Back to Normal?

Well, here we are two and a half weeks since we first arrived back in the US. Therese was ecstatic to rediscover all of her toys. She still acts as though every day she is entering a toy store. Our first day back she insisted on wearing her ladybug costume, which is fitting. She is now in a bit of a princess phase (we really are hoping this is a phase), wanting to wear big, poofy dresses. Tonight as I put on her pajamas she was telling me that she lives in a castle like princesses. We do have a rather nice house, but I don't know that you could really call it a castle...

I have been back at work since our 3rd day back and Todd's school year is in session as well. Reese had her first day of school today (you can see pics on her blog) and did very well. It took a good two weeks to get back on the right time zone, but I think we're finally there. I'm still not used to having to clean a whole house...

In all seriousness, it's still a bit strange to be back. I love having my bed and pillow again, but I miss having the entire day to spend with Reese. I walked her to the store yesterday and it reminded me of Germany and I got a little sad. As soon as we got home I had to run around like crazy trying to get myself and her ready so I could go to work. We've had lots of fun having our friends over for dinner, another friend visit for the weekend, a visit from Todd's parents, a few meals with his brother and his family, and even a few cook-outs with "American hotdogs." We've also rediscovered Netflix and our Roku (the little box that allows our Netflixs watch now to be viewed through our TV). I'm looking forward to going home for Labor Day weekend and seeing our families again and for some events that are coming up at work. Overall things are very good, we're just all still adjusting to life as "normal." It's hard to imagine that we may never walk through the city center in Radolfzell or even see Lake Constance again. Good thing I have plenty of pictures.

Well, my friends, I guess this is it. It's been fun, but I think it is time to go. It's not you; it's me. I don't know that my life is interesting enough for ME to write about, let alone having you read about it. They say if you love something, you have to let it go...like a butterfly...I want to give you your freedom to do other things with your time. Ok, I want the freedom to do other things with my time too. Of course, you can always keep up with our family at Therese's blog (little-therese.blogspot.com). I fully intend on keeping up with it much better now that I am used to this whole blogging thing. So this is it - Good-bye!

Therese rediscovering her toys our first day back

our little ladybug

Therese playing with Miss Katie

Princess Therese (she wore this dress 4 days in a row)

Day 61 - I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane...

Therese kissing her "Ireland sheep" while waiting patiently to board our plane

Well, we planned to wake up very early on Friday morning in order to finish packing and to throw our luggage in the car. We had our alarms set and cell phones set to make sure we'd wake up in time. Of course none of these were necessary. We woke up at 5:30 to the sound of Therese throwing up in her pack-n-play. When she was finished she very sweetly said, "Daddy?" Todd got her up and we changed her and put her in our bed (on a towel just in case she got sick again). Todd cleaned the crib while I dealt with sealing the sheets in plastic and packing them. I was panicked. What if Therese was too sick to fly? You're not supposed to be on an airplane if you have a fever, are coughing, or our sick because you could spread germs. There are signs all over the airport security about this. If the security people or customs people think you look sick, they won't let you on a plane. After 9 long weeks away, I just wanted to go home. We gave Therese Tylenol and hoped for the best.

Needless to say, we were packed and ready to go plenty early. We ate a normal breakfast but limited Therese to fruit and toast, which suited her just fine. This B&B had amazing food and you could order whatever you liked. I had an omlette, a bowl of fresh fruit, and cereal. After breakfast we dropped off our rental car. I was a little nervous when the lady came to check out the car since we had certainly brushed up against many hedges on the small Irish roads. There were two men yelling at each other a few spots down from us because Avis determined that the driver had damaged the car and the driver didn't want to pay. However, our car was deemed to be in good condition and we were sent on our way in an Avis van.

At the airport we were surprised to find no scales at the Aer Lingus counters. After all of our worry about weight on the way to Ireland (we weren't worried about the way to the US because there is a larger allowance), it was almost comical to think that they didn't even way the bags. Once in the airport, we played at a toy store, drank at a Guinness bar, and hit up some duty-free shops. They were handing out samples of liquor which seemed like a good thing to indulge in right before our long plane ride :-). Todd was able to try the Jamesons 12 year whiskey which he has been interested in trying for a long time. He brought some home as a souvenir. I got a beautiful, handmade Celtic cross and Therese got a little lamb with a shamrock on it. We passed through customs (the Dublin airport has a spot for travelers to the US to pass through US customs while still in Ireland - it was MUCH faster than going through customs in Chicago). Therese had perked up since arriving at the airport and seemed to be feeling fine so I stopped worrying about her being sick. It must have been all of the broccoli she ate the night before or something.

Our plane was huge and it was PACKED. Every last seat was filled. Luckily it was one of those really nice planes with TVs on the back of each seat so we could entertain ourselves the whole flight with the first season of Mad Men, Star Trek and other movies. Therese fell asleep just minutes in to her cartoon and slept nearly the whole flight.

