Day 16 Edinburgh - Dublin

After checking out of the hotel, and since we didn't have to get to the airport until 5, we went for another long walk. There wee stumbled on a section of town, just behind the castle, called the Grass Market. I wish I had known about that several days ago. It looked like a neat place to spend some time. There's a lot of interesting old shops, pubs, and food. One place roasted a whole pig.

It was a little too early to eat, so I missed out on a good food opportunity. We also stopped in the Scotland National Gallery for an hour and I was amazed. What a great art gallery, it might be as good as our own National Gallery. It's not as big, but it has a lot of great art and artists from the 15th and 16th centuries.

We found a tiny French cafe on Thistle street called Cafe Marlayne. We ordered a bottle of Rose and Sylvia got a Roasted Female(?) Duck Leg, and I had a Black Ink Risotto with Squid for an appetizer and for the entree, I ordered Calves Liver. Everything was both reasonable and exceptional, and I would absolutely go back there again. Afterwards we went back to the hotel to get our bags and catch the tram to the airport. We arrived at the Dublin Airport around nine, caught a cab to the hotel, and checked in. Tomorrow we leave for home.

Risotto and Squid

Day 15 Edinburgh

Today was a walking day. We walked to Leith, around the waterfront, back to Princes,  all of Rose, and everywhere else. The pedometer said over 20,000 steps, so we did pretty good. Obviously we stopped for a little refreshment at the Theatre Royal Pub, and while we were there had a bite to eat. Sylvia ordered a plain old sandwich, and I had the Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties - it was the best I ever had.

Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties

The afternoon was rather uneventful, we just walked for 4 or 5 hours, stopped and looked at whatever seemed interesting. The Jekyll & Hyde Pub was interesting.

For dinner we decided to go back to where we were with Dave and Lindsay's friends, the Barony. Sylvia got the Fish and Chips again. We thought theirs was the best we had the entire trip. I ordered Steak Pie with mashed potatoes and peas. It was very good too. As we were eating, there was a young couple sitting behind us just chatting and having a drink. She was absolutely beautiful and seemed to be American. For some reason she just got up, walked over to an old, dusty piano that was right next to us, moved the table in front of it, sat down and played something classical that was unbelievable. She played one song, got up, and went back to the table to drink her beer and continue chatting like nothing happened. There were only six people in the place...fantastic. I sat there stunned.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped at the Conan Doyle and had a Monkey Shoulder and coffee. Tomorrow we leave Edinburgh and fly to Dublin for our flight home on Wednesday.

Steak Pie

Fish and Chips

Day 14 Edinburgh

We got off to a late start and waited until 11 before leaving the hotel. We walked around the Royal Mile area to kill time before going over to The Library Pub at the Links Hotel where we supposed to go and watch the Ireland/Argentina rugby match, followed by the Scotland/New Zealand match. At least half the people from the wedding were there and Lindsay and Dave provide food and drinks. Both Ireland and Scotland lost so just about everybody left disappointed. Only us Americans, who don't know a damn thing about rugby, weren't too upset, although we were rooting for both Ireland and Scotland because the people here have been so good to us. I can't begin to describe how nice and gracious the families and friends of Dave and Lindsay have been. We stayed there for both matches, left around seven and went to dinner at an Italian restaurant. Nothing too exciting to eat there. Most everybody is leaving tomorrow, so it was quiet the rest of the evening and I fell asleep early.

I didn't get any pictures today, so I included some more wedding pictures. The cake was made by David's mother who does it professionally and has silhouettes of DC, Edinburgh, and Dublin. The top layer is lemon, the middle chocolate, and the bottom fruit cake. The picture doesn't really do it justice.

