We made it!

We are alive and well at our hotel in Dublin. The flight with Aer Lingus went super smooth, the flight attendants were incredibly friendly, and overall it was wonderful.  Customs took a bit, as did getting the rental car. Thom was upset about the rental car--I prebooked it, thinking I got a great deal-and I think I did, but we forgot about insurance...well that's another $400!!!! What?! Then I wanted the device for wi-fi so I could have wi-fi wherever I go-car or hotel....that was more money...So we've been in Dublin a whopping 3 hours and I've spent a lot of money--oops.

Driving on the other side of the road with a sleep deprived husband is not an experience I would want to live through again. But we made it. It is now 11:40am here and instead of being awesome tourists, we're napping. Dang Jet Lag. More later.

Airport 2

The majority of our day has been spent in New York at the airport. Thom enjoyed some beers at a sports bar and we had nachos for a snack. We also facetimed with Penny!

We're getting ready to board soon--talk to you in Dublin!

Washington DC

The airplane to Washington D.C. is amazing! I knew we might have little screens in front of us, but it is amazing how much different it is from just a few years ago....this system now has 219 movies, 111 short programs, 335 music channels, 21 games, 1 flight progress screen and parental control! Last time I was on a flight like this we had just a couple movies to choose from-wow how things change!

Our first flight went well...Thom is having some sinus issues-he had them one other time coming back from Florida. He says it feels like his head is about to explode and his eyes water and nose runs...it's bizarre. But of course, he won't take medicine. Ugh.

We got in a little bit early to Washington DC. Beth (a friend from CYC) picked us up. We then drove from Dulles to her and her husband ,Scott's (another friend from camp) home in Alexandria. The houses are so beautiful there! Mostly brick and instead of building out, like how we do in Iowa, they build up! It was a super neat house.

Our first stop was the Potomac River harbor where a man gave us some bread to feed the geese and carpe. We then made our way to a pub called "Union Street Public" where we enjoyed some drinks and some AMAZING crab dip.  Thom tried a Virginia Own beer which was made specifically for that bar.  We then went across the street for dinner. I had linguine with clams and Thom had a virtue burger. Both were delicious.  Thom also tried more local beer called Cherry Blossom Lager and a Hoegaarden. He said all beers were awesome, but he especially liked the Virginia Own.

After dinner, Scott and Beth took us on an awesome tour of the mall.  Thom was like a kid in a candy shop. The Washington Monument was under construction because of an earthquake and the entire thing was covered in scaffolding. We then got to see the WWII monument which was neat to see because Papa took an Honor Flight to see it.  The fountains were beautiful.  There were wreaths around of where new honor flights have visited.  We also saw thenVietnam Memorial which was amazing of course, there were many items there from Memorial Day. We saw many crosses, wreaths, and poems. Our next stop was the Lincoln Memorial. Amazing. We then walked through the Korean War monument, Roosevelt Monument, and Jefferson Monument.  From a distance we saw the Pentagon and the White House. The walk was absolutely beautiful and the weather could not have been better. As we were walking we just kept saying, "When we come back next time....." There is no doubt in our minds we will be back again. We had an absolute blast with Scott and Beth. 

We are currently waiting for our flight in Washington DC to take us to New York and then off to Dublin we go! 

Airport

We woke up super early this morning (3:15), Penny was a little confused. Mom brought us to the airport where we checked in with no problems....the cost of an extra suitcase went down-who knew?! We are now through security waiting at our gate. There are a lot of student groups here-they must be going on school trips. We're headed to Houston then DC.....silly isn't it? We're looking forward to getting into DC to meet up with my friend who will show us around DC! More to come later!

Getting Ready

Here is the blog for our Ireland trip!