I know I talk about traveling a lot but there is a reason. It’s not just fulfilling, it’s cathartic. It gives you the opportunity to learn other cultures and history while spending time with those you love and meeting new people.
Recently my daughter and I traveled to Ireland, Wales, England, and France. We gained so much more than history and culture. We learned more about each other while there as well.
This is our third trip together through EF Tours. A tour group that aims to educate through travel. Last year was New Zealand and Australia. The year before was Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, a quick lunch stop in Slovakia, then ending in Hungary. These trips are packed to the brim with experiences. They do have optional experiences but they often give you cheaper (because group pricing) opportunities to see things you may not otherwise see. But, for almost 2 weeks, that means you are on the go from sun up to sun down. It’s exhausting, but worth it.
So this trip started in Ireland. We had a walking tour of Dublin, then met the other school groups we were spending the next couple weeks with to travel to Shannon. We stopped in Bunratty along the way.
The town is so cute! History and wildlife. Educational and relaxing.
After that we went to the hotel where most of us ate our dinner then went to bed. Time zone change, lots of travel, lots of walking, and a lot more driving across country (yes it’s smaller than Indiana but it’s a whole country and we came from the other side of the Atlantic).
We did the Ring of Kerry next. We went to a bog village, drank Irish coffee, saw ALL the animals, gave a goat butt scratches, saw a “wee man and his donkey” (according to our tour director), stopped in a cute coastal town for lunch, saw a sheep and dog herding show, pet sheep and goats (and one cat), then drove our enormous coach through narrow streets and one tight tunnel.
The next day we were leaving Tralee and driving back to Dublin. My daughter woke up with food poisoning. She was miserable. I did what any mother would do and held up the entire group so I could wait for the pharmacy to open and get her something to help. We all piled into the coach, stopped in Blarney for a few hours, then hit the road to Dublin.
Kenzie woke up feeling much better but not quite 100% so we took it easy in Dublin. We had a walking tour, a bus tour, and a visit to the EPIC museum which is all about emigration. That night, though. We went dancing!
I was under the impression when this trip first came up that the Irish dance and music experience would be us seeing a show. Nope. It was not. We learned a couple simple Irish dances, a few traditional sing songs, and how to play the Bodhran. What a unique experience!
We took a ferry across the Irish Sea into Wales and stopped in Conwy. An actual walled city where people still live. There were so many people walking their dogs. It was a very picturesque town.
I would say the Stratford Upon Avon was my favourite town but I have too many favourites to claim it outright. It was beautiful and we fed pigeons, swans, ducks, and geese…and one dog…
When we got to London, we had decided to skip the excursion to Windsor Castle and spend six hours walking around the city instead. It was the right choice. Trafalgar Square had a Canada Day celebration that we stopped in. We got on the tube. We went to the Globe Theatre. We saw London Bridge and Tower Bridge from a river cruise down the Thames. It was such a lovely day I wasn’t sure it could be topped…and then we went to Paris…
Paris is a wonderful city and when we arrived, they were having a heatwave. It was HOOOTTTT. But, we managed. We saw all the must sees and had a few free hours so naturally my daughter needed a graduation present. We both have a thing for Christian Louboutin shoes. They have a store in Paris, naturally, so we went. Now my daughter has a pair of red bottom heels purchased in Paris. Happy graduation to her!
Then we tried to go home. I say tried because day one we got bumped off our flight, rebooked the next day, set up in a hotel with meal vouchers, and got “stuck” (oh gosh darn) in Paris for an extra night. What does one do with a free night in Paris? Seine River cruise, of course! The next day we attempted to go home again only to get bumped again. So we had a second free day in Paris. This time we decided to find a little café my daughter saw online that makes aligot and steak frites. Wow, that food was fantastic!
We eventually did make it onto a plane and home. The flight we were on was so empty they were moving people around to make sure the plane was balanced. Kenzie and I each had our own rows.
What did this trip teach us? How to love culture and history and each other more than the day before. How to communicate, not just with each other but total strangers and even in a different language.
Travel isn’t just about seeing things. It about creating memories and learning things you didn’t know before. You can be taught in school but until you see it with your own eyes, touch it with your own hands (if allowed), walked where people have been walking for hundreds of years, it doesn’t sink in the same way.
So to anyone who wants some unsolicited advice, dare to wander. Open your hearts up to wonder.
Oily Minded Medic 