Two Peas in a European Pod: One Week in Ireland & England — Day 6

You might think the experience would lose a little of its luster the second time around, at least at the margins, but waking up in perhaps the most famous city in the world for a second consecutive day was no less thrilling. The only bugaboo this time is that we didn’t have a full day in London ahead of us. It would be but a mere few hours before we needed to return to London Stansted Airport and head back to Ireland for the very final leg of our whirlwind European adventure, meaning there was no time to spare.

EuropeLogan T. HansenJune 21, 2024travel, travel advice, travel guide, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel diary, travelogue, travel recommendations, travel ideas, travel itinerary, travel planning, travel logistics, travel blogging, travel bucket list, Europe, England, London, Ireland, Dublin, Dublin Airport, London Stansted Airport, Retromania, vintage shop, Iris Cafe, English breakfast, FARA, FARA Charity, Florence & the Machine, Florence Welch, Time Out, Upper Tachbrook, Upper Tachbrook Street, Westminster, British GQ, European vacation, Euro trip, Longmoore Street, Vogue House, Airbnb, Stansted Express, Liverpool Street Station, Tottenham Hale, National Express, Ashling Hotel, Ashling Hotel Dublin, House Baratheon, Game of Thrones, Guinness, Guinness beer, Guinness Storehouse, U2, Nancy Hands, Nancy Hands Bar & Restaurant, River LiffeyComment

Two Peas in a European Pod: One Week in Ireland & England — Day 5

Waking up in London had been an item on my travel bucket list for years — years! — and finally the day had arrived. When my alarm went off at about 8:30 a.m. Thursday, I opened my eyes and found myself in a flat — a flat! — on Longmoore Street in Westminster, with one of the most iconic cities in the world waiting just outside the door.

EuropeLogan T. HansenMay 31, 2024travel, travel ideas, travel guide, travel advice, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel planning, travel blogging, travel diary, travelogue, travel recommendations, travel itinerary, travel bucket list, London, England, United Kingdom, Hatch 77, Westminster, Mayfair, Marylebone, Soho, Buckingham Palace, Victoria Memorial, Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth II, Ghosts Ghouls & Gallows Walking Tour, Big Ben, London Eye, Othello, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, Longmoore Street, Airbnb, Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Sir Henry Tate, Francis Bacon, J.M.W. Turner, Millbank Prison, Millbank Penitentiary, Tate St Ives, Tate Liverpool, Tate Liverpool + RIBA North, Liverpool, St Ives, Cornwall, U.K., Uber, Bankside, Swan London, Swan, panna cotta, Shakespeare, candlelight theater, Iago, Cassio, Desdemona, Patty & Bun, King's Guard, King Charles III, The Mall, The Mall London, Trafalgar Square, St. James's Park, St. James's Park Lake, BoTree Hotel, British GQ, Blue Bridge, Alice in Wonderland, Soho London, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermés, New Bond Street, Kingly Street, Cherry Bomb cocktail, old-fashionedComment

Two Peas in a European Pod: One Week in Ireland & England — Day 4

It wasn’t quite the crack of dawn, but Day 4 in Ireland certainly got off to an earlier start than any of its predecessors. Why, you ask? Well, because a mid-afternoon flight from Dublin to London was definitely going to sneak up on us faster than we would have liked — which meant we had but a few wee hours to see or do anything else in Galway before we had to hit the road, Jack, and not come back no more (no more, no more, no more…).

EuropeLogan T. HansenMay 12, 2024travel, travel guide, travel advice, travel ideas, travelspiration, travel inspiration, travel diary, travel blogging, travelogue, travel recommendations, travel itinerary, travel planning, travel bucket list, Europe, Ireland, England, London, Dublin, Galway, Dublin Airport, Tower of London, London Eye, ghost tour, River Thames, United Kingdom, U.K., Avoca House, bed and breakfast, Scooby-Doo, Ballyloughane, Ballyloughane Beach, Merlin Castle, Merlin, Merlin Park Woods, Medieval, Medieval architecture, Francis Blake, Merlyn, sheela na gig, Ryanair, London Stansted Airport, Cork, Cobh, Limerick, Toyota, Toyota Yaris, Ghosts Ghouls & Gallows Walking Tour, walking tour, TripAdvisor, tripadvisor.com, Westminster, Airbnb, Green Park, St. James's Park, Clarence House, King Charles III, Longmoore Street, Victoria Station, Victoria Coach Station, Chicago Bulls, Big Ben, Uber Boat, Uber, Red Lady, Margaret Pole, The Hung Drawn & Quartered, BrewDog, Dirty Martini - Monument, European vacationComment

Two Peas in a European Pod: One Week in Ireland & England — Day 3

Apparently not ready to leave the cozy confines of Gem’s place in any kind of a hurry, Day 3 in Ireland got off to a slow start. Once we got going, however, we began the day by heading over to the same place the previous evening had concluded: the quaint and colorful city of Cobh.

