Location: Dublin, Ireland

Ok, Eric, I need you to color in Ireland for me on my map. Check that country off the list of must sees, I've been there, done that!Ok, so it was only for 20 hours, but that was all the time I needed when I don't drink and am going to the ALE capital of the WORLD!

It all started off a bit rocky, the person I was going with called me the night before to tell me that he had to brief the commander at 0700 and our plane left at 1000. So that give us 2.5 hours from the time the brief STARTS to get up and checked in. The trip is usually about 1.5 hours long. So I'm a little nervous about all of this thinking that perhaps it's not meant to be; but luckily we made it up there with time to spare and all in all it was a good weekend.

It was a chilly day, but not colder than Germany I'm sure with just a hint of wind that was enough to almost blow me over a few times. A day in Dublin really was enough to suffice me; but really all I wanted to do was get the HECK out of K-town.It was scary at first; notice those cars are facing the wrong direction and the steering wheels are on the wrong side of the car too! Seriously, I almost got hit 5 times because I LOOKED the WRONG way!

20 hours, 190 pictures, so lets see if we got anything good.
Look at those KEGS!!!! They are half the size of that man... Ok, so he might be a leprechaun and they not be that big, but seriously, they were HUGE!
St. Paul's Cathedral across the Liffey (main river of Ireland).
Again not sure which chapel this is, but it's still used so we weren't able to go into it for pictures.
Alright, so funny story with this next one. We were walking around looking for Christ Church and all we could find was the Dublinia, a history exhibition in the city. So we walked here and there and everywhere looking for that ONE church we could not seem to find. Along the way I took pictures of other buildings.
This one in particular caught my eye. It's actually attached to the Dublinia with a nice semi gothic feel to it.
After we found the Dublin Castle I realized that this building I had been taking pictures of was actually Christ's church. In side they have the heart of St. Paul locked up and hung on the wall. I wasn't able to get pictures of the inside though; but that's kind of creepy don't ya think?

So then we got to Dublin's castle which we spent a little more time at.
This had a lot of fun arches, statues and buildings to take in.
I actually like this last picture,I don't know why I took it, but I just leaned over the wall and snapped a picture. It really was a decent day for pictures and walking around Dublin. After the Dublin Castle we meandered around the city some more until we finally decided that we didn't know where we wanted to go but we followed the crowd to the Trinity College.
I loved this sign. Apparently you aren't allowed to ride your bikes on campus grounds. It's against the law hehe!

I then took off to O'Connel street and if you've ever seen an outdoor mall this is precisely that. Store after store after store of shopping and restaurants. I think we saw 3 Burger Kings and 3 McDonalds usually within close proximity of each other. In the middle of the street there was this HUGE metal pole that we couldn't figure out what it was all about. Apparently it's a monument to light. At night they light the top up and with the wind it was really hard for me to get steady enough to get a nice clean shot. I did the best I could but these are the only things I got. Yep, that's how crazy the wind was blowing, I couldn't even hold myself steady for 2 seconds to get a good night shot.

There is a district in Dublin called Temple Bar square that is full of restaurants, pubs and good music scenes. The following are pictures of said square. At night it really came to life.
That clock at night...After Temple Bar we headed down the river to see if we could get close to the docks. We were unsuccessful; we got all the way down there and found that it was a dead end, but had we gone on the other side of the river... :(
When I saw this I HAD to take a picture! In case you can't read it says, "PLEASE do not vandalize this lifesaving device. It may be needed to save YOUR life someday." I got a good giggle at that and the fact that someone had grafitied on the box and it was a bit beat up hehe! I guess they don't want to be saved!Look at that sky!!! Ireland's weather changed so quickly! It would rain for 5 mins hard and then two seconds later it was sunny. Then the grey sky would roll back in and it would happen all over again haha! Seriously, make up your mind Ireland!Ah, Pirate ship!!!! I don't know what's up with European countries and pirate ships... honestly!I love the above picture! Yes, I toot my own horn! I love the sky and then the boater just truckin away out to the open sea following the sky... like he's got a mission. I'm not sure what country this battle ship is from. I would imagine Ireland but it wasn't flying any colors. Perhaps it's only a retired ship used for decor on the river Liffey. Coast Guard???
Water ferry from one side of the Liffey to the other. I'm sure somewhere in the Irish law books there is a law that states it is mandatory for there to be at least one Rainbow per day. You know, a status quo. We saw probably 2 or 3 that day. I was looking for the end to capture me a leprechaun and take his gold. If the leprechaun had an accent like the accents I heard I'd be completely happy! Honestly they have cool accents!

