A Day in Dublin

Unfortunately, today was my last day abroad, as my Tennessee bound flight departs tomorrow. Today was a great day though; we got an early start and toured Dublin almost all day long. Grandpa got us all tickets for a live commentated ‘hop-on hop-off’ tour bus that ran all throughout the city. The first placed we hopped off was at the Dublin Castle. The castle was built by King John of England in 1204 for the “defense of the city, the administration of justice, and the protection of the King's treasure”. It once housed the First Lord of Ireland and is nowadays where the Irish president is inaugurated.

Our second stop was the St. Patrick’s Cathedral of Dublin, where reportedly the saint baptized new converts to Christianity. It was very beautiful!

We then wandered around the streets and enjoyed the fun sights of street performers, did a little shopping, and ate the most amazing gelato ice cream ever!

Kinda Creepy

Beautiful Music

We then rode the bus along its full rout and saw many interesting things like the Guinness Brewery, the oldest pub in Dublin, a mass grave, and the Irish president’s house.

Their 'White House'

For dinner we ate at a pub and I enjoyed a Guinness legally for the last time for another year. The food was great, the beer cold, and the company reminisced about their favorite parts of the trip. Oh, and a native told me how Irish I look. ;)

This has been an amazing trip: new experiences from new places, observing my younger siblings and Brandon go on their first adventure, and getting to briefly touch the places my ancestors lived. Tomorrow I return to Tennessee and fall back into routine.

Cheers, Ireland. 

Thanks for reading!

Jessica Nicole Shultz

Hello, Ireland (:

After spending four nights in Scotland, we ventured towards Ireland via ferry. I was expecting a small boat like seen in the movies; however this ferry was the size of a cruise ship. It even carried cars! Boasting many cafes, a game room, a cinema, and more the ship was quite luxurious. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I had not gotten my first case of sea-sickness, though. When I stepped foot on Ireland I was definitely ready to be off of the boat.

 Finding a taxi large enough to transport seven people to a hotel is tricky, but the first cab we encountered managed to cram all of us into one.

Finally made it to Ireland!! The first night we staying in Belfast in Northern Ireland, which is still a part of the United Kingdom. Because this was only a stop on the way to Dublin, much of the city remained unexplored, but we did get to visit St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was very beautiful. St. Patrick was a 5th-century bishop in Ireland. His death day is the date we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, which is intended to be a celebration of both the saint and Ireland itself.

From Belfast we took a two-hour train ride to Dublin, Ireland. I cannot contain my excitement from being able to say that I am currently writing to you from here! J While the rest of the crew rested, Brandon and I went out to explore downtown. Everyone seems to be super nice here, and do not mind to give directions to a couple of lost American tourists. As suspected, the majority of Dublin’s buildings are pubs and bars, which proudly advertise Guinness beer that is brewed here in the city. The atmosphere here is pretty much dominated by the music and chatter coming from the various pubs, yet it is not trashy but classy and exciting. Of course, Brandon and I had to obtain the experience of sitting in an Irish pub. J

As our adventure draws to a close, I want to say a HUGE thank you to my grandfather for allowing me to accompany him overseas for a fourth time, and I’d like you all to know that I believe everyone should get out of the US at least once in their lives. Go explore. Yeah, it is a little scary and unnerving sometimes, but being able to tread on soil that is foreign to you, take in air you’ve never tasted before, witness the different architecture and ways of life, and broaden your worldview is such an amazing, brilliant, and wonderful experience.. I have one more day here in Ireland before I head home to Tennessee, so I will post one more entry about what happens tomorrow. But thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed keeping up with my adventure! Go have an adventure of your own!

Jessica Nicole Shultz

My Scottish Roots

Greetings from Inverary, Scotland, UK! While mom, grandma, grandpa, Trinity, and Alex took a rental car from Glasgow to our destination while Brandon and I took a bus (due to not enough space for seven people plus luggage in the car). The ride was beautiful and looked like a scene from Lord of the Rings.

