According to ABC News, “More than 85% of the American public flies infrequently if at all. More than seven in 10 can be described as infrequent fliers, flying once or twice a year or less; and 14 percent have never flown.” I, however, have boarded 9 flights in 2011 alone and will board one more to return to the US in less than 3 weeks. Also in 2011, thus far, I have been in 12 different countries or territories and have been in 14 my whole life. I know that I am lucky. Throughout my travels I have had amazing times and more difficult times; but throughout it all, traveling around the UK and Europe has challenged me to see life through a different lens. I have loved learning the different ways people have lived life throughout the past and how they continue to differ today. In addition to the people, I have also really enjoyed seeing so many breathtaking buildings and landscapes. A lot of people will never get the opportunity to say they’ve seen as much of the world as I have and I’m only 20. I’m so blessed.

My most recent expedition has been to Ireland! Thursday after class we took a taxi to London Stansted and got on the shortest flight ever (ding, you can turn on your electronics… two minutes later… ding, please prepare for landing). When we got there we had no trouble finding our hostel and getting settled in. Then we ventured over to the Temple Bar area which was just bubbling with music and excitement. After wondering the streets for a short amount of time we noticed signs pointing to the Leprechaun museum! Hanna insisted we find it, but sadly all the signs pointed directly into buildings! I started to wonder if perhaps this was a joke being played on us innocent tourists; but alas, after some Googling later on we found out that it was real.

The next day while Hanna and Chelsea enjoyed the giant furniture at the Leprechaun museum, Lauren, Mike, and I did some shopping because Dublin had a Forever 21! Now this is a HUGE difference from England, Forever 21!! I was ecstatic. I ended up only buying some t-shirts to accommodate England’s surprisingly warm weather of late, but the shopping was just amazing. The rest of the day we wondered around Dublin, hitting the spots Murphy recommended to us. We did have some troubles because a lot of things were closed because it was Good Friday. We couldn’t go in most places, but we scoped out the sights from the outside and made plans for the rest of our time there. How the Irish celebrated Good Friday and then Easter two days later, is a good example of the different importance of religion to the Irish as opposed to the English. Religion was much more prominent in Ireland than England.

The next day was my favorite day in Ireland by far. We took the train from Dublin to the small coastal town of Wicklow. The town was perfect and quaint with the main road leading you directly to the old castle ruins which stood on high cliffs plunging into the ocean below. Unlike the cool overcast weather in Dublin, the sun was bright and shining in Wicklow and it was just lovely. After lunch at “Hannah’s”, we spent our afternoon climbing cliffs, castles, and canons. In honor of Easter we did an “Easter Egg Hunt” on the beach where we all looked for sea glass and cool rocks. On that same beach we got attacked while we were lying out by a very friendly puppy that happily covered us with his muddy paw prints. Then we found the perfect spot of land overlooking the ocean and it was covered in plush grass, so we laid down and took almost an hour long nap. It was just spectacular. We grabbed a pub meal before heading back into Dublin and hitting the hay.

The next morning we got dressed up as nicely as we could in our traveling state and went to Easter service at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The service was really nice, opening up with one of my favorite Easter hymns ever (“Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia. Our triumphant holy day, Alleluia.”) It was nice to hear something so triumphant and familiar, it was an amazing reminder that across the world people can be joyful and grateful for the love of Christ that surpasses all distances.

After church we got some food and then went and visited the castle. It was interesting that it was closed on Good Friday but open on Easter, but we took advantage of the situation and got a good tour of the Dublin Castle. After that, we went back to the hostel to get our stuff and change into more comfortable clothes for the flight home. After experiencing the one and two week trips, this weekend did seem to go by pretty fast. However, I was so grateful to get to spend one more weekend abroad seeing something completely new. It was especially nice to spend Easter in such a glorified place, it truly is a blessing to see a huge cathedral filled with people to come hear the same glorious news that I came there to hear. We even got to hear the choir boys do a short rendition of The Alleluia Chorus.

Our trip home was late, but we got back. I’m tired but again, can’t help but believe I am the luckiest girl in the world. I didn’t have to go to Ireland to get the luck I have! I have a God who rose for me, a family at home who loves me, friends here that have come to be like a family, and I’ve had the ability to see so much of God’s creation and the people inhabiting it. I hope that travel is always a major part of my life, because even though having a home isn’t something I would give up for anything, there is so much of the world to see! This semester has given me the chance, the unique opportunity, to see so much and know that I am not wasting a second of this precious life that I have been given. Alleluia!

Enjoy the rest of my pictures and keep checking back for my last couple blogs before this world traveler goes home!