It never fails and like clock work for me it's that time of year again. Spring you guess almost instantly? Nope, I play WoW so I only get the bare minimum of fresh air and sunlight. Baseball, NCAA Tournament, gardening, yard work?!? No, unlike normal people my thoughts start to frequently drift across the Atlantic Ocean to the Emerald Isle.
You may be thinking, "Well, that makes at least some sense as St Patrick's day is only a couple weeks away". While that may be true it's only a coincidence, especially considering it's really a religious holiday over there. I mean it's a day commemorating an Irish Saint, the man who almost single handedly converted the country from it's Pagan roots to Catholicism. (So, Pro travel tip here, never plan a trip to see "what must be the crazy Irish celebrations" as you will be severely disappointed!)
Honestly, I thinks it's merely the fact that's it's usually damn close to halfway between our last trip and the next one. But, no matter what the reason, I'm often drifting off on a mental journey visiting places we've been, sights we've seen, people we've meet, or nearly perfect days we've had there. I also might be lamenting missed opportunities to have seen or visited a particular place while we were near, or maybe even also thinking about how a particular location was less then expected or hoped for. Unfortunately Sligo comes to mind for me after two visits and we actually were talking about that fact this past weekend.
But, another thing I'm surely starting to think about is our next visit. What area have we not really visited, what is there to see/do there, where might we wish to visit again and what might we have not seen yet? We also now have the pleasure of having extended family up in Derry that would be extremely offended if we did not visit while we were in Ireland. Also, is anyone going to travel with us as this completely changes the trip from continuing our exploration to revisiting our favorite places. For me this is nearly as fun as the actual trip, looking at maps, doing research, and using my experience in putting together the best itinerary I can.
It's now a personal challenge to combine the maximum bang for our time, yet have it be flexible, relaxed, and enjoyable. Probably the best trip I ever planned was the one I put together for my mothers 2nd trip and sadly she never was able to go and now never will get to experience as she passed nearly 4 months later. But it was an awesome trip though, packed full of amazing sights, one of the most memorable and enjoyable days I've spent in Ireland, capped with by far the craziest night, along with nearly perfect car travel times despite going coast to coast.
The current plans are nearly non-existent as yet with only vague ideas. The only things for certain this visit is we will be in Derry for the first weekend and despite my love for flying in and out of Shannon airport, unless we have others traveling with us, we will be using either Dublin or Belfast. We've toyed with the idea of taking a ferry over to Scotland this year and if so we will most likely beat around in the north a bit, in and around Donegal (ahhh, Donegal) and the Inishowen. If we end up not seeing Scotland this year then maybe making our way through the Midlands down to Kilkenny and the South East. And if by chance any of the many people that have said someday they'd like to visit with us decides to go, we'll do something completely different.
But, no matter what we decide to do, where we end up going, or who might decide to go, I'll be happy, because I'll be there. And then the cycle will be complete and I'll be satisfied...at least till this time next year.