Then I was so blessed to walk and take the above picture when right at the edge of the water was a beautiful swan. Cleaning itself, feeding on the algae, posing for me etc. They sure are pretty as long as you don't piss them off and they come after you. Then I got lucky and got the typical swan picture with the 's' neck :) YES!

This is the backside of the Custom House in Ireland. I am not a fan of the art in Dublin for the most part but I like fountains. Wind did not help make the picture look good. This picture (below) is of the National bank in Ireland just across the Liffey from the Custom's house but it reminds me of the buildings generally seen in the batman movies, do you not agree? And what good is this building without a night shot?? What a sky!Again right across the Liffey from the bank building is the Custom's house. At night it really looks ten times better than it does during the day. Does it remind you of any white building in America perhaps? And of course I love the life preserves. Yes, I used flash with this picture but I liked how this one turned out the most. The Liffey, not the dirtiest river in Europe, but at night it sure does look nicer. Again, look at that sky! The bridges in Ireland rivaled the bridges in Venice, Italy, but I still enjoyed Venice bridges more. The bridges in Venice just seemed more grand; of course they were, cars didn't have to use them, just people.

And of course, what's a trip to Ireland without a shot of the greenery of Ireland. Not much that's for dang sure. Rainbows and greenery is what Ireland is all about.
Now I couldn't help but to snap this last picture while in the airport. My family might not appreciate it, but I just thought it funny to see beer glasses stacked up like paper cups used for water. Stay tuned, the month of April has a lot of running around in the mix for me including, Denmark, Spain, Munich and Amsterdam... Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Well, now you know.

Location: Ramstein AFB, Germany

So, ask me, say, "So Sara, what'd you do last night?" and I'll respond, "I went to watch Sugarland in concert, saw some amazing opening acts and then on the way out watch a couple of drunk airmen stumble down the road...into the picnic area...across the traffic circle...then into their car."

One of the many added benefits of being associated with the US Military are the events that happen in order for actors, singers and athletes to give thanks to the service men and women and also their families. I've been to autograph signings of Larry Fitzgerald, watched the Harlem Globetrotters play, seen Toby Keith in concert and as of last night add Sugarland to that list!

Getting ready I had my camera in my room and thought, you know, I look kind of cute tonight and it's been a long time since I've done a self-picture... SNAP!
Oh yeah, typical Sara picture taking face. Some people think you are supposed to smile for pictures; what's up with that?

So we got there, and yeah, we got there an hour before the doors even opened but even that wasn't as early as I wanted to be there. So we stood outside in the chill for an hour PATIENTLY waiting for the hangar doors to open. We find a seat and there is this cute little girl standing on the bench trying to see as much as she can. After the show started she would just cheer and scream; seriously a cutey. So, us Ray girls, when we have to wait and we have a camera, we tend to have fun. Mom doesn't like most of these pictures but I still think they are priceless!

So finally the show started and this cute little girl, Katie Rae Davis sang the national anthem and was the first act. If you haven't heard of her yet, you should. I think she is better than Taylor Swift and cuter if you ask me!
She just finished school and this is her first tour so she is working on her first album and single. She played it for us last night and I can't wait to hear it again!
The next act was Steven Kellogg and the Sixers; what characters!!! They too have some good songs and have been around a little longer than Katie Rae. They have opened for other bands before but on their 'list' of objectives they had one they hadn't accomplished yet and it was to play in a crowd full of service men and women.
Guy in the plaid shirt kept getting in my way; I wanted to smack him and one other person I'm sure you'll read about in a minute.
The band was giving out CDs and signing them so naturally we went for pictures. This first one was the normal picture.
But duh, you know Steph and I can't take a picture with some guys and not get a kissing shot in there! The guys were so taken a back... Look how that guy is trying to pull away from Steph haha!

