Gem and Jo go to the Dublin Coffee and Tea Festival

Tea Anyone? Coffee? Well we had lots of both this weekend at the Dublin Coffee and Tea Festival in the RDS! Thanks to Jo's family friend Jerry, we got our hands on some complimentary tickets to go to this awesome, super hipster event that was only on for the weekend.
We had a absolute blast, and not just from the amount of coffee and green tea we drank!
We got to sample and taste tons of different brands of tea and coffee from some of the best baristas and coffee companies from not only Ireland but from around the world as well. 
Our favourite was Java Republic, and not because they were serving full sized, free tea! They had an amazing array of flavoured teas, which are all organic and their packaging is all fully biodegradable, even the really cute little silk teabags! We tried a ton of their teas but our favourites were:

Blood Orange Tea. 

You can buy it online Here

Peppermint Tea 

You can buy it online Here

Gunpowder and Mango (Surprisingly doesn't contain gunpowder!)

Buy it online Here

Now the great thing about the Java Republic tea is the teabags are reusable for up to 3 times! But we didn't take their word for it so when we went home we tested it and low and behold, it actually works! Any other teabag would have melted into icky-ness after the second time or so. 

What was really cool was that we also got to chat to Jerry about the coffee and tea industry and how it's growing and improving at a super crazy rate. We learned that coffee is the world's second biggest commodity after oil and that you can now even get a diploma in coffee. We also got to learn a lot about how many different teas and coffees are made and got to see some of the processes used in action. 

The exhibition also had prototypes of the latest coffee making technology including this amazing tap that you can have installed into your kitchen counter-top that makes coffee from a menu on your ipad. Everything is controlled from your ipad from the amount of milk you want right down to how much sugar and water!

We also got to try out a load of different exotic teas and coffees like this green matcha tea. Although this tea may look like gross green liquid, but this stuff is great for you. It is known to increase metabolism, energy and decrease stress. We have heard a lot of great things about matcha tea and we were so excited to try it out and have a taste 

Along with all the amazing teas and coffees on offer, the exhibition also had a chill out zone where you could have a bit of a rest and drink your yummy hot drink and just relax for a moment. 

There was also live music in an outside area where you could just chill and soak up the atmosphere.

After having spent the day immersing ourselves in tea and coffee, we decided to head out to Dun Laoghaire to round off the day. The weather was gorgeous and we went for a bit up a stroll around. We even managed to bump into author Lee Child!!! Don't believe us? Just check out the picture above, he's in it we swear!  

After all that busy excitement we finished off our day with dinner in the Real Gourmet Burger restaurant in Dun Laoghaire where we had some really tasty food. The chips were amazing. if you are in the area definitely check it out. 

We had such a super day out. Thanks so much to Jerry Hughes for giving us the chance to experience the amazingness that was the Dublin coffee and tea festival. We had so much fun. 
As always thanks for reading be sure to let us know what you think in the comments section below, we always love to hear from you. 
Until next time, 

Gem and Jo Take Connemara

You may have noticed that we haven't been posting as regularly as we usually do, that's because we have been in Connemara where there is absolutely NO internet or phone service!! (That's two trips we've been on where we survived with no internet! Success!) 

Now a lot of you are probably wondering what the hell a Connemara is, our Irish viewers probably won't be but for those that don't know, Connemara is a beautiful town on the coast of Galway. You can see it here, on this pretty little map, it's the area in the square! 

MAP: connemara-holidays.com

We stayed in Gem's granny's mobile home, which is really cosy, and it's literally a little, tiny walk over some small sand dunes to get to the Atlantic coast! 

The first night we got there the weather was a little wild and the tide was really high, because of the Supermoon!! So the beach wasn't very accessible that night but we got this pretty picture! 

                         

The next day was a bit of a dud too, the weather was really not on our side but we donned our coats and hats and went walking along the beach while the tide was out! The good thing about this camping site is that the beach isn't too big, so with kids and dogs they can never get too far away from you, but it also the perfect size for a nice little walk to stretch your legs! 

                                     

                                 

                     

Now our third day there was absolutely glorious and we took advantage of it! We went pier diving, which we unfortunately didn't get any pictures of because you know, sand and sea do not mix well with our lovely little telephones or cameras! We even managed to squeeze in one more walk on the beach before we left for the 3+ hour journey home! These pictures really show the beauty of the Irish coasts! 

                      

                     

                      

                      

                      

Another beautiful part of this little camping site is that both the journey to and the site itself are surrounded by the most breathtaking mountains and from the camp site you can see the largest mountain in Connacht (which is a province of Ireland, kinda like a State in America)

                                       

And there's a really cute donkey called Ned who lives right beside the site!! (We found that he really likes when you feed him carrots!!) The only downfall to having Ned so close? He loves to have a little sing-song at 4 in the morning! 

