Day Thirteen - Thursday, January 1, 2026
Our best buddy and travel guru Laura Lindner told not to miss the Cliffs of Mohr, especially since we missed the Cliffs of Kerry. So we packed up and grabbed some breakfast from the buffet (it appeared to be for everyone but it wasn't, oh well) and went up and down elevators and stairs to the world's tightest parking lot. We made it out without scraping the car, but I have no idea how we did it. We held our breath around every corner for at least four floors.
The drive to the Cliffs of Mohr was an hour and forty minutes. This was the most green and beautiful Irish countryside we saw, but it was wavy, hilly and not a good idea to drive when most of us felt tired and were nursing weak stomachs. I think the Cliffs of Kerry would have been less touristy than the Cliffs of Mohr. We found tourist buses and souvenir shops at the beginning of the cliff walk. But the countryside was stunning.
The cliffs featured a castle overlooking the ocean, a hilly path, Irish buskers and gorgeous views of green hills, white sheep and beautiful green water. We walked about 2.5 km to see the views and then hopped into the car to get to Dublin.
Highway food isn't really an option on the main tollway from Galway to Dublin. We found a Supermacs which was a place for gas that featured several fast food options. On our way to Dublin, Ben was starting to feel very ill, likely tired and driving and navigating on the windy roads. (Foreshadowing it turns out all but Madelyn had been infected by a virus.) The window to drop off our car rental was shrinking, so we dropped Madelyn, Jack and Ben at our hotel located in the middle of Dublin right on the River Liffey. Dublin, in the past 36 years, has radically changed. It has become the pharma and tech capital of Europe. And while there are some older buildings dotting the skyline, along with cobble stone streets, but the city features many more modern office buildings, sky scrapers and cranes looking to build more commercial structures.
A quick trip back to the airport, with a pit stop for gas, we dropped our car on time and without penalty. I don't think Madelyn and Ben will ever ride as passengers when Gary drives on the right side of the road driving a stick shift with his left hand. But we survived and took the Dublin express back to our hotel. That was not a great idea, it was packed, expensive and a bit of a walk to our hotel.
At this point Ben was feeling badly and also got sick. Madelyn and Jack left the room so he could rest and went out to check out Dublin. They found a very cool pub called the Palace Bar which had a upstairs whiskey tasting room. The bar distilled its own whiskey which both Jack and Gary sampled but didn't really like.
We decided to try a Thai restaurant the China Ginger Inn near the Palace Bar. The place was crowded but they seated us at a table by the door. (A chilly option but we survived.) We were in search of vegetables which are almost completely non existent in Ireland. So we tried some sautéed vegetables, pad Thai, and curry. It was decent but not over the top.
We explored a bit more of Dublin by walking by the backside of Trinity College but I was starting to feel sick and wanted to get back to the hotel.
Unfortunately, I caught whatever Jack, Gary and Ben experienced and found myself sick and on the bathroom floor the entire night. According to my sleep score I got a 10! It was a horrible night.
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