♡: Morning

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WILD ATLANTIC WAY: Roadtrip Day #1: Miltown Malbay, Lahinch, Cliffs of Moher, Doolin, Ballyvaughan & Galway City

A couple of weeks ago, right at the end of Summer, one of my great (and new) friends Ciara from work and I decided to take a spontaneous road trip before the dreaded University started back - we couldn't quite fathom the thought of going back to college without a break from everything. We decided to travel part of the Wild Atlantic Way - which is a coastal driving route along the entire West of Ireland. We only had two days off work so didn't get to do the ENTIRE driving route obviously but we managed to fit in quite a few stops along the way. Apologies about the photo overland, it was such nice weather and I love being by the sea so I got a little snap happy!

Our first stop was Milltown Malbay, which is a gorgeous little town. It was quite early in the morning so it was very quiet there which was nice. We strolled around for a bit in the sunshine and got a bite to eat before hopping back in the car and setting off again.

We paid a flying visit to Lahinch as we had both been there lots of times, and headed along the coast again, me snapping happily away in the front while Ciara drove (she's a saint).

Next up: The Cliffs of Moher. We are a little bit oblivious when it comes to direction so when we saw tonnes of people walking up some 'hill' out the window we were very curious, only to shortly come upon a sign declaring 'CLIFFS OF MOHER' (duh. You would think WE were the tourists, not the hundreds of people with road maps, visors and hiking boots). Once we came to this realisation we had to stop and pay a visit, it was such a beautiful clear day so we knew the views would be breath-taking!

(Happy, albeit windswept.)

After making our way up what seemed like a thousand steps (it was very windy so difficult to climb, nothing to do with our lack of fitness), out of breath and in hysterics we made it to the viewpoint. It really is a spectacular view out over the ocean, although a little scary - the drop is sheer and crazily high!

After taking in the view and attempting to re-find our Zen after the trauma of the steps (not dramatic at all), our next port-of-call was Doolin, Co. Clare. This is such an adorable little town with a gorgeous chocolate and fudge shop which we made a beeline for! It is such a cheery and colourful place, a lovely pitstop to make along the Way.

We then found ourselves in the Burren all of a sudden (we were driving through it for about 15 minutes before I realised where we were, shortly preceded by 'why is this place so deserted?' DUH). We made a couple of stops to take photos and stretch our legs, eventually ending up in Ballyvaughan.

Ballyvaughan Pier was beautiful and so peaceful, with just a couple of boats bobbing happily away in the gentle waves.

A little later we arrived in Galway where we were staying for the night. After unloading our car-ful of stuff (we overpacked to say the least) at my grandparents house, we headed into Galway city for pizza. We decided to go for some drinks afterwards which turned into a few too many and a hilarious night (see end result in last photo - the most PG of the lot).

All in all we had a great first day and night, we slightly regretted the alcohol the next morning having to get up and do it all again but it was definitely worth the memories :)

Stay tuned for the second instalment of our road trip,

Thank you for reading!

Siofra

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Au Revoir, Paris: Macarons, Croissants, Love Lock bridge & Angelina's

As Sunday morning rolled around and I saw Mom off to the airport, Jackie, Joni and Marie headed to the Palace of Versailles and I - having been there twice - decided to take my final day in Paris as a chance to wander around and explore.

Top - Primark

Scrunchie - Topshop

My first stop was, of course, Ladurée, for some Macarons. Whoever came up with the recipe/idea for Macarons deserves a medal, and I'm sure they have got many. I chose six - Pistachio, Rose-Citron (Rose-Lemon), Orange Blossom, Lemon, Strawberry and - my personal favourite - SALTED CARAMEL!)

An umbrella store with the most exotic umbrellas you ever did see - up to the value of €750 .. For an umbrella you could accidentally leave on the Tube for Pete's sake!

I found a cute little Parisian café and settled myself outside with a croissant, hot chocolate and, of course, my Macarons. I sat here for quite a while writing some postcards and taking photos - it was such a lovely feeling to be able to relax in my favourite city. As you can see, I couldn't resist a quick Macaron photo-shoot - they're just so pretty!

From there I decided to find the Love Lock bridge. As I understand it, many bridges in Paris have become known as Love Lock bridges - not just the original one. One of these is situated quite close to the Musée d'Orsay or the Jardin des Tulleries - depending which side of the river you are on. It is so lovely to see all of the locks, hundreds and hundreds of different sizes and colours, signed by lovers, couples, friends, family members and even strangers. I attached a lock with my name along with my Mom's name and the date, as it was her I had come to Paris with. I think it's such a lovely idea, and it was really special to see all the loved up couples, best friends and even children with their parents, all excitedly attaching their lock to the bridge and some throwing the key into the river to lay there forever.

I couldn't leave Paris that day without going to get what is - in my opinion - the world's best hot chocolate. This can be found at Angelina's Café on the Rue de Rivoli in Paris, just opposite the Tullerie Gardens on the same side of the river. The hot chocolate - albeit expensive - is so worth it. It's so rich and creamy and literally tastes like melted chocolate mixed with cream. SO SO GOOD. And half the price to take away!

After that, I made my way back to the hotel to collect my suitcase and to say goodbye to Jackie, Joni and Marie. It was sad to say goodbye to them but fingers crossed it won't be another five years before we meet again.