Ireland in Retrospect: Our last day in Ireland! Plus Travel Home

Our last day in Ireland September 25

We woke up early this morning, got our car by 8, and then started driving back to Dublin. The rental car was due at 2, and it would be at least a 3 hour drive. Plus we wanted to stop to eat on the way, of course. I don't remember the name of the cafe (or town for that matter) we stopped at, but here's a pic of my yummy brunch!

Scrambled eggs and bacon on avocado sour dough toast, crisps, and salad

We got to Dublin about 12:30, and pretty much went straight to our hotel - The Merrion Hotel. Right off the bat, I was very impressed with how courteous and professional everyone was. They helped us unload our bags onto a cart (we'd accumulated a few more things that needed to be packed and some of my travel cubes were not inside my backpack, so it took more hands to carry everything inside), and then I made myself comfortable out on the terrace while Justin took the car back to Budget. And he had to take a couple buses back to the hotel. It was a good hour or so before he made his way back to me. Justin enjoyed a couple pints for lunch and I had a €20 club sandwich. We were allowed to check in to our room at 3, which gave me a little time to go buy some shirts for the girls. I decided to walk to St. Stephen's Green shopping center, which was within walking distance.

I knew that I wouldn't have cell service (I kept my phone on airplane mode the entire time, and only used my phone when there was WIFI), so I had to know where I was going before I left. I confidently walked (speedily, since that's how it's done in Dublin haha) to my destination. I bought a cute shirt for each girl (I didn't mention that we bought an Irish soccer jersey for Deuce in Killarney) and a magnet before heading back to the hotel. It didn't matter how confident I looked or how fast I walked now. My tourist status was totally given away by my Carroll's Irish Gifts bag. Haha Hey what can I say? I am a tourist! Did I mention that the employees would nod in my direction and call me "Ms. Jones" every time they saw me? It made me feel very grown up. Haha!

I got back right on time. We were informed that we had been upgraded to the Garden Suite! We were escorted to our room, which was located at the end of a hall with double doors! By far, it's the nicest and biggest hotel room - er rooms - I've ever stayed in. It had a bedroom (duh), a sitting room with a lovely desk, an office, a big gorgeous bathroom, and a half bath! We did not take any time to make ourselves comfortable, and therefore, I didn't get any good shots of the suite that didn't have our things in the way. So, you'll just have to take my word for it when I say it was amazing.

I spent some time enjoying the luxurious bathroom, and then packed up my things the best I could, and then we got ourselves ready for afternoon Art Tea at 4:30 down in the drawing room. That was a very expensive (let's face it, everything about this hotel was expensive!) little tea party. But it was enjoyable! Merrion Hotel has the largest collection of artwork in the country, and each week the pastry chef creates three desserts inspired by artwork in the hotel. We also had champagne (first glass was a special €12 per glass, but then afterward was €24 each! Needless to say, we just had one glass each.), finger sandwiches, little cakes, and of course, tea. The gentleman and the young lady helping us were very attentive. Although, at one point Justin decided to stand up and refill his cup, and the gentleman seemed almost embarrassed that Justin felt the need to help himself. I know Justin simply felt that he was capable of pouring his own tea, but the server was adamant about serving us. Here are a handful of pictures we took during the Art Tea.

This was taken before we moved to a different table in the drawing room.

Love the fork stands!

Let's see, smoke salmon, ham and whole grain mustard,
cucumber, egg salad, and turkey sandwiches.

Scones with raspberry jam and clotted cream, lemon cake, Guinness
chocolate cake and another cake with terrible colors. Go Bucks!

You have to use your imagination a bit to see the connections, especially the middle one.

Justin had made reservations for a restaurant in the hotel, but we finished our tea at around 6, and we were stuffed! So we decided that we'd forego dinner and save a little money in the process! I spent some time journaling about the rest of our trip, thought about everything we'd done and seen, and made this word art:

Travel Home September 26

We woke up around 6, so we could get to the bus stop that would take us to the Dublin Airport. While waiting at the bus stop, at around 6:30, Justin got a text notification from United, informing us that our flight would be delayed five and a half hours!! Why couldn't they have texted 30 minutes ago when we were still in bed?! I would've liked to visit one last cafe before leaving, but nothing was open that early in the morning. Plus, Justin decided it was better to just get to the airport.

When the bus arrived, we realized it was actually €7 each for the trip! We didn't have enough change! But thankfully, and in typical Irish fashion, the bus driver was nice enough to let us pay with a €20 bill! We got to airport, went through security - by the way, even the security employees were charming and funny! We also went through customs, which is a definite perk traveling from Dublin to the U.S, so we wouldn't have to do it when we got into Chicago. Eventually, we made our way to the area of the airport designated for those traveling to America. And once we crossed a certain barrier, we weren't able to go back.

We made ourselves comfortable at a table near a little restaurant and waited for several hours until our plane came. We were given some vouchers for food and drinks, so we had plenty to eat and drink while waiting. At one point, Justin went to a news stand to buy himself a book. He also bought me the Humans of Dublin book. I finished writing in my journal while we sat too.

Finally, we were able to board the plane. Thankfully, Justin got us economy plus tickets, so our seats were toward the front of the plane. And it was just the two of us in our row! I sat in the window seat, so I could get pictures while flying.

On the runway.

Taking off

Lambay Island

So long, beautiful Ireland!

One last look.

Between the clouds

Above the clouds

In addition to the food vouchers, United let us watch movies on the plane at no cost. I decided to watch Beauty and the Beast and Hidden Figures. I liked both of them. I also read through my Humans of Dublin book. It is so good! And very moving. My eyes started hurting from all the tears. Haha. I think I was overly emotional since our dream vacation was ending. 

By the time we landed in Chicago, I had a full-blown headache. And to make mattes worse, it was in the 90s! (Oh yeah, and Justin got a call that our van had been recovered!) We walked to Union Station from the airport, and took the bumpy, unpleasant train ride to the Amtrak station. When we got there, Justin went to find me a contact case and solution, so I could give my eyes some relief. The best he could do was some eye drops and a case, but it would do. I then stretched out on the floor by our seats and dozed off for about 45 minutes. I'm so glad that when I woke up my headache was gone!

We got onto the Hiawatha train to Milwaukee. Here's the last selfie of our trip. We're exhausted! Sad to be done with our amazing Ireland vacation with each other, but ready to be home. Also, I think I may have left my journal on this train. So sad. 

It was close to 10pm when we finally pulled into our driveway. I couldn't resist peeking in at the kids and giving them hugs and kisses. Piper is the only one who wasn't sleeping and came downstairs to hang out with us for a bit. Tomorrow we'll get a rental car and check out the condition of the van. 

Back to life. Back to reality.