Once we arrived in Chicago, we sought out the place where we would have to meet our bus to South Bend, ate dinner, and waited. We landed at 4:20 and the bus was scheduled to come at 6:50. I say "scheduled to come" because it didn't arrive until 7:15. Therese slept the entire 4.5 hour ride to South Bend allowing me to drift off between stops. Todd talked with an ND alum the whole way about sports and such. Our friend Andy met us at the South Bend airport and drove us home. By the time we unloaded the car, it was past midnight in South Bend, which meant that it felt like 5am to us. We were beyond tired and we knew that Therese would wake us up nice and early, not understanding that we were now in a new time zone.

Day 60 - Dublin

Thursday was our last full day in Ireland. After a rather uneventful four hour drive, we found our B&B outside of Dublin. It was the nicest B&B I've ever seen. It was a small house/condo with only a few bedrooms, but it was really well furnished with really up-to-date bathrooms. There was a lot of care put into it - even the light fixtures were gorgeous. Of course we didn't spend a lot of time there. As soon as we had the car unloaded, we walked to the bus stop in order to start our hour-long ride to Dublin. A few stops after ours, a lady got on the bus and was searching through all of her belongings for a Euro she must have misplaced in order to pay the bus driver. The driver, not happy with the situation but also not very patient, told her to find a seat and she could give him a Euro in a few minutes when she found it. He then drove away chatting with a young college girl who stood next to him. That's when the fight ensued. The driver stopped the bus in the middle of the road and demanded that the woman in the back pay him a Euro. She walked up and gave it to him, saying that she had been waiting until the next stop so as not to distract him. This made another woman very angry for embarrassing the woman with the missing Euro. A few blocks later this mad woman yelled, "What you're doing there is illegal! You aren't allowed to have that girl standing next to you talking to you like that! I'm going to report you!" (all with a very thick Irish accent). The driver yelled back, "I'm not doing anything wrong! You're the ones who didn't pay me a Euro!" (I guess the mad woman was with the woman with the missing Euro). She fought back, "That was an honest mistake. You're breaking the law. I'm going to report you. What's your ID number?" The bus driver then swore that he didn't have a number so she couldn't report him. They fought back and forth for a long time. I just prayed that this man wouldn't get too angry and make us all get out of the bus in the middle of nowhere. The bus driver drove on, but the college girl did sit down after this exchange.

Todd, Therese and I got off the bus in the middle of Dublin. It was a huge city with very big, somewhat modern European looking buildings. Apparently much of Dublin was burned down in riots in 1916 when people were fighting for liberation. We wandered around for a little bit, used an internet cafe to check-in to our flight the next day, walked along the main street (O'Connell Street) and then headed to Trinity College on the south side. We took a great tour of the college given by a recent graduate. His quick Irish wit made the tour very entertaining. At the end of the tour we were given the opportunity to see the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript of the four gospels inscribed by monks in the 800s. It was beautiful. We also walked through the Old Library (as the Book of Kells is housed there) which is the largest single roomed library in the world. It is this huge open room with book cases and ladders lining the walls for two stories. According to our tour guide, the Old Library isn't used much by students because the books are not allowed to be checked out (most are from the 17th and 18th centuries) and, most importantly, they are organized and shelved not by subject, not by author, not by the Dewey decimal system, but by height and thickness.

As we left Trinity College, the storm clouds were gathering as though a large gray blanket were creeping across the sky. The pictures below can attest to this. We decided this would be a good time to get dinner and snuck into the nearest restaurant. It was a very trendy looking place with good beer, good cider, and good food. We split baked brie and chicken with veggies. Therese ate an entire bowl of broccoli.

After dinner we caught the bus back to our B&B. We packed our things for the big flight home the next day and put Therese down nice and early. All in all, it was a nice way to wrap up our time in Ireland.

O'Connell Street (you can see the clouds gathering...)

Southern Dublin

Trinity College

Posing with Therese at Trinity College (she looks thrilled to be with me)

Day 59 - Dingle and Connor's Pass

Wednesday was our last full day in Killarney. We decided to spend it on the Dingle Peninsula, a location that has recently gained popularity. I can see why. It was gorgeous. To be honest, it blew the Ring of Kerry right out of the water and took about half the time to traverse.

We started by driving about 45 minutes to the town of Dingle. It was a nice little port town with fishing boats lining the water. It is known for its famous resident, Fungie, a dolphin who lives in the surrounding water. Tour boats leave hourly to pay him a visit. We decided to put off visiting Dingle until the end of our journey since the road lining the peninsula would lead us right back into town.

We drove carefully and slowly along the single road that lined the great mountains jutting from the sea. The road was somehow paved on these great mountainsides so that they were flat against a cliff on the inside and buffered by a small stone wall on the other. I was happy to have something a little more substantial than a guardrail dividing me from the precarious drop below. We happily slid in right behind a tour bus for the first part of our journey. The main road led us right to a sandy beach where we stopped to walk around. It was very windy and cold so we didn't linger for too long. Next the road took us past the Fahan Group of beehive huts which (according to the signs) date from 2000 BC. We stopped to visit Caher Conor, a group of 5 huts lined by walls to fortify the area. The huts are made of gray stone that is stacked in rings that get smaller and smaller until they are small enough to be closed with a single capstone. We were able to wander in and out of the huts, seeing them from the inside and experiencing how well their stone walls can keep the wind out. While wandering around these prehistoric structures unaccompanied by someone suspiciously peering over our shoulders was an amazing experience, the neatest part was seeing a cross that the early Christian pilgrims who used the structures inscribed on one of the stones.

