This past week in Dublin was a good mix of routine, travel, and downtime. Thursday and Friday were typical workdays—after finishing up at Happythreads, I usually headed into the city center for a walk or dinner.
Saturday was more eventful with a full-day Celtic Boyne Valley tour. We visited several historical sites including the Hill of Tara, Trim Castle, Loughcrew passage tomb, and the Hill of Uisneach. Most of the tour was outdoors, which made it even better. It was a refreshing way to see more of Ireland’s landscape and history in one day. Afterward, we stopped for lunch and returned to UCD in the evening.
On Sunday, I started the morning at the gym and then met up with Emilia, Lucie, and Zoe for brunch at Jay’s Café. I had the breakfast burrito, which was definitely a highlight—great spot overall. We spent the afternoon shopping and walking around town, then picked up groceries and had a relaxed dinner back at UCD.
Monday was one of my favorite days so far. We did the Howth Cliff Walk, which had some of the best views I’ve seen on this trip. The weather wasn’t perfect, but it made the hike more comfortable. After the walk, Zoe, Lucie, Rayna, and I had lunch at King Sitric in Howth. Rayna and I split some oysters to start—some of the best I’ve had—and I followed it up with steamed mussels, which were also great. We then headed to Blackrock to walk around and do some light shopping. On the way back, we stopped for gelato and eventually walked back to campus. That night, we met up with Emilia and her parents at a bar nearby and had a nice end to the day.
Tuesday and Wednesday were back to work at Happythreads. I spent the time catching up on tasks and prepping for our upcoming trip to Portugal on Thursday, which I’m really looking forward to.
Overall, it was a solid week—busy in a good way, with a balance of work, sightseeing, and time with friends.
