when in ireland - part one

Tea should be taken in solitude.  ~C.S. Lewis


*Resisting the urge to digress about C.S. Lewis...*
The subject at hand: tea and toast.

When travelling, the things I'm the most excited about are almost always food-related. I love checking out local food. There's a lot to be learned from a culture's culinary traits, and I find it incredibly interesting to experience this stuff... not to mention incredibly delicious at times!



I had heard before travelling to Ireland that coffee there is horrifying and should be expressly avoided. Despite that warning, and the fact that the coffee at our hostel in Dublin was instant, I learned firsthand that it is entirely true. Don't drink coffee in Ireland. Just don't.

at the hostel in Galway

The alternative hot beverage was tea, and oh what a glorious alternative it was! I was completely hooked after one taste. Perfect black tea, strong in flavour but far from bitter. The 'proper' way to drink it is with sugar and milk - never cream, and preferably whole milk. Tea-drinking became not only a morning ritual, but a constant habit. Like, easily 7 cups per day type of habit. 


When I got back to the States I had another rude shock. The tea here sucks. Okay, maybe that's not entirely fair. But there's a definite difference in the black teas I tried (and I tried several, I assure you, in an attempt to find something suitably similar). Not to be thwarted, I turned to the internet and behold: Barry's Gold!


Actually, Food Ireland in its entirety turns out to be a total jackpot. Cadbury (of all sorts), Snickers (yes, the Irish ones really are better, I swear), bangers (don't worry, there will be future post on this subject), Brennan's... 


Which reminds me: toast. The white bread we ate for toast in Ireland was different, too... the loaves are larger and somehow have a finer yet denser texture. Perfect for spreading with some Kerrygold butter and/or Nutella. Just thinking about it makes me want to order some Brennan's right now... sigh.

Brennan's w/ Kerrygold, jam and Nutella - in my own home! ^_^

At any rate, this tea and toast thing is really such a good breakfast, I've pretty much maintained the practice ever since. It's super fast to throw the tea kettle on the stove and some bread in the toaster while I get my school things together in the morning, and really easy to eat the toast on my way out the door and take the mug of tea to enjoy during my first class of the day. So there you have it! Probably one of the best things I took away from study abroad.