Travelling Free in Ireland

Video of our trip

2011-07-18T10:02:00.001-07:00

Our Two Cents...

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The IHH Free Travel Ireland Challenge was thought up of to promote independent holiday hostels and to help increase tourism in Ireland in general. For many years Ireland has been known overseas as an expensive country to travel in and to a certain extent this was true.. especially during the Celtic Tiger.

However, even in the economic boom, independent hostels all over Ireland were endeavouring to keep the price of their beds down as much as possible to assist backpackers and adventurers alike. Staying true to the nature of youth hostels, a lot even offered and continue to offer free accommodation to performers and entertainers. Some even give free beds to those celebrating their birthdays.

The atmosphere in a hostel is unlike any other type of accommodation. They are fun, active and happy places where you can meet people from all over the world and share your stories. Many young people would not be able to afford travel if it weren't for youth hostels providing comfortable accommodation at an affordable price.

With the downturn in the Irish economy and on a global sense, the tourism industry in Ireland has suffered. Many new hotels that sprung up in the naughties went into receivership and, in order to hold their own, dropped their prices. This meant that hostels were suddenly thrown into the market with 4 and 5 star hotels that were offering weekend deals not too far from the price of your average stay in a hostel. To say that hostels cannot compete with hotels is not entirely true, as what lacks in atmosphere in hotels is provided 100 fold in a youth hostel. However, for those that have never experienced a hostel, a hotel is probably the preference especially if the price is affordable. Different strokes for different folks we suppose... but this has taken its toll on independent holiday hostels all over Ireland that should always be available to those who need them. They are more than a bed for the night...they are a platform for interaction and friendly encounters.

The IHH Free Travel Ireland attempts to raise awareness of the plight of some smaller hostels around Ireland who are really feeling the pinch during one of the quietest summers we've had in years. The welcome we received in MacMurrough Farm Hostel was really a Cead mile failte!

Our Trip around the East this past week is proof of an Ireland that is ready and willing to host two young people on a low cost adventure and, it's not only the independent hostels that value this concept, but the local bars and restaurants, activity centres and attractions, who were all only too delighted to share a bit of their food, drink or entertainment with us in return for a small challenge and all in the spirit of fun!

If we keep this good morale and spirit alive in Ireland, we will continue to smile...hail, rain or shine!!

Back to Dublin and last challenge!

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The 5 bus dropped us near Kildare street and we walked into Barnacles in Temple Bar. When we got there Susan and the rest of the lovely staff welcomed us. We began designing our Free Hugs Poster, which eventually became a human sandwich board costume! The challenge was to prowl temple bar and try and get 50 free hugs!

After a few photos we set out! We decided just to run at people smiling insanely and just hug them! Some were bewildered..some extactic...Most were happy for the love! It made for some funny video footage!

It didn't take long to clock up a healthy figure of hugs and then the rain started! We ducked in Temple Bar Galleries for a while and then did a few last embraces before heading back to the hostel. It was great fun altogether!

Our last night in Dublin was calm and collected in Barnacles. And BOOM! We had once again completed a 6 day trip in Ireland without spending a single cent!

MacMurrough Farm Hostel, New Ross

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We got to New Ross safe and sound with the help of a some lovely Waterford people and indeed half the way with two lads from New Ross.

As soon as we arrived Brian, our host from MacMurrough Farm Hostel, came to pick us up. The weather had been detiorating but everyone in New Ross was still smiling. We jumped aboard the Dunbrody Ship with the local photographer. The local paper had already covered our story so we were "famous" of sorts! Brian took us to The Ros Tapestry Expo at the port. It was an excellent exhibition and well worth visiting to learn about our ancestors! He then very kindly drove us all the way out to Hook Head Heritage centre where we visited the oldest lighthouse in Ireland! We had a great tour around the lighthouse!

On the way back home we stopped at the local pub for a drink. Brian and Jenny's hospitality was to no end. When we arrived the stove was lit in the cottage and fresh flowers had been added to the room especially! We met a french family staying in the other cottage and then were treated to a delicious supper. After eating we agreed to play a few tunes for the other guests and gathered in the cottage for a singsong! They were a wonderful audience!

Brian and Jenny's hostel is full of charm and is so warm and friendly. We had a great night's sleep and they then treated us to a lovely breakfast in the morning with some extremely exotic museli!! We bid our goodbyes and Brian drove us back into NewRoss where we got a tour of the Dunbrody Emmigrant Ship in the port. It was a brilliant tour and we were thinking gosh New Ross have got everything down to a teee!!

At about 11am we bundled onto a BusEireann set for Dublin. It is safe to say that we hope to return to MacMurrough Farm Hostel someday soon!