Thanks for reading guys and we hoped you liked this post, we certainly enjoyed going on this adventure and we would love to hear if you guys have ever been to the west coast of Ireland, or any part of Ireland! Tell us in the comments!! 

Until Next Time, 
 

Gem and Jo's Outfits of the Day

So here are our next Outfits of the Day, we wore these while visiting county Waterford, again, for the Spraoi Festival (Spraoi means fun in Irish and is pronounced sp-ree). Take a look: 

Gem's Outfit: 

Top: Primark €6.00 

Jeans: Vila Clothing €34.50 

Necklace: New Look €8.00 

Shoes: Dunnes Stores €20.00

 Jo's Outfit:

 

Top: Primark €4.00

Jeans: Primark €11.00

Necklace: Next €7.00

Shoes: Heatons €16.00

Jacket: Dorethy Perkins €40.00

Thanks for checking in guys and we hope you liked this post, tell us what you think in the comments and let us know what your favourite piece was! 

Until Next Time, 

XO Gem and Jo

Gem and Jo Take Bray Head

So today we got up nice and early and went for a hike! We decided to climb Bray Head, which is in County Wicklow and is about 250 meters high. It's right in the middle of Bray town and on the seafront so when you get to the top the view is amazing!

While we had believed it was to be a fairly overcast day, it turned out to be very warm! Gemma was really glad she brought suncream with her! Here we are at the start of the hill!

The walk up is really nice, not too difficult and filled with beautiful scenery, we even saw lizards but they ran away before we could get any pictures! But he kinda looked like this guy:

photo: politics.ie

There is a gorgeous trail that leads all the way around the mountain and overlooks the Irish Sea, which looked incredibly inviting in the warm weather! The path was tough at times but mostly it was really pretty and filled with native plants and insects!

View from the trail!

There was a sad part to our hike though. A few weeks ago, during a bout of hot weather, we noticed that the hills visible from our house were on fire and today we realised it was Bray Head that had been burning! As we walked along the trail, most of the hillside was burnt to the ground and some was still smouldering! We were so shocked at the damage wild fires could do! If you're interested in how to prevent a wildfire or some safety tips, check out this website, they have tons of really helpful stuff! Here's a picture of one of the areas that was not too badly damaged:

With the smell of burnt plants still lingering, we walked further on and met some lovely people on the way, everyone was so friendly and there were a ton of tourists about!

Not only were the steep cliff sides beautiful but the skyline was fabulous too! And with Gemma being such a fan of clouds she took lots of photos of the sky! 

When we had finished the trek, we sat on the beach which is right in front of the car park where we had parked and enjoyed the sound of the waves! It was really nice to watch people having fun in the water in Ireland for once, it's usually freezing! 

It was a great day out and we really enjoyed getting active! If you're looking for a place to hike but aren't the most experienced, Bray Head is perfect for you! It's not too hard and doesn't take very long at all and there is no need for hiking gear unless it's been raining! Also parking is super cheap at only 30c an hour!! That's a steal! 

Why not visit Bray's website and have a look at the views for yourself here

Until next time!! 

Gem And Jo Take Dublin Zoo

We recently visited Dublin Zoo and let us tell you, it was awesome. It has recently been refurbished and there are way more animals than ever.
Everything from lions...

...to Giraffes... 

...And even this weird looking guy... (Who may or may not be a little depressed)

And if you get there early, you can see the keepers feed the animals, they even give you a five minute gap between feeds so you can run from one enclosure to the other. Literally, you have to run. the zoo is a big place.

Robin the Giraffe, her calf and Keeper. 

We got seriously up close and personal with some gorillas and their keeper told us that they love banana biscuits.

Baby Gorilla 

Sleepy mama gorilla. 

There is also wild peacocks running all over the place, and they're cheeky feckers who like to steal your chips.

Cool fact about peacocks, female ones are called peahens. Bet you didn't know that one.
Apart from the animals there are other cool things to do in the Zoo, there are plenty of playgrounds and there are strange wooden statues of the animals dotted all over the place. We had a bucket load of fun taking pictures with them.

Gemma chilling with some baby piggys and their mama

Johannah reckoned she could take on a gorilla!

This is probably the most fun you could have with a wooden Zebra!

All in All, Dublin Zoo is a great day out. We recommend going early enough on cloudy days if you want to avoid the crowds, also they give discounts to groups and students, which is always a plus!
check them out at: Dublin Zoo.