There’s an island born a long time ago famous of its green nature and unbelievably strong winds. What I will remember the most is probably its capital city. We met at Heuston station, as we arrived there in two ways: hitchhiking (and it’s another story) and bus riding. As it was in some distance from our host’s destination, we had a chance to see a bit of the city. As far as I can tell it’s big enough yet calm, noisy yet charming, crowdy yet welcoming…
Unfortunately we didn’t visit the Guinness brewery as it was too late – it was New Year’s Eve, we had to prepare for a party! Therefore we only saw its big storehouse before we started walking along the River Liffey, between on-street running Luas trams. As usual, we used Couchsurfing. Our host, whose name translates to The Last Rose, was for sure the kindest and the most often smiling person whom we met during our journey. On the other hand, her flatmate was a crazy (in a positive sense) freedom fighter who debunked tons of theories that I had believed in. He even gave me a DVD with the only truth about 9/11. He was also a great patriot, therefore I learned that half of the world’s inventions was in fact Irish. What a pity that I already forgot most of them… Thank you, Irish friends, for making all those things. Soso (our host), on the other hand, made me really interested in going to Iran. She told us about her journey with her parents, about how modern this country is and how different it is from Iran that we see on TV. Hopefully I can go there in near future, before the Great Sheriff of the World decides to fight them (which I wish will never happen).
Then we went to eat a dinner with a few Couchsurfers. I met Czechs as well as Australians, I learnt “cheers” in Chinese and Hebrew. An hour after we went to a club (I think its name was Elegance) where more than a hundred Couchsurfers met. Although I had attended international parties before, this one was special. Wherever I went, I met a person from the other side of the world. I felt totally foreign there yet amongst cheerful friends. This was my first experience with “organized” Couchsurfing and I was surprised how well managed it could be. If you ever have an opportunity to attend such an event, do not hesitate – I assure you’ll feel as if the whole world was in a few meters’ distance. I could say hello to the new year twice – the first time with my parents and my friends an hour away from Dublin, then with all those people counting and dancing in joy. This is how I welcomed the 2009.
