As I started planning my trip to Ireland, I knew that I wanted to drive either the “Ring of Fire” or Dingle Peninsula. I was a little too timid to drive the Ring of Fire after hearing about the steep, narrow, busy roads, so I opted for Dingle instead, and I’m so glad I did. The drive from Kilarney to Dingle was adorable, with views of the ocean and green fields alike. I had made a pretty solid playlist before heading to Ireland in preparation for hours in the car by myself, so with Vance Joy’s “Mess is Mine” and The Tallest Man on Earth’s “Love is All” blasting on repeat, I started on my journey north.

I stopped in Dingle for lunch, and wandered the colorful, adorable town for an hour before stopping in a little cafe for a quick toasty. As I wandered around taking pictures, a little girl with firey red hair caught my eye and I smiled at her. ” Look what I have!” She exclaimed, holding up a two euro coin. “I’m going to get ice cream!” She giggled nonstop while her mom gave me a sweet smile. “What flavor?” ” PINK!” She yelled as she skipped away towards her reward. Of course, after that sweet interaction I knew I needed to get ice cream too, so I stopped by Murphy’s for a little cone of goodness. I was overwhelmed by the amount of delicious flavors, and the awesome guy working there recommended that I taste ALL of them before choosing, which of course I did.

After Dingle town I ventured up the coast for some breathtaking views. I stopped off at a random parking lot with a sign for “ancient huts”, paid a sweet girl of about 10 a few euros, and wandered up behind her family’s property to look at some old stone huts. They were aparently some of the first dwellings on the island, and were really really REALLY old. To be honest, it was pretty lame, but what wasn’t lame was all the BABY LAMBS frolicking around their field! I took about a million photos and asked the girl about a million questions about the farm. She was so sweet I could tell that she welcomed conversation from someone that wasn’t an old boring tourist.

The rest of the drive was breathtakingly beautiful, serene, and peaceful. I stopped when I wanted to and where I wanted too, took too many photos (if that’s a thing) and soaked up the moment and experience.

I ended the night in Galway, which is, I’m sure, an awesome town, but wasn’t my favorite place this trip. The main street was lined with tons of restaurants, bars, and people playing music, and it would have been awesome to have another person there to experience with. But by myself I felt slightly lonely (for the first time that trip) and ate quickly at a busy restaurant while listening to some live music. It was the most touristy place I had been so far and my interactions were pretty short, quick, and too the point. But, I’m glad I was able to see it and I’m definitely planning on coming back (with Jack hopefully!) to really experience the town.