This is the place my ancestors on my grandmother's side called home. She successfully traced her lineage back to the Campbell Clan (my greatgrandma's maiden name was Campbell). We are staying in the Argyll Hotel in the little town of Inverary (by little town, I mean you can walk across it in around ten minutes) by Loch Fyne. The air is clean and salty, but does not have that fishy smell that Florida has. Its simply a beautiful place, and it is amazing this is where some of my ancestors lived.

Jellyfish on the Beach

 The Campbell clan is a large and well-known Highland Scottish clan. The chief of the clan became Earl and later Duke of Argyll. They were firm supporters of King Robert the Bruce. Since the 17th century, the Duke of Argyll has lived in the Inverary Castle. We even got to see the current Duke when we visited, which was pretty exciting.

Clan Campbell Crest

The castle was built in the 1700s and sits on an estate of 60,000 acres, where 16 of them are kept as a garden. Too bad I didn't inherit the castle somehow. :/

The next day (today) we decided to explore the Scottish countryside and take a long drive. Here are some of the places we saw:

My Claddagh Ring

Ruins of a Castle

Please note, I do not take all of these pictures. Brandon and my grandpa take most of them. :) It is 1am here, so I am going to crash. I hope you enjoyed the pictures!!

Jessica

Scotland's Capital

A four-hour train ride later, we arrived in Scotland’s capitol: Edinburgh. It is a busy city built around Edinburgh Castle on Castle Rock. It is rich with history and was the involved in many historical conflicts in the Wars of Scottish Independence. Although Edinburgh is still part of the United Kingdom (for now), it is much different from London. The architecture looks older and more Gothic, the food variety is different, and of course there are many men wearing kilts.We only spent one night in Edinburgh because it was only a stop on our way to Inveraray, but we managed to explore a large portion of the city.

We spent the night at a small bed and breakfast. It was quaint, but with four people sleeping in one room, tempters were short, haha.

Next, we go to Inveraray, where my ancestors from the mother's side lived.

Iron Man, Aliens, Wizards

Sunday, July 15^th we had to get up at 6am (or 1am TN time) in order to catch a catch a tour bus. It took us to see Windsor Castle, where the queen is currently residing, the magnificent Stonehenge, and Oxford college, where famous authors like J.R.R. Tolkien studied. The trip was over 300 miles all together, and it took all day long, but not a minute was spent in boredom; the tour was incredible. However, I must say it probably would not have been as interesting without our tour guide. He was extremely knowledgeable, witty, humorous, and seemed to thoroughly enjoy his job while making you feel like friends. Oh, also, he looked like Robert Downey Jr. ;P

Our first stop was Windsor Castle.  We did not go inside, but instead walked around its walls and visited the shops and cafes surrounding it. Unsurprisingly, it was an incredible experience. Like stepping back into history when the castle was built in the twelve-hundreds.

The second stop (and my favorite), was Stonehenge. Words cannot describe the feeling of being so close to these mysterious and eerie stones. Goosebumps. Shivers. Awe.

Here’s a fun fact: last year a massive intricate and complex crop circle appeared right beside the stones.

Anyway, our last stop was Oxford College. The campus is absolutely beautiful and knowing all of the creative and inspiring minds that were educated there is quite amazing: Lewis Carrol, J.R.R Tolkien and C.S. Lewis to name a few. Also, although she did not attend the school J.K Rowling would visit the school for inspiration when writing Harry Potter. Even the idea for the shape of his scar was created from a lightening bolt shaped engraving at this school. Some scenes from the movies were shot here as well.

Where the Entrance to Hogwarts was Filmed

Harry's Scar

I want to say a HUGE thank you to my grandfather for discovering this tour. It was very educational and inspiring, and overall an absolutely incredible experience. Also, to add to the day, the Super Moon was out.

Today, we went to King’s Cross train station (yes, the one in Harry Potter) and caught the train to Edinburg, Scotland.

 

There, now you are caught-up on my journey. Thank you for reading.

-Jessica Nicole Shultz