In a month I'll be drinking a Guiness... in Dublin.

    I was lucky to be born from parents who love to travel. My parents moved to the U.S. fresh off the boat from the Philippines (okay, really they flew on a plane).  The U.S. was a whole new world to them and they had to see all four corners. And that we did...

    ... skipping rocks on the coast of Maine, while my parents ravenously binged on cheap lobster.

    ... a donkey chasing after our car in South Dakota, because my brother was holding graham crackers out the window.

    ... fishing with my cousins and uncles in the Golf of Mexico... catching a huge fish we could barely carry... frying that baby up and chomping him down for dinner.

    ... watching two men argue over where to hang their potted plant in San Francisco. 

    ... waking up to the ocean for a week when we rented a condo in Hilton Head

    ... visiting the king of rock 'n roll's Graceland mansion in Memphis.

                      ... oh memories...

    When we got a little bit older and our parents knew we would actually remember expensive trips, they started taking us out of the country to places other than the Philippines.  My beloved list of places traveled  with my family include... Australia, Thailand, Cayman Islands, France, Switzerland, Mexico, Canada, England, and Italy.  

When I became old enough to leave the country with friends... I traveled to Cancun with friends for our high school senior trip. That was a sh*t show to say the least.  I honestly don't know how I convinced my parents to allow me to take that trip at 17 years old.  Then, I traveled to Germany in the summer of 2008.  At that time we also drove a car down to Switzerland, because who can get enough of the Swiss Alps?

 In Luzerne, Switzerland. I would move there if I could.

And soon... on JUNE 2... I get to add IRELAND to my list!!

    Jay is going for the Psychoneuroimmunology Research Society (PNIRS) conference.  I am just tagging along, because I don't even know what Psychoneuroimmunology means... well I do... kinda... okay, not really.  While he and his lab friends will be at the conference all week, my camera and I will be touring the city by day... drinking brews with the locals, learning about Irish history, and snapping photos of the castles.

    I just bought a book from Barnes&Noble that I can take with me. It comes with a fold out map... I had to ensure that all the locals know I am a total tourist (as if they won't be able to tell by the giant camera I will be lugging around). The book is called Top 10 Dublin.  It has lists of top ten greatest pubs, places to enjoy Irish music, restaurants and cafes, etc. This little book will be so useful since I am making such a brief visit.

     

    We finally booked our hotel today! We are staying at the adorable Central Hotel. It is right by Trinity College which is where the conference is being hosted.  The hotel is one of the oldest in Dublin, dating back to 1887!  From the pictures on the website (hopefully trustworthy), the hotel has an old world charm, but all modern amenities. There is even a library bar in the hotel; from the pictures it is a place to argue over who really won World War II as you sip your nightcap and smoke from your pipe.. all while adjusting your monocle (I plan to do all of these things, of course).

 Central Hotel

Trinity College

    I do intend on posting while I am there, but who really knows. I may find out that I love Guinness and Jameson (well... I already love Jameson) and I could be tipsy and red in the face the entire trip! Who am I kidding... this is probably what's going to happen.

    I will now leave you with an Irish toast... 

Here’s to you and yours, And to mine and ours, And if mine and ours ever come Across you and yours, I hope you and yours will do As much for mine and ours, As mine and ours have done For you and yours!