[Fritz]

There are a lot of really old buildings in Europe. When I last visited Kalmar, SVE I took photos of listed houses which are over 400 years old.

Dude, the Americas were discovered in 1492. I am not saying there is an abundance of buildings from those years there but they had plenty of time to build old buildings as well. Especially when you consider that most of the buildings in our big cities stem from the 18th up to the early 20th Century.

Different story for antique roman and greek buildings though.

[ErasureAcer]

Was in Ireland in 2002. Of the 3 big cities I liked Galway the Best. Spent most of my time though visiting the places my great grandparents were from(Mizen Head peninsula and small town near Ballina). Rained 10 out of the 11 days I was there.

[juanpablo]

If you're heading West then I'd recommend taking a tour along and then down the west coast and into Kerry & West Cork, there is some great spots along the way. Westport - Galway - Dingle - Bantry in particular are great spots.

[Kruhex]

Kind of OT but have a question of upcoming travel. I am arriving in Italy somewhere in late July and need to be in London a couple days later. I can't reserve trains since my schedule is somewhat volatile but will I have trouble getting a train? Is everything going to be booked due to the olympics going on? I know getting a hotel would be harder but I'm mainly concerned just about the trains. I don't want to take the chunnel though, I'd rather go through the Calais-Dover ferry or the Hook of Holland ferry. Or if anyone has a suggestion for bus travel that would also be appreciated. I am coming out of Milan btw.

[Tunesmith]

You guys figure out where we're meeting up tonight, I'm not the Dublin expert ;b I think the idea right now is bus or train to Galway tomorrow for the Volvo Ocean Race Festival Thing, then the nearby Cliffs of Moher the day after, then bailing straight to Spain for San Fermin on the 7th to get impaled and so forth?

What's your timeline for Galway? Working until 5PM but always up for a random Galway GAF meetup tomorrow (a first surely). Living a stone's throw away from the Spanish Arch.

When you're in Galway, grab a bag of cans from the off license and head to Spanish Arch for some outdoors (and slightly illegal) drinking. Its a quintessential Galway tradition!

Its not illegal, it's a socially recognised outdoor drinking spot adhered to by all (even Garda) when the weather is good

This is very true.

[Seth C]

i'd recommend a restaurant called Ciao Bella Roma seeing as you're around Temple Bar. Its on Parliament Street in temple bar. they do a great pizza in there and are very reasonably priced. Afterwards, you could go to the Porter House accross the road from it for dessert. They brew their own stout in there and its great.

Porter House definitely brews some good beers. I also really love Messrs Mcquire. They make great beer.

[Hydranockz]

So delighted the weather got better for your trip to the storehouse! That view could have been dire lol.

[Vagabundo]

I'll meet ya in the porter house for a pint (or two) around 8:30?? Any other Dub-Gaf going?

[needlejuice]

You guys figure out where we're meeting up tonight, I'm not the Dublin expert ;b I think the idea right now is bus or train to Galway tomorrow for the Volvo Ocean Race Festival Thing, then the nearby Cliffs of Moher the day after, then bailing straight to Spain for San Fermin on the 7th to get impaled and so forth?

The cliffs will haunt you forever! Pity you can't fit Belfast into your schedule. I've free rooms here.

[Willkiller]

Damn, Evilore pulls a good Guiness

[EviLore]

Hostel's been overtaken by a huge group of self-contained Indian travelers. Haven't seen anyone today other than them and some great grandparent aged people. Was recommended the musician bar crawl but that was just elderly folk too, but it's early yet, will try again after dark.

Met a cool Aussie girl and shot the shit with her for an hour or so, and she was going to meet back up with me shortly after, but no show.

It's great meeting new people every day, but it also means being back to square one every day! Normally I'd have a plan of action and not just be hanging out, but I need a recharge day after air travel straight into getting wasted, so it's all good.

Grabbing some dinner at the moment and then completely open.

[cloudwalking]

you're living my dream! always wanted to travel around a lot and stay in hostels, meeting other travelers just like this. :) i could never travel alone though, i'm way too much of a pussy. respect.

i loved ireland when i was there, even though i got STRANDED there (it was that volcano eruption that grounded flights in 2010) and had to make an epic trip back to switzerland with taxi/ferry/train/subway... :O i didn't get to see toooo much of ireland cause it was a business trip so i was mostly in and around cork. cork is a fun little city. i was lucky though, i got to take a three hour trip through the countryside which was just breathtaking.

enjoy your stay there!

[Vagabundo]

Hostel's been overtaken by a huge group of self-contained Indian travelers. Haven't seen anyone today other than them and some great grandparent aged people. Was recommended the musician bar crawl but that was just elderly folk too, but it's early yet, will try again after dark. Met a cool Aussie girl and shot the shit with her for an hour or so, and she was going to meet back up with me shortly after, but no show. It's great meeting new people every day, but it also means being back to square one every day! Normally I'd have a plan of action and not just be hanging out, but I need a recharge day after air travel straight into getting wasted, so it's all good. Grabbing some dinner at the moment and then completely open.

Want to meet in the porter house for a pint?

