Emilia Lucas Week 6 – Happy in Howth

This past weekend, I was delighted to have my first free Saturday in Dublin! It came at a perfect time as we hit a heat wave in Dublin. Something I’ve been missing dearly about home is living in a beach town and having consistently hot, sunny weather. I was so grateful to have that much needed sun. Rayna, Lucie, and I packed some things bright and early on Saturday morning and got straight onto the dart to get to Howth before the sun hit it’s peak. When we arrived, we were amazed at how vastly different Howth’s town center was from others we’ve seen in Ireland (spoiler alert!!!). The town gave a very similar vibe to my town at home, with lots of restaurants and markets, a gorgeous harbor, and lots of happy, chattering passers-by. We stopped for some quick coffee and bagels before making our way to the beach.
We were aimlessly walking trying to find beach access, when I heard a shrill, “NO!!!!!” behind me. I got whiplash from how fast I turned my head to see the horrific sight: in a matter of seconds a flock of five seagulls were picking apart a bagel with lox at our feet. Poor Rayna:(
We continued along the water, still looking for a beach access, and finally stumbled upon the overlook to a beautiful stone-lined beach with the clearest, bluest water I had ever seen. We continued down the steep stairs to the beach and set down our belongings. The breeze coming off the cool ocean made a perfect temperature for us, and we didn’t get up from that beach all day, despite the pesky gnats and uncomfortable rocks beneath us. For hours we watched kids play in the water, people’s dogs fetch sticks, and more and more people come to sunbathe. After a few hours, Max, Brad, Nick, and Tennyson came to hang out on the beach. Once the sun started to go down and the beach got chilly, we packed up our things and headed to a fabulous fish & chips place for some dinner. Tired out from the sun, we got back on the dart and headed home. I was utterly shocked to find when I got home that a whole day of sun and no sunscreen left me with a gnarly sunburn! Sarcasm, obviously. Luckily for me, my
Sunday was also a very exciting day at the Gaelic Games Experience. As someone who’s very competitive and loves playing sports, I had been looking forward to learning about Ireland’s most popular sports and trying them out myself. My favorite game we learned was Hurling. While I haven’t play any sport like it before, it was fun to pick up some new skills and play a scrimmage.
Ending the great weekend, I found our visit to The Kilmainham Gaol to be my favorite of the historical trips thus far. I was super interested to learn about the people who spent time there and see first-hand what their living conditions were like. The museum was on my parents’ “to do” list for when they come to visit Dublin next weekend. Unfortunately it was sold out when they tried booking a tour, so I showed them lots of photos and told them all about it. With them visiting and the upcoming free weekend, I’ve got lots to look forward to!