"Ireland, I'm coming home..."

So I'm not any part Irish. But the title is a shout-out to the song that's consistantly made me smile for awhile now. I always loved the Garth song, but it's taken on new meaning since we purchased our Ireland getaway more than five months ago. I blogged about that song back then, I'm blogging about it now. It's pretty much the only somewhat tangible reminder I have of our impeding trip.

The one month countdown began yesterday. With the inevitable freak-out of "ohmygosh, it's coming so soon, can you believe it? can you? can you?" comes the freak-out of "sweet mercy, we're hopping the pond in less than a month and have slim to little figured out."

Julie and I had a little pow-wow at lunch and I came away from our rendezvous with several action items. You see, Ju, Mary, Esther and I are getting together tomorrow night to enjoy merriment, watch an Irish-based movie, and discuss all things trip related.

But back to the informational action items I was to research. Are you prepared to be bored? (I promised to blog more, I never promised they'd be worth reading.) It's a good thing I know how to handle the Internet. How did people do anything before Al Gore came around?

• Distance from the airport to the hotel: 42.2 km; 44 minutes driving
• Irish electricity: 230v/50hz; 3 square pins. Adapter required; not sure if hotel has hair dryer.
• Cash--Euro vs. Pound: conversion; where, how much to carry/bring
• London transportation from airport to hostel: Gatwick Express train, 30 minute trip, runs every 15-minutes. Running a 4-for-2 special right now--meaning we travel for half price. Geez, it's ridiculous how much I love the Internet.
• London hostel research: reviewed dozens of hostels based on price, review, location, amenities, and have nearly locked-down on a pretty nice looking place right near Hyde Park and Notting Hill.
• Also researched: Bike rental, local pub info, pool(!) hours, and what constitutes an Irish Breakfast

That was this afternoon's research. Tomorrow's meeting we'll nail down our itinerary, lobby for sides in the luggage check vs. carry-on debate, discuss the wardrobe situation, and any and all other things related to taking a week-long vacation abroad.

This is what being a logistical stressball is all about.