After this stop, we drove for a long while around the peninsula. Everytime we'd drive around a turn in the road, we were greeted by a new magnificent view. At one point there was a spot for buses and cars to pull over in case people wanted to get out and take pictures. Unfortunately there were too many buses trying to do the same thing so that there were three buses side-by-side clogging up the entire road. We patiently waited for the other tourists to finish taking their pictures (I used the opportunity to take a few of my own), to get back in their buses, and to drive off before we could go anywhere. As we made our way around the peninsula, we noticed the way the water changed color as we looked from west to east, changing from aqua blue to dark gray. It was reflecting the clouds. There was heavy rain pouring down where we had just come from. We were happy to stay ahead of the storm.

We stopped at the Gallarus Oratory, a stone building built by Christians in the 6th or 7th century. Our tickets for the building told us about its dimensions and details, mentioning that it is still waterproof after 1300 years of Atlantic gales. This is not a lie. I can attest to it because we were lucky enough to test this out. As soon as we set foot in the 8m x 5m oratory, the clouds opened up and we found ourselves in the middle of a terrible storm. The rain came down sideways. After standing in this little oratory for a while with a few other families, we decided to make a run for it. We put Todd's sweatshirt on Therese to try to keep her dry and sprinted down the loooong path to the main building and the parking lot. Luckily the storm blew over rather quickly. We drove back to Dingle and grabbed some fruit, cereal bars, and string cheese (Therese was so excited) from a grocery store and ate at the harbor watching the boats bob in the water.

After eating we headed up Connor's Pass at the recommendation of our B&B owner. Connor's Pass is this crazy narrow path that climbs up and over the mountains that cap the middle of the Dingle Peninsula. The first sign to the Pass warns that no buses or trucks are allowed - an ominous warning considering the roads we'd seen them on, and for good reason. This road was insanely narrow. The cliffs alongside the road had rocks that would stick out here and there so that sometimes one of the lanes of the road was unusable by cars of a normal height. Eventually the path weaned its way down to one lane so that any time the cars down at the bottom of the mountain could see that there was a car coming in the opposite direction at the top, they would have to cuddle into a divet in the rock cliff and wait for the other car to drive all the way down. It was crazy! At the top of Connor's Pass, there was a small (4-6 car) parking lot for people to stop and wander around. We were so high up that we were close to the clouds that topped the mountains. The view was amazing. There was also a waterfall that led to the lake at the bottom of the valley. This little stop off on the top of this crazy pass was the most beautiful site we saw in Ireland. If only the pictures could truly capture it...

After Connor's Pass, we headed back to Killarney for an early dinner at Murphy's Bar. I had fish and chips and Todd had Guinness stew. Yum! We bought some drinks to bring back to our B&B, packed the car for our big trip in the morning, and put Therese to bed.

The Dingle Peninsula

The beehive huts

The cross inscription by early Christians living in the huts

The view that led to the traffic jam of tour buses - I guess I understand why

Gallarus Oratory before the storm

Therese getting ready for our sprint through the rain

Irish string cheese!

The waterfall at the top of Connor's Pass

More from the top of Connor's Pass - do you see the people in the corner?

It really was an amazing view...

Day 58 - The Ring of Kerry

The view from the beach at Rossbeigh

On Tuesday we set out for the Ring of Kerry - a drive that takes you in a circle around the coast of the peninsula that juts out to the west from Killarney. I wasn't sure how this day would go given that riding in her car seat is not Therese's favorite activity. At breakfast we told the owner of our B&B what we were going to do and he suggested that we visit Rossbeigh as we made the drive.

We tried to get out in time to beat the tour buses since we didn't want to have to trail behind slow moving vehicles. We didn't get out as early as we had hoped, but the weather was clearing up beautifully so we couldn't really complain. Our B&B advertises itself as being located at the start of the Ring of Kerry, which it technically is if you start from downtown Killarney. We turned right out of our B&B (and stayed on the left side of the road) and were off. We easily found Killorglin, the first town/stop along the Ring. It was a cute little town with an old stone bridge crossing a small stream and bright store fronts lining the streets. Plenty of people were walking around with cameras in hand. We decided not to stop and so drove through. Ireland is very good about hanging signs everywhere indicating the direction of various landmarks, cities, etc. In fact, maybe it is too good at this because at major intersections they have signs for EVERYTHING - indicating the direction of various sites, towns, buildings, museums, restaurants, B&Bs... The signs are all the same size so it is hard to catch whichever thing you are looking for while scanning the 15 signs while turning the car. I bring this up now because this particular peculiarity greatly affected our journey in Killorglin. Somehow we managed to get lost and leave the town from the wrong direction. About 20 minutes later we hit a bit of a dead-end. We turned around and had trouble finding our way back to where we started from. 45 minutes after our wrong turn, we were back where we started from and (we hoped) back on the right track. Not a good omen for the beginning of our day.

