St. Patty's Day, then and now!

I adore the "Today Show!" In fact, one of my favorite times of the day is when I sit on the couch - by myself! - from 7 to 7:30 every morning and enjoy my coffee and my pals, Meredith, Matt, Ann, and Al. Over the past couple of days, Meredith and Al have been in Ireland visiting some of the same places I visited on my grad school trip in 2000. They got me reminiscing about my trip and I've been digging through the pictures and reading through my journal (thanks, Nat!) all afternoon. It was the most fun I had ever had at that point in my life...my first time outside of the U.S. and still my only visit to Europe. St. Patrick's Day in Dublin was so much fun, but my favorite spots were the Cliffs of Moher, the Aran Islands, and the remains of the monastery at Glendalough. Here are some of the fun pictures I dug up today:

March 11, 2000 - With my friend and roommate from the trip, Ashley, on the Cliffs of Moher, in County Clare (we were straight off the plane, jetlagged and stinky, but we were so excited and smiley to be there!):



Also the Cliffs of Moher:



March 12, 2000 - The "Seven Churches," Inishmore (the largest of the three Aran Islands):



At the top of Dun Aengus, an amazing stone fort on Inishmore:



Our entire group from Belmont after the boat trip from the Aran Islands:



March 13, 2000 - Bunratty Castle, County Clare:



March 17, 2000 - This picture means nothing to you, but it makes me smile just seeing it. We supposedly had seats to view the big parade, but we were never able to find them. We walked and walked and walked and finally just watched the parade like everyone else did. It was exhausting, but it is funny to look back on:



March 18, 2000 - One of my favorite parts of the trip, so beautiful! The monastic site at Glendalough, County Wicklow. The pictures really do not do it justice.











The Temple Bar, which is in an area called "Temple Bar" near the River Liffey in Dublin. We spent more than a little time in this area while in Dublin!



Little reminders all over so that American tourists won't get hit by cars driving on the "wrong" side of the road:



A friend of a friend got us tickets to a sold-out Sting concert in Dublin...it was absolutely amazing!



March 20, 2000 - one last look at Dublin from my window seat to Atlanta:



So, now fast-forward nine years...no international travel for us this year, but our three little ones are a lot more fun than St. Patrick's Day in Dublin, anyway! Here they are before school today, all decked-out in their green:



And, here's a sweet little video of Catalina explaining why we celebrate St. Patrick's Day: