by the way

forgot to mention that i saw irvine welsch, author of trainspotting, in a bar in galway. pretty cool stuff; very intense looking tall and bald.

The City of Class

So here I am in Paris with quite a cold sadly. Thankfully I am out of the hostels and now staying with my friend marie. She is keeping me full of fluids with lots of tea. Need to lay low today as I am being dragged out tonight. Guess we are going to a private after party for the lead singer of audioslave. we have couple free tix to his solo show but we are not really into his stuff.

The Parisians are so effortlessly chic. Even the children have quite a presence. They have such an inborn style. Anyway thats all I can say about it at the moment. Get back to you after I get over this snottyness. Wish me luck. Off for some chicken soup.

Ayayay

To Paris I go and boy am I excited:

Goodbye to you dear hostels,
Goodbye to sharing restrooms,
Goodbye to showering with flip flops on,
Goodbye to sleeping with a feet stench (this time not my own!)
Goodbye to broken ovens,
Goodbye to feeling like the new kid at school,
Goodbye to Ireland.

Falling in Love with Galway

So in usual Holly fashion I have managed to leave my camera charger in New York. Lovely. So these pics will be the last for a bit until I am in possession of the charger again.

At least I was able to grab a few. Although they are not too touristy or sceneic. They are basically you looking at me having craic (Irish for fun; pronounced "crack".

Galway is thus far my favorite part of Ireland. This is what I came here for. Traditional music, congregation of young and old, and medieval architecture.

An Irish pal of mine informed me that Galway was nicknamed the "Cemetary of Ambition". Musicians and artists move here to further their careers, have too much fun, and end up living and dying here. I can see why. I myself am having trouble leaving. So far I have extended my stay here two nights.

Shout out to Carrie and Ahjay "CONGRATULATIONS!!" I am so happy for you two. So psyched to be attending a wedding as opposed to working one. Cannot wait. XOXO

Walking Like a Zombie in Dublin

So I arrived this morning after taking a red eye to Dublin. I got zero sleep on the plane as the seat was so narrow and uncomfortable. Since my bed is unavailable until 2:30pm I have spent the entire day straining to keep my eyes open. The day has consisted of me walking aimlessly around.

Not sure if it is my sever jet lag or what but Dublin is not exactly what I had expected. The people have been splendid and I think I made some friends at an adorable hole in the wall Irish cafe. The owner/cook, Brenden, gave me some good advice. I am his daughter's age and she is currently in Florida so we had a nice conversation about that. So the people have been super friendly BUT I must say this place is pretty dirty. I had a cleaner, greener Dublin in my mind.

The weather however is phenomenal thus far. Its warmer here than in Manhattan. I think I will be better able to assess the city after I have taken a nap, but for now I think I am viewing it through pessimistic, weary eyes.

I may even try to go to Galway sooner and stay there a bit longer. Every Irishmen I have asked about Galway has said raived about how musical and gorgeous it is. When I asked my Irish buddy in Manhattan about Dublin he said, "Dublin's a shithole." I am not sure I would go that far but it certainly is not the heaven I had built it up to be. Guess I got carried away by the Irish accent assuming that all Irish came from green fields.

I will soon post some photos...after I take some.

Goodbye lovely St. Pete

Trashy she may be. Despite her faults there is much beauty in quaint St. Petersburg, FL. She will always be my home base through all of my adventures and shenanigans. I keep her close to my heart. I get the feeling I am a "big fish in a little pond" until those bigger fish come along and swallow me whole. I am sure to meet bigger fish than me in Europe.

All in all I am super psyched about my trip! No matter how scary travelling on a one way ticket may seem none of it compares to the terrors and unknowns of adulthood. We gotta keep treckin' on. For us Saggitarians that probably entails a lot of gypsy style travelling. So here goes.....

Shout out to my homies in 33701 woo woo!

Stay tuned for more love thy passport posts. Don't worry mom and dad, I won't be posting too many scandilous photographs. Wouldn't want to tarnish my stellar repuation.