[EviLore]

Want to meet in the porter house for a pint?

Sure.

[Vagabundo]

Sure.

What time you think?

Oh the one on Parliament street.

[EviLore]

What time you think? Oh the one on Parliament street.

Whatever's good for you, I'm done with dinner and will just be hanging out for the rest of the evening.

[Vagabundo]

Whatever's good for you, I'm done with dinner and will just be hanging out for the rest of the evening.

Grand. I'll head in there now. I'll take me 20/30 mins.

cya there

Grab a seat close to the bar at the door. I'll spot ya,

[EviLore]

On it. Other Dublin gaffers welcome as well.

[maquiladora]

Love that Porterhouse Oyster Stout!

I'd drop by if I was in Dublin.

[EviLore]

On the third floor

[Onion_Relish]

Disgonbegud.gif

It reads like a dramatic radio story from yore, what pitfalls await our heroes on their journey?

[Fur_Q]

On it. Other Dublin gaffers welcome as well.

Are you still at the Porter House, could probably make it there in an hour.

[Vagabundo]

Im here now. Tried the third. Cant see ya. Im a short guy on ablack shirt

[Bradach]

I'm sitting here with the inlaws having a cup of tea... Would rather be in the porter house having a pint of plain...

[Corto]

I want a slow motion video of Vagabundo and Evilore running to each other and embracing in a manly bro hug with everyone cheering the scene.

[filler]

I want a slow motion video of Vagabundo and Evilore running to each other and embracing in a manly bro hug with everyone cheering the scene.

I picture it more like the Mega Powers giving that atomic bro handshake.

[Kenka]

Evil, won't you get a huge bill if you keep using your mobile abroad for internet surf ?

[Karud]

Dude, the Americas were discovered in 1492. I am not saying there is an abundance of buildings from those years there but they had plenty of time to build old buildings as well. Especially when you consider that most of the buildings in our big cities stem from the 18th up to the early 20th Century. Different story for antique roman and greek buildings though.

Yeah I think you're right. But most European city still offer another kind of air because of the medievil relics in city planning. Consider Gammlastan in Stockholm, the Königswall in Dortmund, or Cambridge for example. The narrow alleys and certain pavements still hint at the age of those settlements which clearly exceed 400 years.

[Sephiroth503]

Damn wish I could've got there, damn work!

[GimMick]

This thread is giving me back memories from a trip to Ireland I did a few years ago. I still remember the day when Guinness became my favorite beer while visiting the Storehouse. You won't get to drink a better Guinness elsewhere :P

Putting this on my daily read list. I want to do my own long trip someday and this might give me more ideas. Bring on the pictures !

My global, to go tip : big cities are overrated, Mother Nature is where it's at ! (you should still pay them a short visit though, at least)

Kind of OT but have a question of upcoming travel. I am arriving in Italy somewhere in late July and need to be in London a couple days later. I can't reserve trains since my schedule is somewhat volatile but will I have trouble getting a train? Is everything going to be booked due to the olympics going on? I know getting a hotel would be harder but I'm mainly concerned just about the trains. I don't want to take the chunnel though, I'd rather go through the Calais-Dover ferry or the Hook of Holland ferry. Or if anyone has a suggestion for bus travel that would also be appreciated. I am coming out of Milan btw.

I think you could take a bus or a train from Milan to Lyon (France), and from here you shouldn't have much trouble finding trains from Lyon to Paris and from Paris to Calais, even without booking anything (especially on "quiet" hours).
That's just my two cents, and I can't help you at all about England, never been there.
Someone else could probably come up with a cheaper or faster solution. Good luck !

[Clegg]

I'm sure Evilore is having the craic with Vagabundo.

[Fari]

I would've gone to the Porter House and shared in the revelry, but I have a terrible headache and I can't be bothered to put on trousers.

[Fritz]

Yeah I think you're right. But most European city still offer another kind of air because of the medievil relics in city planning. Consider Gammlastan in Stockholm, the Königswall in Dortmund, or Cambridge for example. The narrow alleys and certain pavements still hint at the age of those settlements which clearly exceed 400 years.

Yeah, I guess we're pretty much both right. I completely agree on the different atmosphere!

[Fur_Q]

In porter where u at.

[itxaka]

A bunch of people ive been talking to here are going. Might have to be on the agenda, at least for a few days.

Cool, I will be there on the 11th onwards so let me know if there is a drunken-gaf meeting to go there. spanish people (especially in pamplona) are not really good with english

[Tommie Hu$tle]

If you get around to it try Venice. It was really nice.

[EviLore]

Am I ever going to be sober in Ireland? Signs point to no!

[RatskyWatsky]

Am I ever going to be sober in Ireland? Signs point to no!

Your liver :(

[EviLore]

Evil, won't you get a huge bill if you keep using your mobile abroad for internet surf ?

Good question! I got a 800MB international roaming plan for AT&T, and I'm only using for this thread and google maps, do my usage is fine so far.

[Pancho]

I envy you, man! I hope I'm able to do this at some point in my life.

[el retorno]

Am I ever going to be sober in Ireland? Signs point to no!

you're not gonna be sober in europe. Irleand is just the begining.

