Anyone doing anything cool this summer?

[jenniferuk]

Originally Posted by Amlyn

A week from right now I"ll be on a flight to Ireland. My first time to Europe! I'm very excited. I"m staying for 2 weeks on the Western Coast outside of Shannon.

After that....well, working to pay off all the bills from this trip.

Enjoy! The Cliffs of Moher are a very popular tourist destination and won't disappoint. True beauty and one of my favourite spots. You'll have a wonderful holiday--so much to explore.

[Amlyn]

Originally Posted by jenniferuk

Enjoy! The Cliffs of Moher are a very popular tourist destination and won't disappoint. True beauty and one of my favourite spots. You'll have a wonderful holiday--so much to explore.

Oh yeah!! I'm looking very forward to that!

Any other pointers on weather? I'm clueless on what to pack.

[jenniferuk]

Originally Posted by Amlyn

Oh yeah!! I'm looking very forward to that!

Any other pointers on weather? I'm clueless on what to pack.

I would pack lots of layers--short sleeved tops/t-shirts, long sleeve or 3/4 length sleeve etc, a sweater and a waterproof coat. I haven't been that way in a couple of years but I remember the wind--thought I was going to blow off the cliff! It could easily be 50 degrees and windy or 70 and sunny so prepare for all cases and check online weather before you go. Many European homes/hotels do not have A/C as heat waves are rare, but do happen.

We moved to the USA from London about 3 years ago and we go to Europe about once a year. I pack jeans, black trousers, shirts of varying weight/sleeve length, a light coat and something for evenings out (skirt of easy-travel black dress). On the plane I usually wear comfy shoes and clothes that won't get too wrinkled. We've become expert at travelling light from all the times we've had to lug bags on trains, etc.

Check out the Rick Steves website for good info--a friend reco'd that to us and it's a helpful site.

Make sure your camera batteries are fully charged--you'll take tons of shots at the cliffs. I've got some framed as 8x10 on my office walls-stunning images.

[Amlyn]

Originally Posted by jenniferuk

I would pack lots of layers--short sleeved tops/t-shirts, long sleeve or 3/4 length sleeve etc, a sweater and a waterproof coat. I haven't been that way in a couple of years but I remember the wind--thought I was going to blow off the cliff! It could easily be 50 degrees and windy or 70 and sunny so prepare for all cases and check online weather before you go. Many European homes/hotels do not have A/C as heat waves are rare, but do happen.

We moved to the USA from London about 3 years ago and we go to Europe about once a year. I pack jeans, black trousers, shirts of varying weight/sleeve length, a light coat and something for evenings out (skirt of easy-travel black dress). On the plane I usually wear comfy shoes and clothes that won't get too wrinkled. We've become expert at travelling light from all the times we've had to lug bags on trains, etc.

Check out the Rick Steves website for good info--a friend reco'd that to us and it's a helpful site.

Make sure your camera batteries are fully charged--you'll take tons of shots at the cliffs. I've got some framed as 8x10 on my office walls-stunning images.

Thanks so much!! I am no where close to mastering the art of traveling light, so i need to really plan this out. I got the impression that i will need to layer and that the temps would vary by location.

Luckily we are staying at a house for the entire duration and i'll have access to a washer and dryer. That should help with what I need to pack. I have almost everything I need, but i'm still scoping out a good waterproof windbreaker. I'm actually off to the mall shortly to see if i can snag one.

I'm really looking forward to this and hope this is the first of many trips for me over to Europe!

How do you like living in the states? Is the day to day a lot different from how life is in London? Where in Ohio are you?

[jenniferuk]

Originally Posted by Amlyn

Thanks so much!! I am no where close to mastering the art of traveling light, so i need to really plan this out. I got the impression that i will need to layer and that the temps would vary by location.

Luckily we are staying at a house for the entire duration and i'll have access to a washer and dryer. That should help with what I need to pack. I have almost everything I need, but i'm still scoping out a good waterproof windbreaker. I'm actually off to the mall shortly to see if i can snag one.

I'm really looking forward to this and hope this is the first of many trips for me over to Europe!

How do you like living in the states? Is the day to day a lot different from how life is in London? Where in Ohio are you?

We like it here--it's very different and there are things I miss (proximity to Europe--easy to hop to Paris, etc, public transport, friends/fam) and things that I don't (London is crowded, expensive, damp and mouldy). A lot of that is not as much US/Uk differences as it is big city/suburb differences--our jobs kept us in London until a transfer and ill MIL got us here. Ohio would not have been our first choice but it's been fine and I love the public smoking ban (which the UK now has, too). We live in a suburb of Columbus and it reminds us a bit of Europe---we live in an old Victorian house, can walk 3 blocks to 2 pubs, library, a big park, French bakery. There is a twice weekly farmers market and no McDonalds for miles (we had 4 Starbucks on our street in London--I don't like chains or cookie-cutter neighbourhoods).

Biggest day-to-day difference is the weather but we've adjusted to the extremes and like the hot summers. We have a slightly longer working day here, but much less commuting time--there it took me 90 minutes to travel the 10 miles to work. Here, it seems we can get anywhere in 15 minutes but it's car not train travel. We plan to move back to the UK at some point (15+ yrs from now) to a quiet village.

You'll have such a wonderful adventure--make sure to report back!