Dancing for our beds and the road to Tramore

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So we managed to get everything together just in time for our Flashmob extravaganza in Kilkenny. Along with Jacqui and the members of Guerrilla T theatre group we assembled on Kieran's Street at 12am and jumped into the madness of the flashmob on our cues! A nice little group of people had gathered to watch and though we were nervous it turned out to be a really fun experience! Everyone clapped and rejoiced as we fell to the ground on the last note of the Beatle's "All together now"! Kilkenny Tourist Hostel was a lovely friendly place and we will be sure to stay there anytime we go to Kilkenny..possibly in a few weeks for The Kilkenny Arts Festival!

Next we had to hit the bothar for Tramore. We were running a bit late at this point but had rang ahead to make sure all was going to plan. Hashmat took us all the way to Tramore despite only originally going to Waterford. It was very kind of him!! Thanks mate!

Upon our arrival in Tramore we went to Beach Haven Hostel. We had missed some of the activites planned but all hope was not lost as there was still going to be time the following morning to do our challenge. So on Thursday evening we chilled in the lovely sunshine on the beach and by the pier of Tramore. We were lucky with the weather that day and even got a bit of colour!

That evening we met the lovely staff of Seahorse Tavern in Tramore. Keith welcomed us and assured us he would look after us. We helped out in the kitchen for an hour and were rewarded with a lovely meal of fish and chips and a chilled glass of white wine. We absentmindedly left Sadhbh's camera in the kitchen and when we returned the next morning Keith gave us two cans of coke for the road! What a gent! Lovely place and a pleasure to get involved.

This absentmindedness was to be a recurring feature of our trip!

The following morning we had lovely pancakes in Beach Haven and set out for our surfing lesson with Freedom Surf School of Tramore. For a bit of sweeping and tidying away we got kitted out in a wet suit and headed down to the beach to catch some waves with our instructor Simon. We had never surfed before so it wasn't surprising that we had much difficulty actually standing up on the board! Our challenge for Beach Haven was to catch a wave so we perservered! Eventually we got better and finally stood up and surfed a wave into the beach! It was a great experience and Simon was very nice and patient with us!!

As soon as we were finished it was another mad sprint to get ready and catch a ride to New Ross....

Food and Guerrilla T Flashmob Prep

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After 30 minutes of busking on Kieran's Street today we had made enough money for our lunch and so we ate in the beautiful surroundings of Kilkenny Castle basking in sunshine!

The kind staff of Kilkenny Tourist Hostel namely Angela and Jacqui recommended a lovely eating house ML Dore's for dinner. Michael, the main man, offered us a delicious meal and glass of wine for absolutely nothing in return...it seems the generosity of the Irish people is going further than we could ever have imagined! So next time you're in Kilkenny...don't miss the chance to taste their traditional and delicious cuisine!

Tonight we practised our dance routine with Jacqui and the members of the Guerrilla T theatre group for the flashmob tomorrow at 12am on Kieran's Street.

We will then be making a speedy depart for Tramore where we will be catching a surf....catching our dinner...and catching some craic!!

Four Courts Hostel, Dublin

2011-07-13T04:44:00.000-07:00

We arrived at Four Courts Hostel yesterday afternoon; our first task was to cook up a storm for the guests! Equipped with a €30 budget (sponsored by the hostel) we headed off to Aldi to buy ingredients for our meal: two tortillas, lots of spaghetti bolognaise and a yummy apple crumble for desert! We spent most of the day chopping up our ingredients - it's not easy cooking for that many people!

We also had to find a place to eat, so we headed to O'Shea's on the quays and the kind lady at the bar agreed to feed us in return for a few tunes later that night.

We returned to the hostel well fed with the intention of cooking our meal...but the kitchen was jam packed and making dinner ended up being a hot and stressful process! But we got it all done in the end and it went down a treat. Then it was back to O'Shea's to play our set, and after that we decided to get an early night in preparation for the journey ahead.

So we set off early this morning and now we're in the Kilkenny Tourist Hostel - gorgeous place altogether, you can check it out here!!! Later today we'll be meeting with the Guerrilla T theatre group to learn a dance routine for yet another flashmob operation!

Off to enjoy the sunshine in Kilkenny city now!

Airport Flashmob for Kinlay House

2011-07-12T08:44:00.000-07:00

Our first day on the challenge was a great success. It got off to a rocky start as we struggled to find a guest arriving at a suitable time at the airport to surprise with a welcome. In theory our master plan was seamless...emailing all guests due to check-in that day with the promise of a free airport shuttle if they replied with their arrival times. Unfortunately those that did were arriving at 5am so it was necessary for plan B!!

PLAN B:

In the spirit of the original flashmob by the improve crew; we decided that we would go to the arrivals area and ask those waiting who they were waiting for. Balloons and party hats were a plenty and good humour all round. We practiced our singing and dancing routine (as we're all professional flashmobbers now! ha!).
We found two families waiting for 4 German Exchange Students....BINGO!

We waited with baited breadth until finally we got the signal. We surged forward, an unstoppable force of joy and jubilation, jumping, singing, blowing horns. The girls were naturally shocked and looked terrified at first. It wasn't until they saw their names on our welcome banner that the penny dropped but even then they were a little a-daze! Much to our amusement they arrived in two pairs and so we had the opportunity to recreate our flashmob welcome just a few minutes after for the second time!

