On the Sunny Side of Things

Today I took off my shoes and noticed, for the first time, calluses that have formed on my soles and the backs of my ankles. This I attribute to the mass amount of walking I have been doing since arriving in Dublin. I’m thoroughly glad I bought good walking boots when I got here, otherwise I’d definitely be in pain. It’s a good thing I got a Fitbit for my birthday, as it has been recording the impressive number of steps that I’ve been able to reach.

Bray and the beach

One example was the walk from Bray to Greystones a couple of us did last weekend (27,122 steps!) Although, really, getting an impressive step count didn’t matter to me nearly as much as spending time with friends walking around Bray Head and taking in the view of the ocean. It really was a gorgeous 7 km (4.3 mile) walk and, accompanied with good conversation and the sounds of waves against the rocks, I got home that day feeling absolutely peaceful.

Another big walking trip I did this past weekend was a three day excursion to Barcelona. Though sunny every day, it got quite chilly at night, which is when we wandered down to the beaches to take in the sand and the surf against the lights of the city. Though we spent most of the weekend wandering without any real direction (obviously we could have planned the places we wanted to go better haha!), it was still enormously fun, and my highlight was hiking up to Park Güell and walking around it while listening to a Spanish guitar player strum luscious melodies. I’m pretty sure that made me fall in love with that moment; there was so much beauty to look at, but combined with the music made it all the more magical.

Park Güell, Barcelona

On a side note, we now have less than two weeks before returning home!! It’s so hard to believe, I think my mouth hits the floor every time I check to see what day it is. We’ll see what these last few weeks here in Ireland will bring me.