So then we have Sugarland
they are a group that hasn't been around for more than 5 years but really they are fun to watch. The two of them together just compliment the show that much more!

They got called back out for an encore and ended up playing like 3 more songs. They really are a fun group and if you haven't seen them but have the opportunity to you should. It was his birthday last night, 14 March, and so she announced it. There was another girl in the crowd who was also celebrating a birthday so Jennifer said that if we see either of them we need to give them their spankings and he just turned bright red like I've never seen before.

After all the fun and excitement it really was time to go home. As we were leaving and walking to our car that's when the drunk Airmen on Parade showed up. Carlos, Carlos! Get out of the street Carlos! The Carlos would respond, 'you know if I had my running shoes on we'd have been there in 3 minutes... count them, 1, 2, 3' while actually holding up one then two then four fingers. Oh good ole Airmen! This is Steph and I mimicking them.
So there you have it. Another night of fun while not being the responsible college kid.

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Well, now you know!

Ryan Air: Heaven's Gift to the Poor College Kids

Ah, Ryan Air! Every time someone says the word I'm sure an angel sings somewhere! Only with Ryan Air can you fly from German to Dublin, Ireland, NON STOP for 20 Euro round trip. Only with Ryan Air can you fly from Germany to London, England, for 30 Euro round trip. ONLY with Ryan Air can you fly to some of the most sought after destinations without breaking the bank (Of course you have to be in Europe to use it).
Ryan Air is a fantastic company but of course can be a bit intimidating at first. The company does not fly directly in to the city center so you would have to rely on your street smarts and public transportation to get you where you need to go.

I think I've bragged enough about my trips and everywhere I've been but I just love Ryan Air. So the seats are TINY and a bit uncomfortable; so the restraints on luggage are a bit harsh and you can usually only carry on luggage; so it's like cattle going into a pen in masses when boarding the plane. You get what you pay for and my gosh I have to say I have NO problem with it! I usually feel cramped and crowded on planes when I pay $300 for a trip so when I can pay 30 Euro in stead and feel the same, yeah, I'm ok with that :)

Seriously Ryan Air is fantastic! To all my European living readers I say if you haven't flown Ryan Air yet, YOU NEED TO! To all my Non-European living readers I say you sure are missing out on something. To all my North American living readers I say we petition for a Ryan Air NA company to be hashed. Seriously, how awesome would that be???

I botched my Scotland trip to go to Ireland but I'm afraid that's not going to work out; huge project at work going on that time. So the remainder of my trips look like this:

April 3-5 gone to Copenhagen, Denmark. Yeah, I've been twice already but I have to make one more trip and the plane fare is fairly cheap.

April 20-21 gone to Barcelona, Spain. Again, been there, but the plane fare is cheap and I didn't get any pictures from my last trip so I have to go back; solely for that!

May 29-June 1 gone to London, England. It's about time the British Pound started leveling out to that of the US Dollar therefore making it still expensive to visit but not breaking the bank expensive.

June 8-12 gone to Paris, France. Dad is coming home from the giant sand box on R&R so we are headed to Paris to do D*land and see a bit more of the city. I think this is going to be a lot more fun than last time. Personal opinion of course!

July 20/21 gone to the states. Is it really that close for me to get out of here? Yeah. It is. 19 weeks before I am for sure done with my job (that's quitting on 17 July) and I'm so giddy!

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Well, now you know.

Location: Western European Countries

The end of my stay has come in reference to Europe; it's been a good three years but it's time to move on. I've been thinking and reflecting a lot on all the things I've done since being here; school, traveling, work etc. I am amazed at how many things I've been able to see while traveling and living the life that most college kids can only DREAM about. The green countries are the countries I've been to including: Spain, Austria, France, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, The Czech Republic, Sweden and of COURSE Germany.