Lindsay's Shoes

Fred and Mica
Fred's the one in the skirt

Day 13 Edinburgh

Fred and Jim

Today's the wedding day! I got up early and walked around town before getting ready for the ceremony. It was to start at noon and it would continue until the wee hours of the morning. The chances of me making it to the Wee hours was slim to none, and I expected that none would win. Our job was to pick up Mica at their hotel and take her to the wedding since Fred and Jim Mucka (Lindsay's uncle) were Acting Fathers of the Bride and they were to be limo'd over. Fred had a major scare, even though he went over to Scotland in June to buy and get fitted for a kilt with all the accessories, he had not received the shirt. They told him not to worry, it would be there before the wedding. Fortunately, the shirt arrived at exactly 11:31 AM. The wedding was at noon! A crisis was averted and somehow he made it without suffering a stroke. I wouldn't have.

The ceremony was held in the Edinburgh University Old College Library, a beautiful facility built in the late 1700's. There seemed to be about a hundred guests in attendance and began with Fred walking Lindsay down the aisle. The ceremony was much different than any I had seen. Duncan Robertson was the Celebrant, the person who performs the marriage, and one of the nicest things he spoke about was "Lindsay and Dave's Love Story". It was about the history of their relationship and was extremely well done (very teary). After the Exchange of Vows, they did the Quaich Ceremony. That's where the bride and groom and their fathers (Jim Mucka in Lindsay's case) drink out of the Quaich cup that each of the fathers have filled with their clan's whiskey.

The whole ceremony was way more of a celebration than a religious ceremony. It lasted about 40 minutes and was very enjoyable. Afterwords there were drinks and lunch right where the wedding was performed.

Bride and Groom

Following the ceremony everybody went to the George Hotel for the rest of the evening where we were greeted by a bagpiper. Events alternated between the two rooms, the Kings Hall and the Printing Press bar. Things opened in the Kings Hall with Lindsay and Dave being preceded by a bagpiper. The food and wine and party was great and we didn't make it to the Wee hours. It was a wonderful event that I won't ever forget. I didn't get very good pictures. I'll try to get better ones off facebook.

List of events

Day 12 Edinburgh

The day started off as normal, except no full Irish breakfast, instead it was a full Scottish breakfast. It was a bit lighter than the Irish breakfast, and had smoked and cured salmon instead of bacon and sausage. For a change I didn't over eat, just some fish and eggs.

After breakfast we did the obligatory Royal Mile walk, followed by walking the store fronted streets of Princes and Queen. Fortunately we didn't buy anything. At noon I texted Fred and agreed to meet them at the Queen Arms Pub on Frederick Street. It's a comfortable little pub with some pretty good food. I had a few Crispy Pig Cheek Nuggets and a Beef and Haggis Sausage with Sauerkraut, also shared some of Fred's Pumpkin Chili Bombs - not exactly the type of meal you'd get in the states.

Beef and Haggis Sausage

We hung out there and had an extra beer before going back to The Dome so Mica could see it. Sylvia and Mica had one drink and left to go back to the room while Fred and I went looking for a bar we heard about called Panda and Sons. It took a while but we found it, and it was another basement bar disguised as a barber shop with no visible signs of even existing. The only clue was a little sign on a window that said Haircuts 25 cents. Then we knew something interesting was happening there. After going down the basement steps there was a door that looked like book shelves, and when you opened it there was a big pub inside that looked just like a barber shop complete with barber chairs. It was a fun place to have a drink, which we did.

In the evening, Lindsay's aunt and uncle Dick and Ginny had a party at a house they rented for the week. The place was old, massive, and perfect for a "Little" party of about 50 people. It was a great mix of Scotch, Irish, English, and Americans, not at all unusual since Lindsay's American, and her fiance Dave, is Irish and they live in Scotland. There was plenty of good and interesting conversation. Tomorrow's wedding should be a ball.

Day 11 Edinburgh

Got up early, had a quick breakfast and drove a rather hectic hour to the Dublin airport. The flight was okay, it only took an hour, but it was delayed an hour and at capacity. Once we got our luggage it was a short walk to the Tram which took us within two blocks of the hotel we were staying in. The Hotel Ballantrae wasn't a great hotel, but it was good enough to spend the next five nights in and it was located right where we wanted to be. We were over here for Lindsay's wedding and all the events were in this neighborhood.

