My mom is here!!!!! Just for about six days but it’s still such a nice treatJ. We’ve been exploring non-stop since she arrived a few days ago. She is also such a trooper coming with me to all of my coaching gigs, games, and even grocery shopping. She rocks. First, we registered for the Hop-On Hop-Off bus, which tours around major attractions all over Dublin city. You can get off and get back on anytime you want (pretty self-explanatory) for 24 hours. We explored South side the first time, and then went to get some dinner near Grafton Street before my coaching session. We ate at the Blind Pig, which was recommended to us by a friend from back home that actually goes to DCU! Small world, isn’t it? We thought we were in the wrong place at first because the restaurant is in the basement of another restaurant. There is a secret door that looks like an ordinary wall, and opens only when a button is pressed. It was so weird but so cool! We ate and then headed off to my game so that I could coach the under 20s team of DCU Mercy. We ended up losing pretty badly, which was annoying, but it was still nice to have my mom there.
The next day, we awoke early, grabbed some coffee, and headed into the city to go on the Hop-On Hop-Off bus again. We took a different route this time, and were able to jump off and sightsee at Christ Church Cathedral, Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, and the Irish Museum of Modern Art. We also bypassed some other cool locations, but wanted to save some experiences for when my dad comes hopefully in the spring. He wants to see the Guinness Factory and the Old Jameson Distillery, for instance.
Today my mom and I trekked over to Howth Coast after Academy this morning. It was the perfect day for it, too! No rain, wind, or too cold of a temperature (which is a lot to ask of Ireland, might I add). We hiked through the cliffs, walked parts of town, and ate lunch at this really yummy café. She finally got her Shepard’s pie, which she claims was on her bucket list in coming here. It’s not all that thrilling and we have it in Pennsylvania, but hey, it’s still good. We grabbed some chocolate on the way home (I have to say, I think Ireland has better candy than the States) and are excited to watch my sister’s basketball game tonight online. Hopefully time doesn’t pass too quickly with my mom, but I’ll be home in a month anyway! Can’t wait!!!
