Even though I've been to Waterford before, coming back is like coming for the first time. I love how easy it is to get from the WIT dorms down to the quay and the rest of town. The town itself is easy to get around in and the waterfront is beautiful. Every time we go anywhere on the bus, my breath always catches when we come back along the quay. I'm a little surprised at how early everything closes. I'm so used to everything staying open until 8 or 9 o'clock, but here, things close around 6 pm, and on weekdays, even the pubs (which stay open a bit later) are almost deserted.

One of the only memories I have of my first time is a vase at the Crystal factory. I remember a vase that one of the engravers was working on. It was far from one of Waterford's traditional patterns, having a skeleton and spiderwebs. There was a similar vase in the showroom, only it was a tarantula and cost over --> €1000. Being a 3D major, I found the entire factory tour beyond interesting, and would love to apply for the apprentice program, if the whole grad school thing doesn't pan out.

Woodstock Gardens was lovely. I've never experienced the smell of a pure rose before. I've only had experience with hybrids. The smells are completely different! 

The most interesting thing I learned at Woodstock was how the path widths were determined. Closer to the house, the paths were two meters wide, so two women could walk together with their giant skirts without a chaperone. Further up, the paths were smaller so it was only wide enough for a lady and her chaperone. 

Tintern Abbey was a surprise to me. When I heard that we were going, I was slightly confused, because I could have sworn that Tintern Abbey was in Wales, not Ireland! I had no idea there was a Tintern Abbey in Ireland. It's smaller than it's Welsh counterpart, but just as beautiful. 

I made my way up to the old graveyard, and was slightly surprised to see some relatively new graves mixed in with the graves so old you couldn't read the headstones easily.

My absolute favorite place we visited this first weekend was the Hook Lighthouse. I love lighthouses to begin with, but the setting where the Hook is located is stunning! The round tower lighthouse is handsome enough on it's own, but it's surroundings make the whole thing breathtaking. The Hook Head Lighthouse is one of the oldest lighthouses in the world, and the oldest working lighthouse in Ireland. The waters around the Hook Peninsula were and still are extremely dangerous. Our guide informed us that the week before we visited, three fishermen were lost in the area. 

How could you not be absolutely taken with that sight? I was able to get some amazing pictures of the Irish Sea going out on the cliffs. Several of the guys on the trip saw a couple seals bobbing out in the surf, but I missed them. According to the website, the Hook is a wonderful place to whale watch when they are migrating.