The adrenalin was racing through us all...what a buzz...we thought as we got back on Over The Top Tour's trusty bus service! We got back to Kinlay and were warmly welcomed. We enjoyed some free beverages of the tasty sort.

Next Darkey Kelly's, an adjoining pub treated us to a dinner fit for queens in exchange for a 30 minute set!

Day one in the bag!!

JUST FELL OUT OF A TREE IN CHRISTCHURCH

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AND READY FOR OUR FIRST CHALLENGE THIS MONDAY FOR KINLAY HOUSE, DUBLIN!

CLICK HERE TO BE INVITED TO OUR COOL FLASHMOB CHALLENGE

EAST IRELAND CHALLENGE JULY 11th-17th 2011

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Well here ya have it folks.....
The East Ireland Free Travel Challenge 2011

It all begins in Dublin City on the 11th of July and takes us down south to Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford and back up to the Big Smoke within 6 days.

The itinerary has been drafted up and the challenges have been tentatively set.....

With no money in our pockets, not a cent to our names, utterly pennliless... we will be endeavouring to survive on our wits and limited skills, relying on our best puppy-dog faces to get us through!

Claire here and together with my trusty companion Sadhbh we will be undertaking any challenges we are faced with in order to earn our keep in some of Ireland's very own Independent Holiday Hostels. But a bed for the night is not all we will be bartering for; we'll need grub, we'll need transportation and most of all we'll need the good will and generousity of the people of the east coast of Ireland.

You may have followed us two years ago on our Free Ireland Travel trip in Cork and Kerry (if not, you can scroll back a few pages on the blog to get up to speed!). We spent 6 days travelling around the south without ever needing to reach for our pockets. It shows just how accommodating people can be in Ireland and how, if you have the desire to travel and explore the country, you can do so without worrying about how much it will cost you- it will cost you as much as you want it to cost you!

Stay tuned for the unfolding of the week that lies ahead!

The End!

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What we learned last night - perhaps it's not always best to go to the pub with Irish farmers. We didn't get back to the hostel until after three in the morning and were up at nine to get everything ready to go. We had a great time, but our bodies are quite angry with us.

Eddie's friend Colin became a father ("no, you're sayin' it wrong! It's FAH-der!") a week ago, and he took us to a pub in Shannon to celebrate with him. We met a load of great people, locals from Shannon but mainly farmers from Sixmilebridge. They explained the rules of rugby, gave us some insight into local gossip, got heated discussing why Ireland is not playing the World Cup ("The damned French!"), and laughed about one's 2-year-old son with "a giant head like a melon!".

When boarding the train back to Galway, we were spent. It's been one long week, one great adventure. In our travels through County Clare we met some of the nicest people in the whole of the world. Pat Cassidy in Carron put it best: "They don't let you out of the house in County Clare without feeding you".

We both hit our goals; Jenn got her trad session right away, and Mel eventually got to milk her cow. We danced in the streets, ate flowers, did hard labor, worked for meals, hiked the Burren, shoveled rock, had a sword fight, met the bulls, and hitchhiked in the country. And, we did the one thing we never wanted to do but were the most proud of actually doing: we busked!

Thank you to the all the hostel owners and staff, those who fed us and gave us rides, the wonderful weather, and the IHH for picking us and allowing us to take part in this project. Good luck to next years' travelers!

Day Six - Sixmilebridge

2010-06-28T03:01:00.000-07:00

Day 6:

Our last stop!

Today we had a great light breakfast at the Rowen Tree, said goodbye to Reena and Ian at Crow's Feather, thanked the staff at the restaurant, bid goodbye to the busking bridge, and made for the train station.

The ride was a short one and then we were in Sixmilebridge. Now, the locals in Carron and Kilfenora had told us that Sixmilebridge would be the smallest of all the country stops we would make. They were wrong. Carron, for example, had one hostel, one pub and a load of farm land. Kilfenora had one pub, one craft shop, a tourist center, and two corner stores. Sixmilebridge has loads of residential houses, farms, restaurants, pubs, a football field, and even a hotel. We had prepared for small, and we were pleasantly surprised. But, this also meant that the hostel would be harder to find, and we didn't bother looking up directions when we had Internet access.

We headed down the main street and a local gave us directions. The sun was shining, the bags were heavy, but we made it to The Jamaica Inn, our last hostel, in no time.

Michael, the owner, asked us if we'd just like to go to sleep. We looked at each other. Did we really look that haggard? We told him five minutes of rest and we'd be ready for our challenge, whatever it may be. He said he'd let the farmer know.

A bit later we were in the car driving through the fields with two locals, Eddie who owns a farm with prize cattle, and Conor, a veterinarian. They took us to James's farm, who had milk cows. Melanie's eyes lit up. All she wanted to do this week was milk a cow, and that was our challenge. Perfect!

