This summer, I was lucky enough to visit the Republic of Ireland! Ireland is a small country in Europe, about the size of West Virginia, and is well known for St. Patrick's Day and four-leaf clovers. Although I was only there for 10 days, I was able to get accustomed to the culture, and experience incredible things. Here are five tourist-like places that I would highly suggest seeing while in Ireland.
1) The Cliffs of Moher. Ireland is an island, but not your average tropical island. On the left side of Ireland, there are beautiful cliffs along the coast that drop at least 600 feet. The view is incredible, but I highly recommend that you do not stand on the edge and take a selfie. People have fallen off of the edge before, and the anxiety people experience while watching you do that is unbearable.
2) The Blarney Stone. The Blarney Stone is located at the top of the Blarney Castle near Cork City. According to legend, kissing the stone gives you eloquence in speech. In order to kiss the Blarney Stone, you have to lay on your back at the top of the castle, lean back as a man lowers you over the edge, and kiss the stone once you reach it. If you are afraid of heights, it is recommended that you do not look down as you drop over the edge of the castle. After kissing the stone, you will be pulled back up and have a sweet picture of you kissing the stone.
3) The Blarney Woolen Mills. Conveniently, this is located right next to the Blarney Stone. After your smooch with the stone, head over to this enormous shopping mall that has items homemade in Ireland. Don't worry about buying too much either; they will ship any items you buy to your house in the states for free! So feel free to go crazy, but make sure you have enough euros to get you back home.
4) The Guinness Storehouse. Located in Dublin, this is the home of everyone's favorite beer, Guinness. Even if you do not drink beer, this is an interesting place to go to because it is filled with history and all sorts of fun things to do. The best part is that you get a student discount for the tour!
5) Trinity College Library. This is the largest library in Ireland! Normally, I would stay away from libraries on vacation, but this library is my only exception. The Long Room looks identical to a scene straight from Harry Potter and it has so many original copies of old, classic novels that are so cool to look at. Don't forget to walk through the Book of Kells exhibit! I had to stand in line an hour before it opened in order to see it, but it was so worth it. They show how the Book of Kells was made, and even have two out of four of the books on pubic display. What's the big deal about this book? Go and find out.
