This is the 12th post in what will eventually be a 16 post series detailing everything you ever wanted to (and didn't want to) know about the two weeks Jared and I spent in Ireland and London. To start at the very beginning, go here. 

Day 12 – Drogheda and London

We woke early with plans to pack up the car, add more money to the meter and then have a nice last Irish breakfast at the café we had spotted in town the day before. All went well until we got to the café and found out it didn’t open until 10 (it was 8.) No harm done, there was also a B&B that would serve us an Irish breakfast for 5 pounds because we were staying at the hostel. So we walked there, not a soul in sight.

By this point, I was pretty hungry, used to my Irish fry at 8AM. Jared knew he needed to act fast, so we found the one place in town that was open – Insomnia – the Starbucks like coffee shop that distinguishes themselves by putting 2 shots of espresso in every cup of joe. We sat there for 2 hours, reading and stealing wifi until 10 when (according to my second guide book) the local and brand new art gallery opened. We wandered up there, only to find out it didn’t open until 10:30…..

Then I decided it was time to go, and we headed out of town to Monasterboice. Monasterboice was an abbey in 900AD. Not much is known about the abbey, except there are two church ruins, two of the oldest examples of Celtic crosses (9 and 12 meters tall) and a perfectly round tower. It was a very quiet cemetery, with crows cawing, adding to the atmosphere. The crosses were cool and we had the place to ourselves. It was another example of another way of living, long ago, in someone’s backyard in Ireland.

We then drove over to Mellifont, an abbey from around 1000 AD, which was the ultimate demise of Monasterboice. More ruins, these ones a little more defined, with a visitors center and other people. We got to the parking lot and decided we didn’t want to pay the entrance fee enough, and headed to Dublin. One thing I learned on vacation was that when Jared and I have a travel day, we travel. We don't do much else, we want to get it over and done with. So off to London we went. 

It took us significantly less time to get to London than it took me to finally write this blog post! Getting downtown and from the airport was easy as pie. Our hotel was right near Victoria Station, close to everything, and the room was smaller than our bedroom in NYC, the bathroom too. I did some organization and we are very used to, and comfortable with, small spaces. It was actually quite nice.

We had dinner at a lovely Middle Eastern restaurant (you don’t come to London for the British food!) and then spent the evening walking around. We saw Westminster, the Parliament, the London Eye and took our first London cab ride. It was an excellent way to get to know the city.