All cows now are milked by machine suckers, but we were to milk some by hand. We walked down the stairs in the shed and were eye level with loads of cow butts. Dirty, smelly, cow butt covered in mud and poo. We needed to reach between the cow's hind legs to the udders and milk her into a container. It wasn't as pleasant as we thought it was going to be. Mel went first, and when she touched the cow it jumped, which made her jump, which made the farmers laugh. Eventually, though, we got the job done, and Melanie could check this adventure off her list.

This is our last night of our free travel adventure, and a bitter sweet one. We're sad to be done, but excited to get back to Galway. Thanks to Michael, Eddie and Conor for a great last challenge!

Day Five - Ennis

2010-06-26T01:47:00.000-07:00

Day 5:

Pat was kind enough to give us a lift to Ennis this morning, with strict instruction that we were to arrive before lunch. We assumed it was because they needed help in the adjacent restaurant for a tour rush. We were wrong.

The staff at Rowen Tree Hostel told us that we would be busking for our keep this evening. The goal - enough money to pay for our bus fare to Sixmilebridge in the morning. We knew what they wanted us to do, but we asked them to clarify anyway, hoping that they would change their minds. Busking - to sing, dance, play music, or otherwise make a mockery of oneself in hopes passersby will throw you loose change.

Now we've done some interesting things on this journey, including dancing in the middle of Galway City, but this was the absolute worse case scenario for us. We have absolutely no talent to speak of. If the task were to, say, give a lecture on modern era metaphysics, Jenn could do that. If the task were to scale a wall to break into an apartment you have just locked yourself our of, Mel could do that. But anything outside of that realm is not amongst the gifts we were given. Needless to say, panic set in.

This was the first challenge we had that we weren't sure we could complete. The staff was encouraging and told us that we had no reason to be embarrassed and to look at it as a bit of fun. We knew they were right, but then again, we were also terrified. We gave ourselves a pep talk (mainly along the vain of "it'll all be over soon" and "this is just a horrible dream") and tried to stop our hearts from pounding out of our chests.

We paced, went across the street and for some liquid courage, paced some more, created a list of tunes we hoped were popular enough to be recognizable, paced some more, printed out lyrics for the songs we didn't know, paced, swallowed any ounce of pride we may have retained, paced, and went to the bridge.

The bridge we were to perform on is located next to the hostel's attached Cafe Bar, in a semi-busy section of the town, but certainly not city centre. This was a relief, but we were still bundles of nerves. The staff had video cameras. The people had ears. We had nothing. Luckily, Mel found a shaker in her bag given to her by a friend at home, and it saved the day (props to Sheldon!). Mel propped herself behind our sign, Jenn stood on the bridge with the shaker, and the singing (a term we use very loosely) began.

The Irish people are the greatest people in the world. We know that now. We needed about 14 total for bus fare. At the end of one hour, we made 27.67. Incredible! Just imagine how much we would have made if we were talented!

Triumphant, relieved, and so glad it was over we toured around Ennis for the remainder of the day. We found a wonderful shop called Crow's Feather and met the owners, Reena and Ian. They are beautiful people. Within an hour of talking with them and browsing their shop Ian had offered us a ride into Sixmilebridge and Reena was calling friends to see if they could put us up in Cork after this adventure ended.

Marianne, who manages the hostel as well as the restaurant, fed us complimentary pizza, pasta, and pints for dinner. It was delicious. The chef uses big chunks of fresh vegetables in the meals and seasons with a Mediterranean edge. It was the best meal we've had dining out in Ireland.

In our hostel we met a fun German girl, Rabea, and the three of us hunted down some authentic Irish music at a pub called Griffith's. It's a bit off the beaten track; everyone we passed on the streets were heading the opposite way. It's barely noticeable from the street, but when we walked by we could hear a fiddle. The pub itself is about the size of a postage stamp. The old timer musicians here don't play to amuse the tourists, they play for themselves. We stayed for a pint and chatted with some of the locals who gave us great advice on stops to hit on our journey through the rest of the west.

We have one more day left, and are sad to leave Ennis. This is a town easy to fall in love with, with people to match. Sixmilebridge awaits in the morning!

Day Four - Carron

2010-06-25T03:44:00.000-07:00

Day 4:

This morning we were alloted fifteen minutes of internet and were able to post our entries for the last three days. We're over halfway through and ready to start the last leg of the journey.

Orla fed us and gave us a ride to Carron this morning, and along the way told us about the green tourism committee she is involved with. It is a collection of restaurants, transport, accomdations and various other companies committed to eco-friendly tourism. We noticed that Orla's hostel was the first we've been to in Ireland with seperate bins ensuite for trash and recyclable material.

Orla bid us a kind farewell in front of Clare's Rock Hostel in Carron - a gorgeous stone building a top a hill that lends an absolutely breathtaking view of the landscape. We met Pat down at the pub and he gave us our challenges for the day. Pat no only runs his hostel, but he also runs his farm and two seperate plots of land. Always busy, Pat himself admits that he is one to start projects and never finish them. That's where we came in. Pat said our job for the day was to design obstacles for his mini golf course, which had been generally barren up to this point.

