Galway, Killarney, Dingle and Dublin

Mel and I heard good things about Galway so decided to make this our next stop. We took a bus which passed through Dublin. On the journey however, Mel proceeded to projectile vomit twice! I ended up using my jumper to wipe the chunks up. It was a long trip.

We arrived in Galway a little after 7pm on Tuesday to a lively crowd drinking and partying in the many restaurants, bars and pubs and outside our hostel. We quickly headed down for a few beers and a bite to eat.

The next day we watched a German circus exhibition as part of the Galway Arts Festival, then made our way to Killarney in the South West of Ireland about 4pm. It was a shame we could only spend the 1 night in Galway, it was such a vibrant place full of musicians and street buskers!

We arrived at our quaint little hostel in Killarney; the Railway Inn, at about 10 pm. We went down to Tesco; the UK's version of IGA, grabbed some pasta and cooked dinner.

The next day we went on a tour of the Dingle Peninsula; west of Killarney. It covered Castle Maine, Dingle Bay, Dingle Town, Slea Head and Strand Beach. It was worth venturing into the countryside and seeing some of Ireland's stunning coastline.

On Thursday afternoon we made our way to Dublin, again via coach. We arrived at the 'Four Courts Hostel' at about midnight.

On Friday Mel and I went to the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 premier. It was obvious that Mel certainly enjoyed the movie, I wish I could say the same for myself. We then headed into the Temple Bar area for a few drinks.

The next day we went on a free guided tour of the city. We heard some very interesting stories and learnt a lot about Dublin's history.

Overall I found Dublin to be very pricey and quite frankly boring. In a city very different from the rest of Ireland, almost lacking in culture in comparison to the other parts of the country. My only highlight was Di Fontaine's New York Pizzeria, where I bought the biggest and best slice of pizza I'd ever had. Pay them a visit if your ever in Dublin. 

A great time to be in Northern Ireland

Mel and I ventured from Edinburgh to Glasgow on Friday; not without some terenchal rain on the way to the bus stop which resulted in Mel falling over, not once but twice before we made it on to the coach! It was a vision; being soaked and having her big backpack on didn't help either! I lost my sunglasses that morning as well so we didn't start the day out in the best fashion.

We got into Glasgow that afternoon; it's a pretty trendy place, with its new age bars, clubs and pubs. We spent our days wandering around the city and visiting the West End; a great place for a drink. We also caught up with some friends; Lucy and Michael in the city on Saturday night.

On Sunday the 10th we headed for Northern Ireland; Belfast, not knowing what was ahead of us. We caught the ferry from Scotland and docked at Belfast about 10 that evening.

For those of you who are unaware there has been conflict in Northern Ireland for centuries. The disagreement between Irish Catholics and the Irish Protestants still continues to this day.

Between 1921 and the mid 1960s Catholics in Northern Ireland faced many problems. After the War Of Independence, in 1919, the country of Ireland was divided into two parts;
1. The North had a large Protestant majority, each of the six Ulster counties had their own parliament and their own government.
2. The South was largely occupied by Irish Catholics, most opposed the idea of dividing Ireland.

In 1921 a group of Sinn Fein, and IRA members signed an treaty with the British, accepting the division of Ireland. This was when what's known as 'Northern Ireland' was created.

The Twelfth of July in Belfast marks a yearly Protestant celebration which begins with the burning of the Irish flag and often ends with riots.

Mel and I were in Belfast for this 'celebration'. At midnight on the 11th the burning of the Irish flag began, with many bonfires around Belfast. We headed into the city with our mates from the backpackers and witnessed some of this madness.

A Mural in Falls Road, Belfast

A young Protestant setting up a bonfire 

One of the many bonfires on July 11

From England to Scotland

Mel and I are now in Scotland. Edinburgh is quite different from London; without the fast paced lifestyle its a nice change. There were a few things that kept popping up in London, so I've made a little list.

1. Tourists; at times this can be a little overwhelming. Mel and I were constantly surrounded by a sea of tourists happy snapping away. If I had more time in England I'd try and travel to areas a little less populated by tourists, though I really shouldn't complain as I am one myself!

2. Hipsters; they are everywhere!


















3. Bikes; I think it's a great mode of transport for the city. In Australia we seem to be a little less tolerant to those riding along the side of the road, but in London the bikes co exist with the traffic. Mel and I experienced this when getting around the city on our 'Barclay's' bikes, riding along side cars and buses.

After a 9 hour over night bus trip from London Mel and I arrived in Edinburgh. We spent the first day pottering around the city. We went to the Castle of Edinburgh and had lunch at a pub in Grassmarket. Later that night we went out to a local club where I was downing coke and vodkas for 1 pound.

Today we went on a tour of the Scottish Highlands. It was a leisurely day out exploring the stunning scenery of Perthshire. We explored the Doune Castle; where Monty Python was filmed and went to the great William Wallace Monument; of whom the movie Bravehart was based on. There was also a visit to one of Scotland’s oldest whiskey distilleries.

Tomorrow we are making our way to Glasgow.

Photos from Brighton and the Scottish Highlands.

Wimbledon, Southbank, Tate Modern, The Lion King, Ministry of Sound, Wireless Festival, Camden and Soho

We have been busy.

Thursday morning was an early rise. Getting up at 3.30 am did not help our recovery from jet lag at all.

The only way to get into Wimbledon is to line up for a ticket before the days play. Mel and l woke before the sun rose and jumped on the Tube to Wimbledon Park Station. We weren't surprised to see hundreds of tents set up in the que; many people had camped the night before to get a ticket. We proceeded to the back of the line and were issued with a queuing card. After 3 hours of sitting in line we were finally on the move, only to find out we would be made to wait another 3 hours until 10.30am to be able to purchase a ticket. We were very proud to be number 115 and 116 through the Wimbledon Park gates that day! We wandered around the courts, saw some doubles then went to watch Maria Sharapova in her semifinal round match against Sabine Lisicki. Mel and I were so tired that we fell asleep about 10 minutes in! All in all it was a great day, the only thing we missed out on was the traditional 'Strawberries and Cream'; though I wasn't really prepared to pay 10 pound for it anyway.

On Friday we went to Southbank, along the Thames River. I went skateboarding and Mel wandered through the various shops and eateries. We then walked over to the Tate Modern Museum of Art; apart from some 1960's American Photography it wasn't that interesting.

We headed back to the hostel and geared up for The Lion King Musical at Lyceum Theatre. We downed a few beers and made our way there at 7pm. The musical was very impressive; I recommend it to anyone who has the chance to see it! Later that night we headed back to the hostel and met up with a group of Brazilians and Americans and made our way to the Ministry of Sound Club. I found it very over rated, it reminded me of Metro's Freo. We got back at 4am that morning and crashed.

The highlight of my trip so far would have to be the Wireless Festival which was on a Saturday; we saw Digitalism, Nero, Kesha; who was terrible, Chase and Status and The Chemical Brothers. Chase ans Status were insane; one of the best acts I've ever seen live.



Today we headed into Camden for lunch and a shop. It's such a lively little place, full of bohemians, markets and cafe's. At 10pm we went into Soho for dinner, this place was similar to Northbridge with it's bars, clubs and restaurants. Mel and I went to a quaint Italian place, and much like the rest of London the food was great.

Tomorrow morning we jump on the coach to Brighton.