Shortly after we got back on the right road, we saw signs for Rossbeigh. We decided to follow the advice of our B&B despite the treacherous, narrow roads that led there. I'm so glad we did. We were driving along this thin road when all of a sudden we turned a corner and the right roadside disappeared. We were driving along the ocean. At one point the land juts out to form a point in the middle of the water. We were able to park on this area of land and walk around. There is a sandy beach where the waves crashed in and a thick row of flat rocks above the sand. Therese LOVED this part of the beach because there were rocks everywhere for her to pick up. Much to our surprise, people were going swimming in the water. It was only in the 60s. Todd felt the water and said it was pretty warm, but the cold air was very windy. This area was beautiful. It was what I thought Ireland would be like - grassy mountain dotted with a few white houses, ending with a cliff that dropped straight into the ocean. The pictures look beautiful, but they can't capture the experience of seeing this in person. Next to the beach there was a little playground that was very well kept with lots of fun things to do in it. Reese, of course, loved the slide. There were also little bucket seats that you can sit in and turn around and around. There was a wheel that spun while you ran on top. There were also the standard European swings including one saucer-like one that kids could lay on. Therese had so much fun playing at the park that we had trouble tearing her away. As soon as we got in the car she was asking to go to the park again :-). We promised we'd look for another one.

We followed the Ring around the first half of the peninsula, seeing beautiful views of the ocean against the grassy green mountains. Therese wasn't too thrilled about being in the car, but with a little snack and movement in the car she fell asleep. Todd and I were getting hungry and had decided to eat in the next major town, Waterville (it was the last town for a while), but we didn't want to wake Therese up. In order to waste a little time, we took a road out to Valentia Island which was pretty, but not so special that I would recommend taking the 45 drive in and out unless you wanted to kill some time. The port there was very pretty and there was a small town, but the roads there were fear inducing. Much of the Ring of Kerry had well-paved roads with painted lines delineating two separate lanes so the main drive was quite pleasant. This was due, as we learned by the MANY signs reminding us, to the County Kerry Council's road "scheme." Todd and I found these signs really funny. Scheme isn't the word people in the US government would like to use to describe their efforts...It's funny how different English words have such different connotations depending on where you are. We actually had a lot of laughs due to the road signs around Ireland. The first night we were struck by the orange signs claiming "Diversions ahead." We had grand pictures of people running around dancing and screaming trying to distract us. Whenever we saw these signs (which actually indicate a detour ahead) we reminded each other to stay focused despite the diversions. :-) I also enjoyed signs about the "carriageway," referring to the roadway, as though they couldn't afford to update the sign since the previous century when people would have driven horses with buggies down the road.

Therese did eventually wake up allowing us to progress along our journey to Waterville. Here the main road is lined with wind-worn store fronts along one side and great grassy bank on the other, protecting the road from the sea just on the other side. We stopped to eat at a large bar where a number of tour buses must stop because they asked us who our driver was. We all split a sandwich and a little soup. We then walked along a path on the seaside of the bank. Below the path were rocks leading straight into the water. The whole town smelled strongly of saltwater and seaweed. There were people fishing along the shore where the beach became flat and benches all around for you to sit and watch the waves. Therese enjoyed the tall bank protecting the road. She would run down it and, when it got too steep, would jump to Todd who was waiting below.

After a while longer and many more beautiful views of the mountains and seawater, we decided to take the road to Moll's Gap which would lead us to the Killarney National Park and back home. As soon as we turned to take this road we found ourselves behind a tour bus. While we grumbled about our luck at first, we quickly learned the blessings that being behind such a bus can bring. The bus itself wasn't terribly slow. Maybe I should rephrase that - it wasn't much slower than we were at climbing the towering mountains we were passing through. However, it is much wider than your average car and, being two stories, towers high enough to see around the sharp turns in the narrow roads. This means that the bus knows when it can whip around corners because no one else is coming on the other side and (I can't believe people did this) no one was riding their bikes just ahead waiting for you to swerve out of the way. If the bus went fast, then of course we could trail it going just as fast. The biggest benefit, however, is that the expansive size of the bus forces passing cars to huddle to the side of the road while the bus goes by. If we stuck close behind the bus, we could then pass these cars with great ease as they clung to the edge of the street.

We made it to the top of Moll's Gap, a gap between the top of two mountains that has a road paved on it so cars and buses can pass between them. There is a little restaurant and gift shop placed strategically at the top of the gap where we got out, took pictures, and let Therese run up and down some stairs to get energy out. We then began the harrowing descent down the mountain passage and into the national park. We passed by a few lakes in the park but didn't stop. Instead we took Therese to a playground located across from the cathedral in Killarney. It was huge and clean with kids climbing everywhere. Therese particularly enjoyed the slide (of course) and a little play train that had tunnels, benches, and a steering wheel. I enjoyed the sign explaining rules such as "Children must be accompanied by adults and adults must be accompanied by children" and "No bullying with threat of expulsion from the park" - who is going to expel someone? Is there a principal around?

