St Patrick's day (my birthday)

Due to being so close to Ireland and the fact that my birthday is on St Patrick's Day I thought it would be rude not to pop over for a party with the Irish. I got time off work and jumped on a tour to the green isle. We took the bus up through the midlands and through the top of Wales (lots of sheep there) and caught the ferry at Holyhead. Up until then the bus ride was very tame but several drinks later on the 3.5 hr crossing and everybody was getting on well after that.

Belfast, Northern Ireland - Arriving in the pouring rain in a merry state we headed straight for a real Irish pub. The next morning we headed north and to the Giant's Causeway to look at the strange hexagonal rocks and the northern coast line. After a massive pub roast we slept on the way back before heading out on a black taxi tour of the Protestant and Catholic areas. The cab driver gave us a run down of the Troubles and we checked out the murals that both sides have put up around the area.



Dublin, Ireland - Off to Dublin, our first stop was the Guinness brewery. The tour wasn't anything special but at the top we got great views over Dublin and a free pint of Guinness. Because it was my birthday and some of the girls didn't like the taste I ended up with 4 free Guinnesses and feeling very full afterwards. Then we headed off to the parade which was very difficult to see because of the massive scrums of people. At least the weather was good. Then it was off to the pub and a lot of drinking and partying into the early hours of the night. The next day we were heading home again all feeling a little worse for wear but all the better for it. It was definitely a great birthday.