[Proxy]

Your liver :(

Liver? Who needs it.

:p

[Leeness]

Am I ever going to be sober in Ireland? Signs point to no!

Lawd. Haha.

[Art Teitlebaum]

Am I ever going to be sober in Ireland? Signs point to no!

Sounds like a perfectly normal Ireland visit to me. Don't bother and carry on, you Titan of The Drink.

[EviLore]

Okay, so where did we leave off...


After hitting up the Guinness Storehouse and pouring a pint and seeing the view of the city, I headed back and tried to get something going at the hostel to no avail. The whole place had been taken over by a huge self-contained group of Indian men.

While at the front desk trying to figure out what to do next, I came upon an Australian girl who was organizing her travel gear on the floor. We started talking, and ended up shooting the shit for a solid hour, from travel stories to The Wire. I was recommended the Musician's Bar Crawl instead of the other drinking-centric crawl I had done the night before, and after some time passed I parted ways with her and went to try to get a group together to come with me to the crawl. She told me she'd meet up with me in the common room after she took a shower.

I went to the common room, and it was super loud and obnoxious Indian dudes all. They eventually left and I was alone; no crew was going to happen tonight. I waited for Aussie girl to show, but no dice, so I went to my room and changed into my night clothes and headed for the bar crawl starting point.

100% elderly. It was probably too early in the day, yet. At that point I grabbed some dinner and turned on the GAF signal to see if anyone wanted to meet up, as you can follow from the discussions here last night. Vagabundo picked a pub and I headed over.

When I got there, there was no seating available at bar or table on the entire four floor establishment, so I walked around looking for something to open up when I randomly came across a girl I had met at the hostel the night before. She didn't come with for the bar crawl that day, but we had chatted a bit. She had two girlfriends with her, and I took the opportunity to break the ice while they lamented the lack of seating:

"Nah, it's no problem. Watch: just get really uncomfortably close to some people -- like this -- and we'll have our seats in no time." I inched closer and closer to a couple seated bros right next to us, my junk approaching their faces. They started freaking out and almost stood up, and I turned to the ladies and noted my success and we all had a good laugh and I made a friendly apology to the guys for freaking them out. A few moments later we found seats and started hanging out as a four of us.

Eventually Vagabundo found me and we all moved to a table, hung out, then when the girls had their fill of food and stouts and were leaving I got us the go ahead to come with. Thus began several more hours of bar hopping, from quiet places to ultra loud live music and everything in between, with our Dublin-GAFer recounting a great many tales both personal and of the Irish experience and culture.

Turns out all the girls were staying at my hostel. I became friendly with one of initial girl's friends, we hit it off and chatted it up quite a bit over the course of the night. 2am came, and they headed back to sleep (except for initial girl who stayed to dance and talk up some guy in a suit), and as it turns out they were staying in the room a door over from mine. They all maintained their distance, though, and we parted amiably and girl #2 suggested we hang out at breakfast before I head out in the morning.

I got back to my room, all of two seconds later. The room looked like some partying had happened but my five lady dormmates were nowhere to be found, so I immediately crashed, with shoes still on. Two hours later the girls all got back and woke me from my fully dressed slumber, one of them with a guy in tow, and they commented on my shoes still being on. I grogged a bit and woke up, then started a conversation with the de facto leader of the pack of Canadian 20-something ladies.

First she cleared with me that I was okay with some fucking taking place between one of the dorm girls and the guy she brought; no worries. Then we started shooting the shit as everyone winded down, tired and drunk, and we talked travel and worldviews and politics and so on, and she got to hear the normal explanation about my ridiculous improbable life. Apparently that group of Indian dudes was extremely harassy and straight up grab-assing them and other girls at the hostel, and so that's why no one was hanging out in the common room for the whole day 'cept for the the dudes themselves. Assholes.

She eventually got too sleepy and called it a night after a solid hour of fun conversation with me, and we noted that the hook up guy had passed out before anything happened and left the other girl awake and frustrated. His girl woke him up after a few minutes, and for her troubles she got just about 15 seconds of embarrassingly bad thrust from the guy straight into his snoring no more than 10 seconds later. Yikes!

Once again, of course, I had gotten some two hours of sleep after a night of Dublin bar hopping and was then wide awake with a room full of sensible sleepy heads, so I had time to recount the evening, which I've now shared with you all.

Now it's off to Galway in a a few hours. I'll try to get a couple more hours of sleep in the mean time if I'm able!

[Tunesmith]

There was an extra amount of festival vomit while walking down Quay St. through to Eyre Square this morning, Galway welcomes you EviLore. Weather should be good too, sunny 21C if forecast stays accurate which happens about 20% of the time. :)

[Hazaro]

Always love the write ups. Sounds like you are finding things to keep yourself occupied.

[Leeness]

Vicariously living through entertaining write ups, so this is excellent. Glad you had a great time!

[Arjen]

Great stories so far, entertaining stuff!

[Zeouterlimits]

Oh man, that's .. such a typical night.
Glad you'rre heading to the Cliffs, would be a shame if you didn't get to see any rural land.

Love the right ups Evilore.