We ended our night with a dinner at Dan Linehan's, a pub in downtown Killarney. We split shepherd's pie (yum!) and Therese had chicken nuggets with veggies instead of fries. We thought if we didn't order fries she'd eat healthier. Unfortunately our shepherd's pie came out with a plate full of fries...After dinner we walked around a bit and I got a scoop of Bailey's ice cream which I successfully hid from Therese. It was delicious. The shop had a sign in the window advertising the return of their famous Guinness ice cream. I can't imagine why - it sounds disgusting.

After a long day of driving and playing in parks, Therese fell asleep very easily. Of course, it wasn't until after we had put her in her crib and pretended like we left the room (opening the door, dropping to our knees, closing the door, and crawling to our bed). She played for a little bit, standing up and messing with the curtains right by her bed. She managed to part them at some point and happily exclaimed, "Outside! Reese see outside!" We had to stife our laughter. After just a few more minutes of messing around, Therese was fast asleep.

Therese enjoying the rocks at Rossbeigh


Another pic from the beach at Rossbeigh - that single road up that mountainside was the one we were about to drive...

Reese enjoying the park at Rossbeigh

The rocky shore at Waterville

Another pic from Waterville

Moll's Gap

Therese "steering" the train at the playground in Killarney

Day 57 - Adare and a Drive

Monday morning we said good-bye to Bunratty, packed the car, and headed south. We stopped in a small town called Adare. Our guide book described it as a beautiful small town and it was on our way to Killarney where we'd spend the next three nights so we thought we'd see what it had to offer. We drove in to town via the one lane road that runs along side the Adare golf course and the ruins of the old Adare Castle. As soon as we passed the golf course, we were greeted by brightly colored buildings with hanging flower baskets and pretty little signs. It was like something straight out of a movie. Adare is known as the prettiest town in Ireland. Critics call it the prettiest English town in Ireland. Either way, it was certainly the prettiest town we saw.

We immediately headed to the town's tourist office where we were greeted with traditional Irish hospitality. The lady at the front desk gave us a free map, gave us ideas of what to visit, and walked out the door with us to point us in the right direction, marking up our map as she showed us where to go. We walked along the main street in town past brightly painted houses with large thatched roofs and past the city park until we came to the ruins of a Trinitarian Monastery. This religious order was founded in order to buy back hostages from the crusades. It's funny to think of people joining an order with this purpose, but I guess it must have been needed at that time. The monastery itself was was a monsterous stone structure. We were able to go into the church which was very plain stone with newly tiled floors.

We walked a bit further and found an old Augustinian Monastery that had been abandoned before the early 1500s. It (along with the other monastery) now houses a school. We were able to walk through the halls lining the inner courtyard of the monastery where monks would have walked silently while they prayed centuries ago. We also were able to visit the church which is now Anglican and has been completely modernized. They put dry wall over the old stone, red carpet over the old flooring, and very modern stained glass windows along the walls for light. The church had a great informational pamphlet that told all about how a general and his men stayed in this monastery in the 1500s during some famous battle and how the journal of the general wrote that the building was in ruins. Much of it was restored in the 1800s including the arched ceilings to the passages we had just wandered through. While we were visiting this church, Therese decided to visit a prayer corner and knelt down, folded her hands, and "prayed." Only our two year old. Note that she did not do this in any of the dozens of Catholic churches we visited...

After visiting the second monastery we walked along the river and back to the little stores lining the main road. We got two sandwiches from a nice little shop and a few pieces of fruit from the grocery store and had a picnic lunch on a green bench by the visitor's center. Therese was VERY excited to eat on the bench.

After eating, we were back in the car and on our way to Killarney. The drive was an easy one despite the onslaught of pouring rain. Therese fell asleep as we approached Killarney so we took our time driving through the downtown section of the city before going to our new B&B, Woodlands. Woodlands was located just down the street from the cathedral and on the road leading to the Ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula, two popular tourist destinations. We were a little nervous about the B&B because we picked it solely based on its high rating and positive reviews on Trip Advisor. The Woodlands website is terrible - just one page with very little information and cheesy pictures of people on horseback. I would have never picked it on my own, but the ratings were high and the price was right. As we drove up to the place I started getting really nervous. It was not much to look at from the front. Todd went inside to talk to get our keys only to come back empty-handed. The room wouldn't be ready for another hour. Frustrated by this and the cold rain, we went to the nearby cathedral for a place to visit while staying dry. The cathedral was beautiful. It had incredibly high, arched ceilings and was made of gray stone. There was a baptistry room to the side that was covered in mosaics formed from tiny tiles. This cathedral had been founded in the early 1800s but building was put on hold as Ireland faced famine during which the church served as a place for the sick to be cared for. Building was resumed a few years later after this part of Ireland lost around 1/3 of its population. While the entire cathedral was beautiful, I was particularly drawn to a small section beside the right side of the altar. Here there was a stone statue of St. Therese of Lisieux- our Therese's namesake- holding flowers. She was surrounded by devotional candles lit beside a large prayer. It was a great opportunity to show Therese this "other Therese" and to explain to her why they have the same name.