The Dome

The Dome

 Soon after checking in I texted Fred and Mica and arranged to meet them for lunch at the All Bar One next to the Hotel George where they were staying. After a couple of hours of catching up, Mica went back to the room and Fred, Sylvia and I went across the street to The Dome, an absolutely unbelievable restaurant that until 20 years ago was a very impressive bank. The pictures do not come close to doing it justice, just a fabulous bar. After a drink there, Sylvia went back to the room and Fred and I hit a few places in succession, 99 Hanover Street, Bramble, and The George. We were feeling pretty chipper by the time we met Mica and Sylvia at 7:30 and walked over to The Barony to meet Lindsay, her husband to be, Dave, and a bunch of people over here for the wedding. It was really good to see people I hadn't seen in a lot of years. It was a great get together of about 20-30 people in a cozy old pub that Lindsay and Dave frequent. As expected  Sylvia and Mica left before Fred and I. I'm not really sure when I got back to the hotel, but at least I found it. I don't think I took the most direct route.

The Dome

Day 10 Trim

Finally! At last a sensible breakfast - last night's leftover pizza, I feel normal again. After packing up we checked out of the Jury Hotel, found the car and drove east towards the town of Trim. We picked Trim because it's less than an hour from the Dublin airport and we're flying out of there the next day. The drive was not uneventful as I made multiple wrong turns resulting in a little bit of lively navigator/driver discourse. We did manage to get back on track, but the low gas light came on and it got a bit tense again. All ended well and we got to Trim around one o'clock. We checked into the Trim Hotel and did the normal walk around town. Across the street from the hotel is the Trim castle and it's the biggest Norman castle in Ireland. It was built in 1220 and was used to film Braveheart with Mel Gibson. We did a short self guided tour and were duly impressed. We also walked a ways up the River Boyne and I was

Trim Castle

fascinated thinking of the hundreds and hundreds of years that generations of Irish people walked the same ground I was walking . The river is a major part of Ireland's history. Being a cool damp day, we didn't walk more than an hour. In fact it was so cool we had to stop at the Judge and Jury Pub to warm up.

Sylvia finally found an enthusiastic audience

Didn't do much for dinner, just went across the street to Franzinis. I had duck and Sylvia had Chicken Teriyaki. both were way better than I expected. Tomorrow we have a  10 o'clock flight to Edinburgh and have to leave here by 7:30. It'll be nice to hear a different accent, I was beginning to understand all but the most brogue-ish people.

Day 9 Galway

No full Irish breakfast for me this morning, absolutely no way. I'm going down to the hotel restaurant and order fruit and yogurt. Well, that's what I said. When I got there the only thing they had was a buffet with all the fixings of a full Irish breakfast. I couldn't help it, until I was done I had consumed a full Irish breakfast. Damn, I was bloated again, I'll never learn. Sylvia was much smarter and stayed in the room and drank coffee.

It was mid morning until we left for the Cliffs of Moher. It was an easy hour and a half drive with no incidents or lively discussions. By this time we were barely talking anyhow. When we arrived I was surprised to see mostly open fields with a rather large parking lot and no visitors center. We got out and were directed by

smallish signs that said Visitor Center. It was really cool. It was buried in the

Visitor's Center

hillside and hardly visible on the walk up, but once inside it opened up into a pretty large display room with a restaurant, snack bar, little theater, displays, restrooms, and information center. We spent some time there and saw a movie about the cliffs. After leaving the visitors center you walk a quarter mile up to the cliff walk and are greeted with spectacular views of cliffs that rise 600 feet above the Atlantic Ocean and continue on for miles. It's well worth the trip just for this view. But if you're an outdoor enthusiast, you could do the whole walk along the edge for seven miles. I would have loved to do the 14 miles round trip from Doolin to Liscannor...30 years ago. We only spent a little over an hour there, but it was worth the drive and would visit the cliffs anytime I was in the area.

