Ireland
It's no secret, Ireland has my heart. For close to a decade, it has been on the tippy-top of my bucket list. Well, thanks to some non-refundable airline credits and the world's best, most supportive husband, I finally went home in March of 2023.
50-80 million people worldwide claim to have some ancestral claim to Ireland, making me a drop in the ocean. There is actually a joke that there are more irish people in the United States than there are in Ireland. My family lines goes back to some Irish pirates and stowaways, but that's not the point. Before I even started my deep dive into the family drama, I was fascinated by Ireland. Now, when I become obsessed, thanks to good ole' ADHD tangents, I go all in. By 2015, I knew everything there was to know about the island. I researched the culture, the topography, the customs, pretty much everything but the language (which may as well be Klingon). I could even tell you how long the taxi ride would be from the Dublin Airport to Temple Bar.
Fast forward to 2019; the time had finally come. My husband and I were planning the trip of a lifetime for the following spring. But the universe had other plans and through the biggest of wrenches in our plan. Covid. Needless to say, the trip was off and I could do nothing but pout.
2 years later in September of 2022, we had planned a totally unrelated domestic trip that was cancelled due to weather and we could not get a refund, so we were issued a flight credit. We put it to the back of our minds, thinking we would rescheduled the trip at a later date and didn't think to much of it. Well, come February, we get an email saying our credits will expire within the month. Dammit. Calving season was starting soon and it looked like we wouldn't be able to use them until I pitched a random solution to our predicament. What if I go to Ireland by myself while you stay home and calve... I was joking when I threw it out there; it was impulsive and not really fair to Sean. I had no intention of actually going through with it, until he said "why not"?
Once I realized he wasn't kidding, and I picked my jaw up off the floor, the planning began. I wasn't going to give him a chance to change his mind. That night, I had my flights booked and I texted my boss (who is a saint by the way for rolling with these random trips). Over the next 3 weeks or so, I decided that since I was trying to pack so much into this trip, that I didn't want to be tied down to staying in any certain place. I wanted to be free to move around whenever I got wind of something exciting to explore. So out of the 7 nights I would be in country, I only had the first 2 booked somewhere I knew without a doubt, I wanted to see. Galway.
The time finally came, Sean drove me 3 hours to the airport and since we were running a little behind (sounds about right for me), it did't really sink in until I had boarded the first leg of my journey. I flew from Reno to Phoenix, and from Phoenix to London. At a little over 12 hours, this was the longest flight I had ever been on and I was so very ready to get off once we touched down in London.
Now, if you have ever been to Heathrow, you feel my pain. If not, let me explain a little something about this airport. It doesn't make any damn sense. So much so, that J.K. Rowling used it for the inspiration behind the Ministry of Magic. There are hallways to nowhere, escalators down, only to come right back up and gates right on top of each other. Not only is the layout something from my worst nightmare, its also like walking through the Mall of America, except you can't afford to go in any of the stores.
When I finally found my gate (after a tram AND a bus ride), I got there just as we were boarding. I smelled like the inside of a Gucci bag from getting lost at one point, and I can't say I was mad about that. After almost 24 hours of travel, at this point, I didn't want to know what I smelled like under the sample perfume cloud that followed me.
One more flight from Heathrow to Dublin, and I was home. My stomach was in knots.What if I had built it up so much in my head that the real thing could never compete? What if I get lost using the public transport system and I end up on the wrong side of the country? What if I don't make friends and I feel like the awkward kid on the playground the whole time, watching other people have fun? All these thoughts hit somewhere over the Irish Sea.
Once the pilot announced our decent, I opened the window shade and saw her for the first time. All those thoughts washed away in a heartbeat and I couldn't believe I had finally made it. After all the times I had planned this trip, and something got in the way, I was so close.
Ireland from above looks like nowhere else. The stunning green overpowers every other color and you really get a sense of why its called the Emerald Isle. Now, keep in mind, I was arriving in March so back home, there was still a foot of snow. This green seemed like another planet. The fields were divided by centuries old stone walls, and there were castles... actual castles, in the middle of these fields. No really, they farmed right up to the front doors of these ruins of tower houses and spires.
Once the plane touched down, the strangest feeling washed over me. Peace. I didn't feel like another tourist here for St. Patrick's day. I felt like I had been here a hundred times before. I no longer worried about traveling solo, or where I as going to stay. I just felt like She would take care of me. I know, I know, thats incredibly irresponsible, I still had to adult and find myself lodging, but I honestly had no fears at all.
When I turned off airplane mode and all my missed texts came through, Sean had asked how I felt finally being there. I wrote and erased my reply so many times but nothing felt quite right to encompass how it tryle felt. Finally, I settle on three words.
I. Am. Home.