Delightful, we thought. What a neat task, designing a mini golf course. It was after we were through there that the hard labor was to begin. He needed a sand pit weeded and evened out to be used as a horseshoe pit. He gave us a shovel and a rake, and took off to tend to his livestock.

The golf course was just as fun as we thought. We drew out the course, plotted the beams, and traced out where they would need to be attached. Easy as pie. Then we went for the sand pit.

Two hours later we staggered back up to our room. Dusty, sweaty, sweat causing the dust to stick and dust sticking to the sweat, we took turns taking the best showers we have ever had. Sore but rejuventated, we earned our beds.

In the evening Pat picked us up and took us to his house for tea - tea of course being a full-on meal, exactly what we needed. We met his wife Trisha, a lovely woman, had some real Irish tea (we may never go back to English tea again!), chatted and ate up. After dinner Pat took us on a tour of his land where we met his gaint blue bull, the white headed cow ("Watch that one there! Wouldn't trust her, something not right about her," Pat warned), and saw Galway City Centre from across the hills, valleys, and bay. It was the perfect end to a wonderful day.

Tomorrow Pat has offered to give us a ride in the morning to the Rowan Tree Hostel in Ennis. Apparently, they want us there by lunch time for our challenge. Hope it's a good one. Cheers!

Day Three - Kilfenora

2010-06-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

Day 3:

This morning we woke early and earned our breakfast at Rainbow Hostel by taking on some of the housekeeping duties. Carmel made us an incredible Irish breakfast, complete with both white and black pudding, and Mattie gave us our quiz. We got most of the questions right, or so he says... we think he was being lenient with us. After breakfast we were to find our way to Kilfenora.

Mattie dropped us on the highway outside of town with a hitchhiking sign that he personally prettied up with purple glitter glue. We stuck out our thumbs and within ten minutes a nice man in a red VW named Peter stopped for us and took us to our next stop, the Kilfenora Hostel. Once here, our hostess Orla gave us our task: Find the Father Ted house, and take a picture in front of it.

"What's the Father Ted House?" we asked.
"Oh, you've never seen the show? Hmmm... This will be even more fun then!"

We made our second hitchhiking sign for the day and made our way to the crossroads. Eventually we were picked up by French tourists, who were just as clueless as we were about the whole thing. They took us about 6 km from town, then dropped us in the middle of, well, no where. Disheveled, lost, and a little unnerved we stuck our thumbs out once again hoping a local would know more about the situation.

Finally, a man named Noel McMahon pulled over and let us in. He explained that the Father Ted house was owned by friends of his and that he would take us there personally, after getting us a pint of course. He took us through the Burren and straight to the house where the owners, Patrick and Sharon, invited us in for a much needed bathroom break.

We took our picture and Noel brought us back into town. Triumphant, we earned our night, had a meal at Vaughn's Pub next door, and took a walk around the town. Kilfenora is a bit bigger than Doolin but not by much. We saw the high crosses and took some pictures, ducked back into our hostel as the rain started, and mapped out our journey for tomorrow. Wonder what Carron will bring!

Day Two - Doolin

2010-06-23T12:44:00.000-07:00

Day 2:

Bright and early we awoke today, had breakfast at the hostel, bid the staff farewell and walked to the bus station. Once there, a man from the Galway Tour company handed us an ominous black garbage bag told us to go to the bathroom and change. We opened the bag to find a leprechaun costume and a wizard costume. In order to earn our ride to Doolin, we had to sword fight. In the middle of the bus station. With loads of folks with cameras and trigger fingers waiting for their tour buses. So we did.

We stripped off the outfits and hopped on the bus just as it was setting out. The driver, Desmond, was very kind to us. The tour drove through County Clare, past old ruins and castles, and dropped us right outside of the Rainbow Hostel in Doolin. The owners, Carmel and Mattie Shannon, are the nicest people we've ever met. Our challenge was a treat - Mattie took us on a walking tour of the land, showed us burial chambers thousands of years old, taught us which of the local flowers can be used to make teas and vitamins, and gave us a geology lesson on the rock formations. The next morning we were to pass a quiz to earn our night.

After our tour, Carmel called down to McGann's Pub and asked if we could do some work to earn our dinner. They enthusiastically agreed, as they had a tour bus coming in and needed the help. The staff and owners were fantastic - they were patient with us, showed us what to do and how to do it and within ten minutes we were out waiting tables, busing dishes, running food and helping customers. After the rush they made us an amazing meal, gave us a free pint, and we ate while a local band played some authentic Irish music.

We have fallen in love with Doolin - the people here have won us over and we will be back for sure. It was an absolute treat of a day. Now here's hoping we can pass our exam tomorrow!

Day One - Galway

2010-06-23T12:43:00.000-07:00

Day 1:

Today we began our journey in Galway. First stop, Barnacles. Here we were given our first challenge - in order to earn our night's stay, we needed to convince fifteen people to dance the Macarana in front of the hostel with us.

