Mood: A Kid on Christmas Day

I had the most enchanting weekend… maybe… EVER.

My Holy Cross friends and I travelled to Dingle on the West Coast of Ireland for two days. Simply put: 10/10 would recommend.

The first sight I saw upon arriving in Dingle was a dressed up donkey!! As an Eeyore-enthusiast, this donkey instantaneously stole my heart.

But I knew the weekend was bound to be especially grand when we casually saw a REAL LIFE dolphin on a hike through the cliffs. Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of the dolphin; however, I do have pics from the cliffs overlooking where the dolphin was swimming.

What made the day even better? A quick, spontaneous swim in the harbor. Yes, the water was very cold, but once again, 10/10 would still recommend.

Proof that we did indeed go into the very cold water.
Cold, but still smiling!! 🙂

As we made our ways back towards town, we stopped multiple times to socialize with Irish animals. I’m ashamed at how pathetic we must have looked to locals as we excitedly talked to the animals that they see hundreds of every day.

Our night ended strong as we watched world famous Irish step dancers in the local pub, and slept well with 40 strangers in a hostel.

Sunday morning, I wanted everyone to be up and going by 8. Contrary to my wishes, everyone was finally ready by 10:30. As the saying goes, ya win some, ya lose most. Nonetheless, we wasted no time.  We spontaneously decided to rent a bike from a cheap shop in town, so we could easily explore the Dingle Peninsula.

Biking along the Dingle Peninsula reminded me of what Christmas felt like when I was in elementary school. Between the fresh air, magnificent views, animals lining the streets and endorphins pumping through my body; I simply did not want the afternoon to end.

As I dreaded our perfect bike ride ending, it dawned on me that this can be the first of many enchanting weekend like this. Nothing we did was completely out of the ordinary, nor did it cost a lot of money. In that respect, here is to seizing every opportunity to swim spontaneously and to enjoy perfect bike rides. That said, this weekend also prompted me to reflect on life for an extra minute. It pushed me to be mindful. To consider the fact that as I felt totally at peace with myself and nature, ordinary civilians in countries near and far were fearing for their basic safety. I have not figured out how to handle the juxtaposition that comes with realizing this. What I will say is this: if you feel completely safe right now, I really hope you take a moment to say thank you to the Man upstairs and consider how you can make this Earth’s gems more accessible to everybody. Peace and blessings, friends 🙂

Made a horse friend!! Peep the views she gets to look at everyday as she grazes!

 

Dingle Peninsula Views!

 

More Dingle Peninsula views!

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