The cliffs at Sleahead Drive.
In this week's blog post it was suggested that we write about a digital detox day, which means leaving your phone behind and living in the moment without any distractions. But because we planned a tour to Dingle our phones are essential in this scenario, especially when travelling in a foreign country. This report is my take on how people like parents would want the perfect day without a phone to play out. I will give a little spoiler: although we did not leave our devices behind, we had a wonderful time nevertheless!
Today, we arose from our beds just from the intrinsic urge of our bodies to go out and explore Ireland's side, because who needs an alarm anyway, right?! We packed our lunches enthusiastically and made our way to the bus stop. Without using Google Maps, of course, as we decided to leave our devil devices (phones) at home! We navigated or way through the city just by using the sun as our compass, and it worked wonderfully! When we arrived at People's Park, other comrades with the same wanderlust were eagerly waiting for us. 8:30am - Dingle awaits us!
Pure happiness on our faces as we are holding the baby lambs.
While we drove through the breathtakingly beautiful nature of Ireland, we took notice of every cow, every blade of grass, every sheep, every pub we passed to engrain in our memories forever. We had lively conversations among each other, sharing information about our home countries, next possible destinations, and experiences we had made in our home universities. We stopped at the beautiful Coumeenoole Beach, where apparently some of the Star Wars scenes where shot. The cliffs stood majestically, yet dark in contrast to the blue sky (believe it or not, Ireland does offer those once in a while!). We walked excitedly to the beach to breathe in the salty air and listen to the waves breaking on the shore; Devis even took his shoes off to fully embrace the moment. We talked to our tour guide a lot, who also confirmed my assumption that even locals do not get tired of the scenery in Ireland. Our bus driver was the real MVP, as he successfully manoeuvred the big vehicle around the narrowest street in the country (it's called "The Devil's Elbow" and I would've cried had I been even the driver of a scooter); obviously we cheered for him, in good tourist manner, in our memories forever.
We aren't actually talented enough, but my friend Keegan is, and he brings a canvas wherever he goes! (c) Keegan Peterson
The next activity included in our tour was petting lambs – and yes, it is even cuter than you imagine. A very kind farmer showed us how to properly hold the lambs and then we were able to briefly touch the softest creatures to ever exist. Now I understand where the saying counting sheep stems from is because sheep and lambs are particularly calming. Next stop was the Three Sisters view where we sat in soft grass and were just enjoying the view of the rock formation "The Giant Man" (actually locals call it "The Dead Man" but that name doesn't sell as well – but shhh, you didn't hear that from me). Because we couldn't use our phone cameras, we quickly decided to paint a rough sketch of the cliffs to keep as a souvenir. Luckily, we both always bring a canvas, an easel and different kinds!
Celtic Knots
Later that day, we found ourselves in the city centre of Dingle. First things first: chips! Because the air in the bus can get quite stuffy. After that, we explored the charming city by the sea with its colourful houses. We talked to other locals, learned more about Celtic history (even bought a ring!) and tested Guinness in new pubs: so overall, a very rad experience!
In all seriousness though, we should try to live more in the moment instead of through the displays on our phone. Rather keep your head up, be curious and aware of your surroundings than glued to a soulless device, especially when nature is literally right in front of you, begging for your attention. I don't want to play the moral crusader as I am honestly often guilty of falling into the trap of distracting content on our phones but take a 20min break to just sit and admire nature. Even if it's in your everyday life. Your body and mind will thank you, I promise.
By Nele Dzienkowski, Germany