After the cathedral we were able to get into our room at the B&B. The room was huge. It had a section for the bed and Pack-n-Play (which we subsequently moved as far away from the bed as possible) and a section for lounging around. The owner had even put a high chair in the room for us to use. While the decorations and fixtures in the room gave the definite impression that it hadn't been updated in a few decades, it was comfortable enough. The sheets were an awful pink clashing with the orange comforter and green carpet, but they kept us plenty warm. We put Reese's crib in the back corner of the room and hung our green sheet in front of it so she couldn't see us as is our custom (if she wakes up in the middle of the night and sees us, she wants immediately thinks it's time to play and won't go back to sleep). Anyhow, after a light dinner of salad and soup, we put Therese in her crib and pretended like we were leaving the room only to sneak back to our bed behind the sheet in order to watch a movie on the computer. After about 30 minutes of silence punctuated by the occasional sound of blankets moving, a little hand tugged on the green sheet and a little head popped up and Reese exclaimed,"Daddy!" She was so excited by her discovery. Todd put her back down and moved the sheet a little further away from her crib:-).

Store fronts in Adare

Thatched-roofed shops on the main road in Adare

The Trinitarian Monastery

The old hallways of the Augustinian Monastery

Therese showing her devotion at the Anglican church

Adare Castle

Inside the cathedral in Killarney

The baptistry in the cathedral

The section dedicated to St. Therese

Day 56 - The Insane Cliffs of Insanity

Sunday was our first full day in Ireland. We began the day with a full Irish breakfast at our B&B. It was wonderful. I don't think I've ever seen Therese eat so much. She had 3 bowls of Rice Krispies (a standard B&B cereal it turns out) and 2 scrambled eggs, toast, and a sausage. Todd and I had the traditional Irish breakfast which turned out to be two eggs, toast, sausage, Irish bacon (very thick, more like ham than American bacon), 2 sausage links, and a sausage patty. Needless to say we weren't very hungry for the rest of the day.

The first site we wanted to see while in Ireland was the Cliffs of Moher (also known as the Cliffs of Insanity to all of the Princess Bride fans out there). It was a bit rainy when we set out, but the ended up being cloudy but dry for most of the time we were there. The cliffs were unbelievable (or inconceivable if you prefer a Princess Bride reference). There is this long line of cliffs that are black speckled with mossy green. They drop straight down into the dark blue Atlantic Ocean. The people on top of the cliffs were so small that we could barely see them so that the magnitude of these cliffs was hard to wrap our heads around. We just had to stop and stair. For a bit of the journey up one side of the cliffs, there were rock walls so that Therese couldn't see anything. I was grateful for the strong barrier between me and the 400 ft. drop to the waves below. There were signs everywhere warning you not to stand on the edge of the cliff, not to jump off the cliffs, and one that looked like it was telling you not to start a fire in the grass on the edge of the cliff (it turns out this was trying to tell us that this was protected land). We climbed to O'Brien's Tower and marveled at the expansive cliffs before us. We walked along another cliff and met many Italians along the way. I didn't notice it at first, but there were numerous different languages being spoken around us. I guess I was used to not being able to understand everyone around me. It turns out that the cliffs are one of the most visited site in Ireland which people from around the world (like ourselves) come to see. The whole experience was made perfect when a woman and man started playing Irish music on the cliffside.

After the cliffs, we decided to drive to a nearby town that is supposed to be neat to visit. By the time we drove along the coast past sandy beaches and barren rock on more narrow, unlined roads to the town, Therese was fast asleep. We decided that it would be better for all of us if we let her keep sleeping so we started the drive home through an area known as the Burren. The Burren is this large expanse of land that is covered by exposed flat rock with little bits of grass growing here and there. It is completely barren and desolate. Well, except for the tourists who drive through this solemn land on a very narrow road, again unlined because two cars can't really fit at one time and again lined by stone walls, that zig zags up and down hills in a way that makes you nearly retrace your steps only 5 yards above or below after every turn. Crazy. Every time we would make one of these sharp turns to zig or to zag up the narrow road, I would grab the passenger side door and hold my breath or yell "Careful! Careful!" It was a very pretty drive but in a depressing (and ultimately stressful) sort of way.

It started raining right as we got out of the Burren. I was very grateful that we didn't dawdle and headed straight out. I don't know if I could have handled that drive in the rain. Since it was pouring out by the time we got back to Bunratty, we thought it would be a good time to eat. We went to a tourist hot spot called Durty Nelly's. There was a rugby match (is it a match or a game?) on so the bar was packed with enthusiastic fans. Todd and I split a delicious fish and chips, Therese picked at a few fries, and Todd had his first Irish Guinness. He was a happy man. Therese also enjoyed her drink - her first ever orange drink. I know, she's so deprived...

After lunch we headed to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, Unfortunately it was still raining, but we thought we had better still see the sites we came to see. Bunratty is known for this little area where they restored an old castle from 1425 and reconstructed the nearby village (including houses) to look like the area would have looked at that time. We immediately sought out the castle in order to escape the rain. This was by far the highlight of Therese's trip and perhaps her life up to this point. The castle is this massive stone structure that was very bare compared to the castle we saw in Germany. They let you wander around the entire thing, up narrow winding and well-worn staircases and through dining halls, bedrooms, up the towers and down to the dungeons. It was really amazing. In an upper banquet room, there was a woman dressed like a princess who told the little children (including Therese) about how princesses used to live in this castle and where the princess would eat and sleep. Therese is in a princess phase (well, we're hoping it's a phase) so she ate this right up. For DAYS all she would talk about is how she got to see where princesses live and where they ate and slept and how she wasn't allowed to jump on the princess' bed. Everytime she talks about this her eyes get really wide. It's very sweet.

The rain let up a bit while we were in the castle so that we were able to wander around the folk park. We got to go in reconstructed houses with thatched roofs that were decorated just like they would have been in the 15th century. Every house had a religious symbol or picture inside. They had all sorts of houses ranging from one room to 4 bedroom houses. Many had a bedroom in the loft that one could reach by climbing up a ladder. It was really interesting. The folk park also had a little collection of animals including ducks, sheep, horses, and pigs among others. Reese loved the ducks but was a little afraid of them because the roosters were housed next to them and they wouldn't stop crowing.

After our time in the folk park, we thought Therese should eat some dinner so we went to a place called The Creamery. Todd and I were still full from breakfast and lunch so we each had soup while Therese ate an entire burger and a plate greenbeans all by herself. With a full belly and a full day under her belt, she quickly fell asleep. After such an exciting day, Todd and I were quick to follow.

O'Brien's Tower on the top of the central point of the Cliffs of Moher

The Cliffs of Moher - I really wish pictures could capture just how big they are

I included this one to try to give a sense of proportion. If you look really hard or if you blow this picture up, you can see little dots that are people standing on the cliff all the way to the left.

Todd's first Irish Guinness

Bunratty Castle

Therese sitting in the princess' (or more likely the queen's) chair at the banquet table

One of the cute reconstructed houses in the folk park

Day 55 - The Drive of Imminent Death

All of our German belongings piled on the sidewalk outside the guesthouse

Todd and Therese taking one last walk up our street


Good-bye Germany home!

We woke up very early on Saturday in order to finish packing, eat, and move the furniture back to its original position before Herr Knezevic came over to check us out. The morning began with Herr Knezevic's brother who sometimes occupied the room next to our's delivering an entire box of chocolate and orange cookies to Therese as a going away present. It was very sweet. We then crammed all of our suitcases, bags, and stroller into the hallway so Herr Knezevic could see that the room was in perfect shape and give us our deposit back. He was so sad. He kept giving Therese and her bunnies hugs and telling her that she is his schatz (treasure). Then the gifts started coming... First he gave Therese a gigantic bar of white chocolate. She insisted on carrying it around for the next hour. After our keys were handed in and the luggage was being moved to the street, he gave Therese a huge pack of Hanutas- the chocolate and wafer treat he gave her nearly every day. He made Todd promise to send him pictures before going to his apartment for one last present - a little toy delivery truck. It was so cute. We took it out of the box and tried to show Therese how to drive it on the sidewalk. She's such a girl. She didn't know what to do with it. The taxi came and the driver packed our bags into the trunk while Herr Knezevic showed-off all of Reese's German tricks to him, calling her "Wunderkid."

Loaded down with wonderful gifts, we left for the train station one last time. I felt incredibly sad as I looked out on the lake, realizing that this exciting chapter in our lives was coming to an end. I may never again live such a simple life - living in one room with few belongings, no yard to manage, no house to clean, no job to go to, meeting Todd for lunch every day. It was such a great break.

Todd took Therese to say good-bye to the ducks and to dance to the accordian being played below the train station while I sat with our luggage on the platform. I was sitting among our bags when I was startled by someone walking right up beside me. It was Jesse. He had come to Radolfzell on his way to Konstanz just in time to say good-bye to us. It was great to see him and to get to say good-bye in person. He helped us get all of our bags and Therese onto the train before going to get his favorite yufka.

The train rides were rather uneventful as was our plane ride. Therese refused to sleep on the plane even though it was her naptime - she was just too excited to be flying in the air. With about 20 minutes to go, she started screaming. Between her cries she managed to say, "Reese's ears hurt. Reese's ears hurt." Todd taught her to blow her nose while he held it shut and after a few tries her ears popped and she was alright. After all of this excitement and crying, Therese fell asleep as the plane touched the ground.

From the moment the plane door opened, we realized just how much colder Ireland was going to be. It was wet and about 50 degrees. We got our luggage and wandered over to the Avis desk to get our rental car. The lady at the desk spoke so quickly and with such a thick Irish accent for people who hadn't heard much English in a few months that she had to repeat herself a few times. We were given keys to a beautiful car (a Nissan Qashqai) and a car seat from a guy in the garage and were let loose on the streets of Dublin to figure out how to drive on the left side of the road, shifting gears using the left hand. We were sure to have ample opportunity to adjust as we were driving across the country in this first venture (2 hours and 45 minutes according to Google maps).

In order to prepare for our big drive across the country, we searched for directions on Google maps before leaving Germany. The directions seemed easy enough. I could even find most of the roads on our big map from AAA. I should have known we were in trouble when Yahoo maps won't even attempt to give directions in Ireland... We set off around Dublin and did well despite the traffic. Todd had to adjust often in order to not hug the right side of the road, but he adapted rather quickly. After about an hour we were getting a bit restless and REALLY hungry so we decided that we'd take the next exit that had a sign indicating food. Simple enough. We tried 3 different exits before we finally found the food the signs talked about. We ate at a little inn, sharing sandwiches and fries and FREE WATER. This was very exciting.