This was no easy task.

Armed with our Barnacles t-shirts and positive attitudes, we were promptly rejected by everyone we tried to convince at the Spanish Arch. Clearly folks are not as keen on making spectacles of themselves as we are. Eventually we decided that the only way to get the participants we needed was to lead by example.

And so we danced. And people stared. And we danced some more. And the staff took pictures. And we danced, and hollered at tourists walking by, and eventually some folks took pity on our cause and danced alongside us. It took a few goes, and a few starts and stops of the music, and a few perplexed looks and outright refusals, but in the end we got more than the fifteen people required. We rounded off a good twenty minutes of dancing with eighteen participants and earned our night.

We took a walk around the city afterward, and on the way to the Galway Cathedral ran into some college students in suit tails and English accents. They told us that the drama class was putting on Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband" that night and invited us to see the play. It was incredible; Wilde's dialogue is so rich and dense, and these students were not only able to keep it all straight but also put on an amazing performance.

We took the long way back to the hostel to get a good night's sleep - we had strict instructions to be meet a fellow at the Galway Bus Station early the next morning to earn a ride to Doolin.

Western Ireland: 21st June - 27th June

2010-06-23T07:56:00.000-07:00

Hiya!

This is Jenn and Melanie, your travelers for the week. We are so excited to begin our free travel week, as well as delightfully anxious for the challenges which lie ahead. We will begin our journey at the Barnacles hostel in Galway and travel throughout Western Ireland for six days, ending in Sixmilebridge.

Who we are:
Jenn - Born and raised in Denver, Colorado, Jenn just graduated from Metropolitan State College of Denver with a BA in Philosophy. She wanted to get some traveling done between her undergrad and graduate degrees, and came to Ireland to do just that. Jenn has spent the past month mainly in the Dublin area, but would love to see some of those famous rolling green hills. Her goal for the week is to hear some authentic Irish music.

Melanie - Mel is from Thunder Bay, Ontario. She is taking a break between her years in college for travel and fun, and loves Ireland. Her plan when she returns home is to go into developmental social work, and later specialize in working with autistic children. She's spent most of her time in Ireland up to this point Galway and Dublin but has been wanting to see the countryside. Her goal for this week is to find some way to milk a cow.

Where we are going:
We are starting our adventure in Galway, then traveling to Doolin, Kilfenora, Carron, Ennis, and ending in Sixmilebridge. We don't know how we will get there or what will need to be done to earn our beds or meals... we are expecting some hard labor as well as simply making spectacles of ourselves. Keep checking this page for updates and photos.

Thanks for reading and keep posted!

Jenn and Mel

Final Video of all the trip!

2009-09-11T10:46:00.000-07:00

IHH Free travel Ireland - Cork and Kerry
envoyé par prendecn. - Voyage et découverte en vidéo.

The End!

2009-08-24T03:56:00.000-07:00

Hello!
So our last challenge to earn a night's keep was to take a boat trip with local man Tommy O'Connell out to Valentia island and to learn all the history as we went along. Unfortunately we couldn't get great photos due to the weather, and the sea was quite choppy but that just made things more exciting and we wrote down all the info we could! We also called into a heritage centre on the road to the marina in which the kind lady offered to let us go around for free. After that we'd built up quite an appetite so we went back into The Fertha (despite feeling a bit cheeky!) and were treated to another gorgeous meal from Noel!
We then returned to our hostel for a rest and a wash before the night ahead. In our room we met a lovely French girl, Charlotte, who lives in Toulouse where Claire will be going to study in a couple of week and who offered her a place to stay when she arrives...what a weird and wonderful world it is! We spent the evening chatting to her before heading back to Noel's bar where we played a few more tunes.
Luck was with us again and we met a lovely chap named Tony McCarthy that night who offered to collect us from our hostel at 10am the following morning and drive us to Tralee. He kept his word and brought us right into the bus station where we were just in time to catch the 11 o'clock to Limerick! We boarded our bus to Dublin at 1:30, tired but delighted with how the week had gone!
We'd like to say a huuuge thank you to everyone who looked after over the week, as we met some really great people who proved to us that generous Ireland is still alive and well!

Sive Hostel, Caherciveen

2009-08-22T02:42:00.001-07:00

So off we went hitch hiking again, and were super lucky this time when the second car to pass us stopped to take us in! The kind man was Sean, a Scottish man who spent most his life in America and now lived in the area. We were again dropped right to our destination and arrived at Sive Hostel in no time.
On arrival we met the lovely Mary who told us the originally planned trip to Skellig Island had been changed, and we were now to take a boat trip around Valentia Island and learn the history of the places we saw. She had also called a local bar called The Fertha where we were to sing for our supper! We called into the bar and were greeted with a meal fit for a king! Noel, the owner, also took us for a drive around the local sights which was much appreciated as there were some beautiful places to be seen! He then took us back to his bar where we played a few tunes and were further rewarded with a couple of glasses of wine! Noel has kindly offered to provide lunch for us today as well, a testament of the generosity that still exists in Ireland! We'd also like to mention Sarah; the best bar tender in Ireland (and possibly the world!)
Earlier on in the evening Claire had done a quick interview on 2fm which was truncated but hopefully gained some publicity for the cause!
We're here now in Caherciveen Library, ready to take on our challenge for today.....

On the road again...

2009-08-22T02:33:00.000-07:00

We set off, the small stretch of land they call templenoe behind us, backpacks and guitar on our backs down the treacherous road towards Sneem! We had a good distance ahead of us given that we had to arrive in Ballin Skellig at about 11am. Thumbs out, smiley faces on it wasn't long this time before a car pulled in and we met a very nice australian chap Matt who drove us all the way to our destination. He was travelling through the little villages the way we were heading to catch the surf so it was the perfect opportunity for us! We shared many a conversation on the way and were very thankful to him for such a help!
We got to Skellig Hostel, just up from the beautiful Ballin Skellig pier. Marion greeted us, showed us around the hostel and set us to work on translating the 10 phrases from english into irish. This took a mere 5 minutes (cause we're so liofa as gaeilge! :-D) and we filled the rest of the time just chatting about anything we could! She called ahead to Cois Tra cafe just further up on the beach to arrange lunch for us. The deal was for us to play a few tunes and we would be rewarded with a sandwich (and hopefully not another scone!!). We did so and enjoyed our lunch in the sun. We had been starving from the day before so the toastie was devoured. After we walked a bit on the beach and dipped our toes in the water....awful romantic altogether!
We were getting tired but knew that as we couldn't stay in Baile na sceilg we had to source out a way to reach Cahersiveen that same evening.
We picked up our bags at the hostel, waved goodbye to Marion and set off on the road again....

Is feidir liom...imagine!

2009-08-22T02:25:00.000-07:00

Hi all!
So we're finally catching up with you all, two days without Internet!
After a lovely breakfast with Itay in Kenmare Lodge Hostel, Lydia, the proprietor of the hostel, gave us a lift to our next destination which was just 6 miles outside of town. It was a remote little spot and upon arrival we were proposed a gardening challenge for our nights accommodation in Greenwood Hostel! So we took out our green fingers, a pair of gloves and clippers and size 10 wellies and set to work taking out a blackberry bush from a ditch! It was threatening rain but held off while we were at work. After that we were on the hungry side of the fence so we walked about two miles out a dangerous road (100km per/h speed limit down here!) to Pat Spillanes Bar. When we arrived there wasn't much we could do to earn a meal but Martina must have taken pity on us and kindly provided us with two toasted specials and some salad! We had to return to the hostel before night fell as the road was too dangerous to walk in the cape of darkness!
Back at the hostel we amused ourselves by completing a 500 piece picture puzzle of Ireland...i'll tell ya we know our counties now boy!
We slept well and woke early the next morning for yet another day of adventure...

Kenmare Lodge Hostel

2009-08-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

Well hitch hiking to Kenmare proved a tougher challenge than we expected! We left Killarney and walked about 3 miles out the road towards Kenmare and were eventually picked up by an old man who dropped us some of the way, but along the scenic route! We stood in the rain for at least an hour and were beginning to lose hope until a lovely couple saved the day and brought us to our destination!
To earn our lunch we worked in Jam cafe for about an hour and were well rewarded with soup and sandwiches!
We then returned to our hostel where our task was to clean the kitchen top to bottom! We left it sparklin' bai!
Unfortunately the weather is against us today and ruined our plans to go busking but there's a great bar across the road where we might be able to play some music! We just ate pizza with our lovely host and now we're going to suss out the situation. Apparently we can't get a bus tomorrow but we don't have far to travel so looks like we'll be hitch hiking again!
That's all for the moment,
Slan!

Neptune's Hostel, Killarney

2009-08-19T02:23:00.000-07:00

So thanks to the wonderful Colm who got us to Killarney in one piece despite being as sick as 14 small hospitals (and is also general manager of BK2 bar in Cork I might add!), we arrived here for what was to be a very interesting and challenging day!
Mike explained our challenge to us which was to cycle from the town to Torc waterfall, climb the waterfall, walk to Torc mountain, climb to the top (we nearly got blown off!) and swim in a lake on the way back!! Surprisingly the swim in the lake was a welcome task when it came to doing it, as we'd built up a bit of a sweat as you can probably imagine! :D
When we arrived back at the hostel, we were given the ingredients to make our dinner - a lovely spanish omelette...and a bottle of wine which was much appreciated! Tiredness got the better of us after that and we decided to head to bed so we'd be fresh for the next day's challenges.
Now we're off to Kenmare for another adventure, and are currently in the process of making a sign to bring hitch hiking in the hope someone will take pity on us!!
Until next time,
Slan!

18th Sheila's Hostel, apres le petit dejeuner!

2009-08-18T02:18:00.000-07:00

Hola!
So we've survived our first day in the people's republic of Cork and now there's nothing we can't do after skateboarding a pint of murphy's stout up patrick's hill! After 17 funny, excruciating, delerious minutes we reached the "official" top of the hill though there was some "motivational" talk along the way that led us to believe we'd be finished sooner....thanks Paddy :-D
So apparently Lance Armstrong will be cycling up the hill 3 times next week as part of some event, we'd like to see him skateboard a pint of Murphy's up it!!
We caught everything on video and will be able to publish when we find to means to do so! Hopefully soon!
We topped off our first day by playing a set down the local Shelbourne Bar on McCurtain St. We were warmly welcomed with a free drink, just the thing we need to perk up our confidence and energy to blast out a few tunes...and so we did! Everyone seemed to enjoy it and we were rewarded with another round of drinks!
The night went on and eventually led to us playing an encore of 4 songs for late arrivers and in return for 'spin' to Killarney today. So now we're departing Sheila's Hostel, in which we spent a wonderful time, and heading into the kingdom to Neptunes where another great challenging day awaits us! Cullum (sp?!) has kindly offered to drive us there to show that irish people are still decent enough to do a 'turn'! (just getting used to the southern lingo now! :-D)
hasta luego amigos!!!

and thanks to everyone for all the support here in Cork!!

we have arrived!!

2009-08-17T07:57:00.000-07:00

We caught the bus eireann early this morning at 8am in Dublin and landed in the people's republic of cork shortly after 12.
With hungry bellies we made our first stop at the hostel. We then descended again to go eat somewhere. Gourmet Burger Bistro proposed us a free meal if we sat and ate our lunch at a properly set table on patrick's bridge across the street, naturally enough we jumped at the chance. It encouraged a lot of public notice and we chatted with a lot of people while enjoying our lamb and chicken burgers! So first challenge rewarded by a tasty meal.
Now we're back at the hostel and departing in a few moments to tackle the hostel challenge....skateboarding up patricks hill with a pint of murphy's, making sure to not spill a drop or else we return to the bottom. We will quench our thirst at the top by downing the pint.....
Tonight we're playing some music at the Shelbourne bar in lew of some beverages and food hopefully! yeah!!! that's all for now! here we go!!!

2009-08-13T03:25:00.000-07:00

Hey guys!

Join us on www.redfm.ie in the next while for an interview with Dave MC or tune into Red Fm 104-106 if you'ew down south!

Less than a week to go!!

2009-08-11T09:43:00.000-07:00

Bonjour!

So tomorrow you can tune in to an interview on Phantom fm at approx 3:40pm, I'll be in studio and Sadhbh will joining us by the wonderful means of communication that is a mobile phone!
We will talking about the trip and our plans to survive for 7 days without a bob in our pockets! Make sure to listen in for the laugh! :-D

http://www.phantom.ie/

With the help of our trusty friend google map, we have managed to put together an overview of our trip, have a look!!

View Larger Map

2009-07-30T02:08:00.000-07:00

Claire and Sadhbh

A few words from our intrepid adventurers:

"The idea behind this challenge really appealed to us for two reasons;

Firstly, because it’s not often these days that Irish people themselves take the opportunity to visit other parts of the country given the increasingly cheap flights to other countries, cheap booze and better weather elsewhere. We think we have to go further afield to really benefit from a holiday, experience a different culture or have an exotic adventure when in reality for us midlanders and indeed those from elsewhere, the south of Ireland offers all of the above.

Secondly, because the thought of doing the trip with no money makes it all the more challenging and exciting. The idea is simple but the outcome promises to be delightful and encourages the desire to explore and perhaps even facilitates the making of important discoveries and valuable observations along on the way."

Claire and Sadhbh

2009-07-29T07:09:00.000-07:00

ONLY 2 WEEKS TO GO!

Claire and Sadhbh are getting ready for a very expensive holiday.
They've made a rough budget for the holiday:

Accommodation: €0.00
Food: €0.00
Drink: €0.00
Travel: €0.00

FREE TRAVEL

2009-07-29T06:56:00.000-07:00

Travelling around Ireland with no money
Discover Ireland without spending a cent and live off your wits

We have 10 young volunteers who will be hitting the road over the coming weeks. They are charismatic, fun, talented, ready for adventure and for a week won’t have a red cent. They intend to have a week long holiday without spending anything.

They must beg, borrow and steal to get through their week long odyssey. The first of our volunteers, Claire Prendergast and Sadhbh O’Sullivan will be heading for the Southwest around Cork and Kerry.

They will be staying at hostels during their trip that have set them tasks to earn their bed. Their first stop in Sheila’s Hostel in Cork involves them earning a bed by rollerblading up St. Patrick’s Hill in Cork carrying a full pint of Murphy’s without spilling a drop.

Restaurants, cafes and pubs are invited to challenge our intrepid adventurers in exchange for food and refreshments. Claire and Sadhbh will be keeping a blog diary on their adventures right here.

Keep watching this space!