I want to reminisce about some of these trips starting with the VERY first real trip (outside of Germany), Madrid, Spain.
As I said in my original Madrid blog, I LOVE Don Quixote de La Mancha! When I saw this statue of him I was in awe!!The first 3-4 days in Madrid I was by myself enjoying the temple and city trecking it by myself; what better way is there to see major cities of Europe?
I actually like this picture of me. You will probably see that it's the ONLY picture of me in any of my traveling pictures. I am usually BEHIND the camera; not in front of it!While in Madrid I took a couple day excursion to the surrounding cities. The above picture was taken in Toledo with a good day of overcast.Then of course, El Escorial! This palace was absolutely HUGE! It took us four hours to walk through HALF of it.

My next trip was not necessarily the next one I went on, but it is one that I loved, BELGIUM!
Brugges, Belgium, was an amazing trip I took over Valentines weekend last year; also President's day Weekend. The weather wasn't ideal for me, I froze the whole first day, but the company was great and the city was absolutely picturesque! I don't know if I could have asked for a better day the second day we were there it was amazing and not cold! Thank heavens! The scenery all around the city was amazing and it was a really nice city to be in for holiday.
I think from this point the trips only got better.

Copenhagen, Denmark, wasn't really a trip for me; rather a trip governed by the church for EFY.
Denmark was a beautiful country; I HAD to visit it twice!
Yep, the man who created the Christus was Danish and this church houses the original done by him.
And then of course the Copenhagen temple. It used to be their old Stake building I do believe and nestled right in the middle of the city it surprises me still how quiet the grounds are being in the middle of everything.

I don't want to post all of my Germany trips; because well, there are just too many of them. I will, however, post this one picture which is probably one of my favorites of them all!
Cologne, Germany, at night. As far as I can tell this picture is in focus; I HOPE IT IS otherwise I'm sure I might hear from Leslie about what I could do to make it better.

Ok, so one more Germany trip, Berlin; because well, so much history!

The Berlin Wall. I got so turned around I really don't know which side I was on, but I think we were on the East side.
The art work that was all over that wall was absolutely amazing and I wish we had time to go up and down both sides of the East Side Gallery but there was too much to really handle.

My last trip so far, Venice, Italy. This trip was BY FAR the MOST fun. A weekend in Venice with the best company ever, what more could a girl ask for?
Ah, the Venician lion! GRRRRRR! I couldn't help but post this picture, I enjoy it.
Ah, a Venician traffic jam. There are no roads in Venice, so um, yeah, this is as close as it gets.
And of course one last picture to top it off; playing in the confetti! I think that sums up my thoughts of the past few years... AMAZING and FUN! Enjoyable of course, what better way to end this chapter of my life?

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Well, Now you know.

Location: Kaiserslautern, Germany

Right now I'm at that point in my life where I'm planning another move. I figure 3 years is by far enough to have been in one place, time to move once again.

This time it's serious. None of this talk about it and then changing my mind. I gotta get back to AZ and finish up my degree before I can do anything with my life.

Summer plans are in the works!!! I plan to quit work the middle of July and fly out the third week of July. From there I will fly into AZ and spend about a NIGHT there. Turn back around and fly up to Las Vegas, NV. Who knows what will ensue in Vegas but from there it's a road trip down to Cali to pick up my car in COMPTON and then drive it 'home' to AZ. Don't know specifics on dates yet, but I do know I intend to be in AZ and settling down for school by the 17th. That gives me a week to start the house hunt, job searching (IF I want to) and getting ready for school to start up.

So those are the plans. That's what life has in store for me. Traveling will be less so my updating of this blog will be less frequent than what it has been after school starts; but not completely gone. Already along with my SW tour I have plans to go to the Grand Canyon in October with a friend who served his mission over here (If he'll still go). If not I'm sure I'll go anyhow; I'm 'FROM' Arizona and I've never been. Is that even right? I don't think so.

So there are the plans for me and this summer after I leave good ole Germany. It'll be nice to get back to the states; driving might suck at first but just be patient with me as I try to learn that cruising at 90 MPH is not acceptable. I wonder if I get pulled over if I can use the excuse that I've lived in Germany for 3 years...