very methodical and reserved; I'm rash and gregarious. Just look at the way we packed: Ellen brought twice as much stuff as I did and has 2 tour books, a Michelin map 1/10th the size of Ireland, the names and addresses of all the hostels we've booked, and every converter plug known to man. On the other side, my can-do, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants attitude benefits us when unforeseen issues arise. I'm good at striking up a conversation with strangers, while Ellen is more aware of how our actions/words may be perceived. I'm the one who will push the envelope, and Ellen is there to make sure our experience is safe. It's probably the best combination of personalities for traveling situations.

When deciding on a place to travel back in August, Ellen immediately suggested Ireland. I can't say what caused Ellen's interest in visiting the country, but I know it's been there for a while. I of course agreed on the location because it exists in my mind as an incredibly idyllic locale. I've been to Dublin once before while studying abroad, but to be honest, it resembled every other large European city. I spoke to more foreign-born Dubliners than I did Irish during that trip. I will say though that I found myself at home amongst the people in terms of appearances--the Irish are a lot of pale-faced gingers--how could I help but not feel at home?

So here we are, off to the land of our ancestors! We'll be spending approximately 10 weeks traveling through the Emerald Isle and our tentative schedule is s following:

March 15-17: Dublin
March 17-19: Killarney
March 19-21: Cork
March 21-April 4: Horseshoe Cottage, Sherkin Island
April 4: Dingle
April 5: Limerick
April 6: Doolin
April 7: Galway
April 8-9: Castlebar
April 10-24: The Mill, Sligo County
April 24-25: Londonderry
April 25-28: Belfast
April 28-May 13: Ballylagan Farm, Belfast
May 13-May 19th: ?
May 19-22: Utrecht, Holland
May 23: Leaving Ireland :(

Note: There are three 2-week periods where we will be staying with Irish hosts and working at their farms/B&Bs in exchange for room and board. This process is known as wwoofing and more information can be found by accessing the wwoof website: http://www.wwoof.ie/

Here are some photos of us, some serious, most not: