don't close your eyes

As began my whirlwind weekend journey to Ireland this weekend with five of my new girlfriends, Kelly, Chelsea, Liz, Kelcie, and Julia, I couldn't help but listen to the song lyrics whirling around in my head...

This is your life, and today is all you got now.
Yeah, and today is all you'll ever have.
Don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes.
This is your life. Are you who you want to be?
This is your life. Are you who you want to be?
This is your life. Is it everything you dreamed that it would be when the world was younger and you had everything to lose?
-Switchfoot

There is such truth in these words. I mean, I just went to Ireland for a weekend. First of all, who do I even think I am? Who does these things? Is this even real? It is my constant prayer that God will make me ever-thankful and ever-appreciative.

This is my life. Every overpriced train ticket. Every squished bread and non-Jiff peanut butter sandwich. Every questionable hostel bed. Every amazing sight. Every single breath. Every moment in the midst of this adventure. Because I know I will be telling people about these days for the rest of my life.

So...Ireland. We:

• Walked to the Chester train station
• Took a train (that we barely made by about 20 seconds) to Liverpool
• Took a bus from the Liverpool train station to the Liverpool airport
• Flew to Cork, Ireland
• Took a 4 hour bus ride from Cork to Galway
• pub-hopped around Galway for the evening
• accidentally went into a rather disturbing Texas/American-themed club, chose not the ride the mechanical bull or dance on the bar with the bartender belting out "Man I Feel Like a Woman!", and then promptly left
  
• stayed in a fantastic hostel in Galway complete with free tea!
• purchased peanut butter, bread, and carsick medicine to get us through the day without spending too much money or feeling disgusting on the bus (again)
• took a tour through the Irish countryside surrounding Galway
• saw sheep, lamas, fields, water, amazing cliffs, old churches, and castles
• took another 4 hour bus back to Cork
• pub-hopped around Cork
  
• found a super-cool pub listed in our guidebooks where I tried (and loved!!) Murphy's, a traditional Irish dark beer
• stayed in another awesome hostel in Cork
• woke up and stuffed our faces with free breakfast so we wouldn't be hungry 'til dinner
• took the city bus to Blarney Castle
• Kissed the "Blarney Stone", believed to have magical powers that give the gift of gab
• wandered around the castle grounds
• took the city bus back to the city centre
• wandered around the city and did a little shopping
• took a bus to the Cork airport
• flew back to Liverpool
• took a bus from Liverpool airport to Liverpool train station
• got off at the wrong bus stop just a few minutes before the last train for Chester left and ran to the station
• Took the train to Chester
• Walked from the train station back to our houses and PASSED OUT.

It was a crazy, amazing weekend and I have a new (green!) stamp in my passport. Now it's back home in Chester, and I love the feeling of getting some rest and getting back to class in this quiet, quaint little town.