We experienced an uneventful flight, leaving on time, and our anticipated arrival would be almost 30 minutes faster than expected. We noticed this anvil head storm cloud shortly after take off from YYC.
While settling in on our flight, we met an Arabic speaking man and his son. They were from Edmonton and heading to Dublin for the son to begin his studies in medicine. We learned that, although it doesn't take as long to earn your medical degree in Ireland, an international student still pays €65,000 annually for tuition and another €30,000 for accommodation (in residence and food). Good thing his dad is a family physician in Edmonton after spending 13 years in the ER in Newfoundland. After learning that I was a teacher and knew some of the Thurber students, the young man asked me if I knew his friend Mohab. Unfortunately, that was not one of the students that I would have known, although his name sounded familiar.
We chose the shepherd's pie with salad, a bun, and mini doughnut for dinner. We kept the melba toast and cheese for later.
It was time to settle in to a movie night together, watching Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning. This quote resonated with me: "Our lives are the sum of our choices". MISSION Impossible - The Final Reckoning.
It reminds me that there are choices in everything we do: our job, our path, our relationships, our adventures. Our choices also lie in how we respond to every event: Event+Response=Outcome. This was a Jack Canfield teaching I had from many years ago. No matter the event, the outcome is always dependent on how we react to it. Sort of a mindset lesson - is the cup half empty, or half full? Do we see the cloudy sky as a depressing day, or do we seek the crack of blue in the clouds, or notice how the droplets of rain sit on a blade of grass? We also have the choice to be burdened by negativity, or to release those moments into the others where they can't pull you down. I always try to see the positive, and I am looking forward to adding to the sum of my life with this hike. None of us are perfect, epsecially me, but what if we all embraced that mindset more often? Pretty philosophical thinking for what is almost 3am at home.
Somewhere, over Greenland, it was too pretty not to take a picture. Notice the frost outside our window - outside temps were -41 C!
The sun was rising over Iceland, and the way the light reflected off the frosted window made it even prettier!
After another movie, a little nap, and a tiny breakfast sandwich, we began our decent through the clouds. They reminded me of a raging storm on the ocean. Approaching the Enerald Isle, we got our first views of what our friend, Maureen, calls the 40 shades of green!🍀💚☘️
We have landed in Dublin to begin our Irish adventures!
We arrived in Dublin at 10:30am with plenty of time to gather our luggage, get our transfer tickets, and catch the Dublin Express 782 North bus.
What was the first thing that appeared to us? The crack of blue in the cloudy sky, of course!
Our stop was near the Temple Bar area and only a 15 min walk to the hotel, so we pulled our bags for the quick stroll to Motel One. Bill researched where to stay while in Dublin, and our location is perfect! Here's one view with the Ha'penny Bridge in the distance. An easy way to access the more touristy area of town.
We arrived at our hotel with plenty of time before check in; however, we were offered a room immediately.
Our priority today was to stay awake as long as possible so we can enjoy a good night’s rest. The Hop on Hop Off bus was the perfect way to explore this beautiful city and orient ourselves to some of the sights. The driver serenaded the passengers with Irish tunes between stops. Some of the sights we saw included The National Maternity Hospital - the oldest maternity hospital in the world, The Spire (too tall to get a picture!), Trinity College, GPO, and more.
Here is the outside of Temple Bar. Its quite the attraction with attractive prices, so we moved on.