EuropeLogan T. HansenApril 30, 2024travel, travel ideas, travelspiration, travel inspiration, travel blog, travelogue, travel diary, travel advice, travel guide, travel recommendations, travel tips, travel itinerary, Europe, Ireland, Titanic, Titanic Exhibition, Limerick, Galway, Cobh, Latin Quarter, Kelly's Bar, Clint Eastwood, Cork Harbour, Great Island, RMS Titanic, Traveling Canucks, Titanic Experience, Queenstown, Atlantic Ocean, Martin Gallagher, White Star Line, Bella Italia, Cork, Avoca House, bed and breakfast, Expedia, Expedia.com, Toyota, Toyota Yaris, rental car, city centre, Grafton Street, Ed Sheeran, Ballyloughane, Ballyloughane Beach, Mutton Island, The Kings Head, The Kings Head Pub, The Claddagh, Claddagh, Irish Central, Medieval, Neil Diamond, Sweet Caroline, High Street, King Charles I, European vacationComment

Two Peas in a European Pod: One Week in Ireland & England — Day 2

As far as the day itself was concerned, we hadn’t looked up a ton of things to do or really put any kind of concrete plan in place, but one thing that was absolutely, without-a-doubt, no-ifs-ands-or-buts-about-it on the list was a visit to Blarney Castle. There, we’d have the opportunity to climb up to the parapet or rampart or battlement or whatever you want to call it and kiss the fabled Blarney Stone, which is said to bring good luck and eloquence (“the gift of gab”, so they say) to anyone who lays a wet one on it.

EuropeLogan T. HansenApril 19, 2024travel, travel guide, travel advice, travelspiration, travel inspiration, travel blog, travel blogging, travel writing, travelogue, travel diary, travel ideas, travel recommendations, travel reviews, travel itinerary, travel planning, Europe, Ireland, Cork, Cobh, Titanic, Blarney Stone, Blarney Castle, St. Colman's, St. Colman's Cathedral, Titanic Exhibition, Blarney Castle & Gardens, Airbnb, St. Anne's Church, Shandon Bells, Shandon Bells & St. Anne's Church, Ellacombe apparatus, The Bells of Shandon, Francis Sylvester Mahony, Muskerry Arms Bar and B&B, Champions League, Muskerry Arms, England, Himalayan Valley, Vietnamese Woodland, Poison Garden, Druid's Circle, Witch's Cave, Seven Sisters, Horse Graveyard, Simba, garderobe, Medieval castle, murder hole, Fern Garden, Titanic Bar & Grill, Edward Smith, Captain Smith, architectureComment

Two Peas in a European Pod: One Week in Ireland & England — Day 1

It was only recently, as in within the last couple years, that I learned just how Irish I am. That sounds odd perhaps, but I’ve lived most of my life believing I was mostly Polish. That may still be true, but according to data from MyHeritage, my maternal grandmother was 94.1% Irish, Scottish, and Welsh, which no doubt means some of that Irish blood runs through me, as well. Armed with this information, I set out for my newly-realized ancestral homeland in late March 2024, looking to connect with my Irish heritage and maybe drink a Guinness or two.

2023, Won't You Wander With Me? The Final Epistle From a Travel-Filled Missile

The year 2023, with all of its ups and downs, peaks and valleys, and trials and tribulations, has come and gone — as has another 365 days here on All Things Wanderful. So now it’s time to take stock. What caught people’s attention? What fell flat on its face? Were you, the loyal readers of this increasingly-sporadic travel blog, entertained, or at least mildly amused? Did you find the content contained within this digital rambling wreck informational? Enlightening? Perhaps even erudite?

General TravelLogan T. HansenJanuary 7, 2024travel, travel advice, travel guide, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel writing, travel blog, travel blogging, travel recommendations, travel reading, travel reviews, travel ideas, All Things Wanderful, travel diary, travel bucket list, northernmost point, Canada, Great Lakes, Cal-Neva, Cal-Neva Lodge, California, Nevada, Michigan, Little Manistee, Little Manistee River, kayaking, Maine, ghost trains, Key West, Florida, New York City, Big Apple, Chicago, Oklahoma City, Flint Hills, Route 66, Historic Route 66, Fayetteville, Arkansas, Alum Cave Trail, The Sinks, Old Smoky Distillery, Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Minnesota, George Floyd, George Floyd Square, Kansas City, Missouri, Crystal Mountain, Crystal Mountain Resort, Seattle, Twin Peaks, Powderhorn Park, Minneapolis, Kansas, Wichita, skiing, Mall of America, George Perry Floyd Square, Ground Zero, The Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn, Rockefeller Center, The Edge, The Edge NYC, NYC, New York, Hall des Lumières, Mediterranean food, Ernest Hemingway, Northern Michigan, Airbnb, Bering Strait, Diomedes, Diomede Islands, Little Diomede, Big Diomede, travelogueComment

'Ten Thousand Lightning Bugs': Experiencing Firefly Music Festival in the Woodlands of Dover

It was mid-February when I decided to drop $350 on a four-day weekend pass to a summer music festival. I was in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at a friend's place, looking over the details online — who would be playing, where we would stay, etc. — when he and I pulled the trigger and signed ourselves up for the Firefly Music Festival in Dover, Delaware, the capital of America's first state.

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