Thank goodness we stopped for nourishment because if we had to endure the rest of the night on an empty stomache I don't know if we would have survived. With about an hour to go on our directions, we turned onto a state route that seemed harmless enough at first. The road was a little tight with stone walls on each side, but we managed ok. Then we drove further into the country. There were few houses and no lines in the middle of the road. As it grew dark, the road narrowed and the lights of houses became fewer and farther between. In preparing for our trip, Todd read many reviews of Ireland on Trip Advisor and other sites. People always talked about the ridiculously narrow roads and how you need a small car to get by. We thought they were exaggerating. They weren't. A few kilometers into this route it was picth black and the road had widdled away to the size of a narrow one lane one-way road in the States. Only it wasn't a one-way road. And it was lined on each side with high hedges and sometimes stone walls. In all seriousness, the road was a tight squeeze for our mini SUV. I was suddenly grateful for the darkness because we could see the headlights of any car approaching in the twists and turns ahead. Between the bushes and the darkness I felt like we were in some horror flick. It was terrible. The worst part was that we didn't know if we were on the right road and there were no signs for kilometers to tell us where we were. We did pass by other cars two or three times. One car would have to reverse until it found a gap in the hedges or a break in the stone wall where it could snuggle in while the other car crept past it trying not graze it. At some point I declared that there was no possible way this was the right road because there was no was this could be a real route. We needed to figure out where we were so we could get back on track. Of course we were on the right road; this was the way Google maps sent us. We spent the remainder of our time in Ireland immensely suspicious of anything Google maps had to say.

Somehow we did manage to make it to our bed and breakfast, Headley Court in Bunratty. It only took us 4 hours (Google maps was SO wrong). The B&B was beautiful and the owner had been kind enough to wait up and greet us when we drove in at 11:00pm. Therese was fast asleep in her carseat. She stayed asleep as I carried her into our new "Ireland home" and placed her in her pack-n-play. If we were worried about how she'd sleep in this new place, we no longer were. She never stirred or opened an eye. We all slept sweetly, safe and sound in our new room.

Home Again

We made it! We are finally back in our "United States home" as Therese calls it. It took us around 20 hours to make it home, but we did it. Now we are struggling with the time change. I never knew it could be so hard to pick out tortillas at Meijer. This morning I just sat there and stared at this shelf full of tortillas for about 5 minutes because I couldn't remember what I was doing. When I remembered what I was doing (buying tortillas), I couldn't remember what size I wanted (8 inch). When I finally remembered what size, I couldn't figure out which cost less. I tried to do the math and ended up forgetting what I was doing again...

It has been a few hours since our big venture to the farmer's market and to Meijer and I am adjusting a bit better (hence the ability to write in sentences). I just wanted to let everyone at home know that we are back though a bit tired.

From our first night in Ireland, I kept thinking, "Oh, I should put that on the blog" and making mental notes about things to write. I hadn't intended on blogging about Ireland, but I really want to make some kind of record of our trip and to share some of our beautiful pics so I guess I'll be updating the blog for the next few days with anecdotes and after thoughts regarding the second big adventure of our summer - our trip to Ireland. With that said, I think it's time to go to bed. Too bad it's only 8:00...

Day 54 - Good-bye, Auf Wiedersehen, and Tchuess!

This morning Todd went to class for the last time. Therese and I spent the morning tying up some loose ends - confirming bed and breakfasts in Ireland, packing up toiletries, cleaning out our cabinets. We walked down to meet Todd for lunch for the last time, eating at our favorite yufka place and then stopping by Fernando's for ice cream. We said good-bye to a lot of our (Therese's) favorite landmarks and other favorite German things (see pics below). We went to Il Cavalino for dinner tonight for our favorite freshly made gnocchi and then that's kind of it. It still hasn't hit me that it is our last day here. Hopefully we'll go to sleep early tonight. Therese is currently crying because she wants to fold up her Pack-and-Play. She's afraid we'll leave it in Germany.

The man who runs our place is coming over at 8:50 to check us out of our room and we have to be packed and to move some furniture back in place before he gets here. Our taxi is coming at 9:15 to drive us to the train station where we'll catch a train to the Zurich airport, then we're off to Ireland for the week. I don't know what our internet availability will be like in Ireland so this will have to be it, the end of the blog from Germany. I plan on posting some final thoughts, whether from Ireland or the States. This has been a really fun way to keep track of our great summer in Germany and to feel like I'm keeping in touch with some of our friends and families. Now if only I could keep up with Therese's blog....

Saying good-bye to the things we love:

Therese's last "Germany treat" - Herr Knezevic gives her these chocolatey treats at least once a day

Therese calls this the "stick tree" - she loves going by it every day

Therese's favorite house to pass by on our way home

Our favorite bakery

The big bear in front of the toy store - I had to carry Therese away while she screamed today

Murals next to the church. My favorite is the one to the left of the tree that says "I love Gott."

The last yufka

Ah, Fernando's...