sunny day

A couple of weekends ago, I had a good friend come into town for the weekend. It was a gorgeous sunny spring day, and the weather was unexpectedly great for that early in the year. I met my friend for lunch on campus, and afterward I headed up to our Capitol hoping to shoot some photos of their amazing tulips.

The Capitol gardeners plant these gigantic tulip bulbs each year, with a differing variety of colors on each side of the building. You really do have to walk around to experience them in all their wonder.

We'd gotten a few nights of frost the week before, so I was a little worried they might already be gone, but they were still glorious, with the sunlight shining brightly through them.

Many miles and several hours later, with a sunburned forehead, and a camera filled with happiness, I started to head back home. And then this little moment of Parisian flair walked by and made my day complete.

céad míle fáilte

A hundred thousand welcomes.

That's how I immediately felt upon arriving in Ireland, as our little tour guide in her red jacket hustled us out of the airport, and out into the sweet sunny spring air of Dublin. We landed early in the day, and had the whole afternoon free to explore on foot, so we immediately hit the streets in search of food and drink.

Irish stew, soda bread, and a Smithwick's, of course. 

We had beautiful warm weather, and were so happy to see that spring was already in full bloom. We saw churches and cathedrals, fantastic architecture in the cities, and moss-and-ivy-covered stone walls out on the countryside.

Christ Church, Dublin

Bunratty Castle, so beautifully furnished.

Some of Dublin's famous painted doors. 

King Edward VI's famous double doors.  

As we drove from town to town each day, we saw so many rolling green hills, and rocky hillsides dotted with sheep. So many sheep! And all of the brand new baby lambs, which I just could not stop photographing. I absolutely loved how green the countryside was, just as I had dreamed it would be.

And no matter where we went, there was always the sea. From the quiet beauty of Galway Bay, to the dramatic windy Cliffs of Moher...

"Like the gold of the sun, like the light of the day, may the luck of the Irish shine bright on your way. Like the glow of a star, and the lilt of a song may these be your joys all your life long."