Welp, Jesse and I rode Ryanair successfully and didn't perish in the process. We arrived at Shannon airport around 2 and climbed in our rental car (yippee!). Jesse, being a highly versatile, highly talented driver, took to the left like a pro. Ok, not a pro. But he managed just fine driving on the wrong side of the road in the wrong side of the car with a manual and a nervous wife.
We drove from there to Ennis, a smallish town known for its traditional music and great food. We parked the car and walked around the city a bit. Our Ireland book recommended a little pizza place which we stopped into. The pizza was kind of meh, but the proprietor turned out to be Danny DeVito's cousin and had pictures of himself at Danny's house for Easter Sunday, etc. So that was cool.
After lunch, we set off looking for a good Irish CD to keep us company while we drive. After a lot of searching, we came to Custy's Music. We found this to be a cute small shop with a pleasant looking man sitting behind the desk plucking his violin along with the music playing overhead. We sort of screamed tourist already with our backpacks and tennis shoes (uh, trainers...), and when I asked for help picking out "something up-beat and kinda drummy" I really proved how non-Irish we are. How is it that my whole life I've felt connected to Ireland and loved Celtic music, and I don't even know what a bodhran is? Anyway, we bought a cd, and he asked where we were staying. We didn't know, and he recommended The Rowan Tree hostel, and here we are! It's very nice and new, and we're sort of cheating by getting a private room for tonight. Still, it's very nice to be in a hostel again. I forgot how relaxed the atmosphere is and how there's a homey feeling with the communal kitchen and common rooms.
We took a little nap, then headed back out around 7, hoping to find a live music session at a pub. Turns out Monday night isn't a real party day. No live music to be found, but we did have some really swell seafood at a cozy pub.
We made an early night of it, and are now in the hostel dining room catching up on computer stuff. Know what I love? I love that in the kitchenwas a couple grilling bruschetta and making pasta together, with a bottle of wine and a nice table all set up. People are cool. Anyhoo, didn't take a lot of pictures, sorry to say. Ennis is really cute and old, and we both agree that there is a big difference between Irish people and English people. While the English are polite and everything, they are very reserved and don't often smile or look up on the street (unless you're in a tiny town). Everyone here seems very nice and approachable. We were looking lost and a woman just walking by asked if needed help. Everyone seems like they have a joke up their sleeve.
Looking forward to picking up Sarah tomorrow and exploring some countryside.