Driving back to Galway we stopped for a late lunch in the village of Kinvara only to find that every lunch place in town closes on Tuesday except for the Hotel Merriman. It was late so we ate there instead of driving farther up the road. Sylvia ordered the smoked haddock poached in milk with mashed potatoes. It sounded weird, but she thought that besides the lemon sole she ordered the other day, it was the best fish she had in Ireland. As for myself, I wanted to try the crumbled cod with chips and salad. I ordered it only because I imagined that crumbled meant smushed into little pieces, and I just had to see how they did that! Damn, it meant bread crumbs, so I had fish and chips again. It was good though. Got back to the hotel around 4 with way too much time to kill before dinner.

After hanging out and doing nothing for a couple of hours we still weren't hungry, so we went out at seven a walked about awhile and decided to stop in a pub or two. The first was King's Head and then Garavans. The last stop was The Front Door where we ate anyway. Sylvia did the pizza and I finally had Irish Beef Stew, both good. Obviously we spent time in a lot of pubs, but never found a favorite, they're all good.Tomorrow we leave Galway for someplace nearer to the airport.

You can actually walk the entire length of the cliffs. About 7 miles.

Cliffs of Moher

Cliffs of Moher

Day 8 Galway

It's laundry day and my first job was to find someplace to get the laundry done. It took awhile but there was a little place up the street and he said it would be done by five. There was no desire for a monster breakfast this morning, so we had a scone and coffee and got an early start. Sylvia has a cold and was in no mood to rush around. We had no plans for anyplace special, just a walk around the city and take the sights in. Galway's not a town with a lot of museums, it's mostly about the street atmosphere and the labyrinth of alleyways with shops, pubs, and just great entertainment. We spent 4 or 5 hours walking around Salt Hill, the

eastern part of town, the waterfront, and followed the canals up stream. It's a very fun and interesting walking town. The major problem with it is that it has 504 pubs, and I couldn't go to all of them. I wanted to try though, but Sylvia wasn't up for it and that was a good thing. Although when Sylvia went shopping I did manage to stop in a little pub called Tis Coili. There was about 20 old local guys, a grizzly old dog, and Old Bill - no women. The guys were laughing, singing and just having a ball. The old dog just sat there with a ball in his mouth, and Old Bill just sat there with a pint and smiled. I picked up the laundry on the way back to the hotel and Sylvia said they did a great job.

Walkway between the river and canal

We went out to get something to eat around 7 and stopped for a drink at the Bunch of Grapes. You'd think it specialized in wine...nope, just beer. Sylvia had wine anyhow, and I didn't. Since Sylvia had a cold and wasn't hungry and I was getting tired of fish, we opted for something different and went to a pub on High street called the Front Door Bar. Sylvia ordered soup and I ordered one of my favorites, a prosciutto and arugula pizza cooked crispy. Honestly, I've never had a better pizza anywhere. I ate way more than I wanted to. Afterwards we just went back to Jury's, had a Jameson's and crashed. Tomorrow we're planning on driving down to see the Cliffs of Moher.

Low tide and boats grounded

Day 7 Galway

Time to go to Galway, but not without reneging on my vow to never do a Full Irish Breakfast again. I just had to do it one more time, this time with sausage, bacon, tomato, poached egg, mushrooms, and black and white pudding. It was filling, but good. Maybe I'll try it one more time?

We checked out of our comfortable guest house with their fabulous breakfasts and headed the 150 miles up to Galway. The weather was good and the drive was easy, except that we left Dingle by way of Connor Pass. It was a really scenic ride with sheep on the road and everything, but at the top of the mountain it turns into several miles of one lane road with two lanes of traffic and got a little tedious for me, frantic for Sylvia. It all ended well and we got to Galway uneventfully, except that the navigator and the driver have trouble hearing/paying attention to each other and it did lead to a few lively moments. We arrived around 2 and checked into the Jury Hotel. The Jury, being a large semi luxury hotel, isn't the type of hotel we normally like, but it was convenient, had parking nearby, and at a perfect location. They put us in a great room on the Corrib River. The Corrib is actually used by fly fishermen in the summer for salmon fishing. It's extremely fast and perfect for salmon. It had to be one of the best rooms view wise in the hotel.

View from the room

As usual the first thing on the agenda was to walk the town and try to get things figured out. After an hour of walking about we checked out a couple of pubs; Fibber Magee's, Seven, and Busker Brown's, finally deciding on Busker, mostly because Ireland was playing France in the Rugby World Cup and all the pubs were packed, and Busker happened to have two seats at the bar. Watching the match with all the excitement was fun and we're glad Ireland won because the fans in the pub were pretty passionate. Consumed a bit of beer and food there too. Sylvia had a Chicken Caesar Salad and I had fish and chips. All okay. That was the end of the day. Our first impressions of Galway were good ones so we extended our stay to three nights. More on Galway tomorrow after spending a whole day there.

Day 6 Dingle

The first thing we had to do today was decide where we were going when we leave Dingle tomorrow. After a somewhat lively discussion about whether to go north to Galway or south to Cork, "we" decided she wanted to go to Galway.

Scrambled and Salmon

Therefore I made a reservation for two nights at a Jury hotel right downtown Galway. Once that was done it was on to breakfast. Sylvia had the specialty of the house, porridge with dark brown sugar, cream, and shot of Drambuie. I on the other hand, decided to stay sober and have scrambled eggs and smoked salmon, but I was very jealous.

With those two important things over with, we got started on a long day on a drive around the Ring of Kerry. It was similar to yesterday's drive except it was 200 miles instead of 60, One hundred and twenty of those miles would be on the Ring of Kerry. The drive from Dingle took us along some cute towns on the north shore before getting to Portmagee at the end of the peninsula. We had to go over the bridge to see what was going on in Knightstown only to find they were running a marathon around the island. We managed to get around the mess and continue up the spectacular scenery of the south shore. It was 2 o'clock when we got to the pretty little town of Kenmar. We stopped for lunch at the Atlantic Bar and had more Seafood Chowder - I was starting to get a little bit tired of it. Sylvia went for the shoe leather pork chops. We walked around town a bit and it seemed like a pretty good place to spend a few days. It was an hour and a half drive from there back to Dingle and it was nice to get back. It was hard driving with narrow twisting roads, no shoulder, and high speeds. If I had to decide which drive was best, Dingle Peninsula or Ring of Kerry, I'd have to say Dingle because it's less miles and has a somewhat more interesting history. Both are beautiful, but the south shore of the Ring has the most picturesque spots. But as you see from day 5, Dingle isn't too shabby, plus the story of the people who lived on the Blasket Islands makes your heart bleed.

For dinner we walked into town and decided on the John Benny Pub. Sylvia had corned beef and cabbage and I went for the hake and mashed potatoes again. The fish here's pretty good and without a doubt fresh. One of the things Dingle's noted for is Irish music. Every evening after 9:30 most every pub has live music and it's really good...I think. Anyhow, we stuck around for an hour or so to listen and enjoy.

Tomorrow we go to Galway for at least two days. Our stay in Dingle was great, I wish it was longer. The people here were the most friendly and happy people I've ever experienced. They just seem to enjoy being around other people. And the history of the area seems long and special. I felt privileged just being here.

Views from the south shore of The Ring of Kerry

Day 5 Dingle

The day started off with a great breakfast; a mushroom and blue cheese omelette

Doesn't look like an omelette?

for me, and a savory Eggs Benedict for Sylvia. Right after breakfast we did the highly recommended 30 mile Dingle Peninsula drive. The first thing that amazed me was that fuchsia grow wild around here, the roads are lined with hedgerows of them. The whole peninsula is spectacular, I couldn't even begin to describe it. The history and simple beauty is unlike anything I've seen. The drive's not hard, there's a few narrow, single lane spots, but overall it's pretty easy and with a few stops it takes about three or four hours. One stop not to miss is the Blasket Center which is a museum of sorts that does a great job of describing the history of the Blasket Islands. Another stop that I decided not to miss was the pub at the Ceann Sibeal Hotel in the town of Ballyferriter - okay, by then I was thirsty, big deal. We had the fish chowder with a Guinness and it was pretty okay. Well worth the stop and I'd go back. When we got back to Dingle we walked the town again and had a beer at Murphy's before going to the hotel. By the way, Sylvia doesn't drink beer but she's trying to drink Guinness. I sometimes help her finish it.

In the evening we opted for some pub grub at Paul Geaney's Pub. It was only

Banoffee Pie

seven o'clock so we were a little early for dinner and that was a good thing because it started filling up right after we got there. I had hake and Sylvia went the beef route. Everything was good, but the Banoffee Pie we had for dessert was great. They had the New Zealand, Tsonga rugby match on which I was interested in for a short time. I've never been able to figure out the rules of rugby anyhow. Tomorrow we want to do the Ring of Kerry drive and it's a long day, so we got back to the room by 9:30 and called it a night.

Day 4 Dingle

View from the room

It's time to leave Dublin and it was a very nice stay - I'd recommend it to anybody, especially to anybody who likes beer. I got up very early and went for an early morning walk and found a little shop that had a small steak and kidney pie and I had that with coffee and sat there for awhile and enjoyed watching the all the hubbub and morning commuters. Afterwards I went back to the hotel and got Sylvia and we walked for about 20 minutes with our luggage to a rental car place and picked up a small car and were on our way towards Dingle before 10. The drive was pleasant enough with a few narrow roads, just enough to cause me to ding the passenger side mirror. Again this was no problem, except Sylvia was my passenger. Do you think she said anything?... She hardly ever uses that kind of language.

Dinner at Global Village

We arrived in Dingle around 2 and checked in to the Heatons Guest House. It's a pleasant 16 room place that overlooks the water. Dingle's a town of 1,600 people and the whole peninsula has 10,000 residents.We settled in and walked 15 minutes into town to find a place for dinner. We ended up making reservation at the Global Village restaurant but not before stopping for a pint at Barr Na Sraide Pub before walking back to the guest house.

The dinner at the Global Village was very, very good. For appetizers I ordered duck liver parfait and duck leg rillette and Sylvia had the cream cheese croquette. For the main course, and since the Dingle Peninsula is home to 100,000 sheep,  I ordered an all lamb dish of steak, liver, belly, neck, and a mini Shepard's Pie. And, since Dingle's a fishing port, Sylvia ordered mackerel, and lemon sole with a duck fat fried potato. The desserts were great too. Stuffed again!

On the waddle back we stopped at John Benny's Pub for a pint and watched the Germany Ireland soccer match. There was an enthusiastic group of both Germans and Irish in the pub. It was a lot of fun and we watched until the half was over and then went back to the guest house to watch the ending. Surprisingly Ireland won 1-0. Obviously the Germans couldn't understand it.

Day 3 Dublin

The best weather day so far. I got up early and went up to a coffee shop and sat there and watched people come to work. I sat there for about an hour just enjoying the morning. Once Sylvia got up and ready we walked up to the Guinness factory and took a tour. It's the best brewery tour I've been on and well worth the $16 admission. It takes about an hour to cover the seven floors before getting to the top observation tower where you get a pint and a fabulous view of the Dublin. On the way back to town we stopped at Leo Burdock's Fish and Chips shop. It's supposed to be the best fish and chips in Dublin and it was very good. After finishing the fish we made plane reservation for the trip to Edinburgh on the 15th. All went well so we walked about town for the 50th time and bellied up to the bar at Kehoe's Pub. It's another famous old pub that is exactly like it was over 100 years ago, and it looked it. The beers tasted good though. We walked around some more and again stopped at the Gin Palace and Porterhouse pubs. We had dinner at Porterhouse and it was pretty good, it's a neat place.We ended the night at the bar next to hotel called Turks Head. I don't know how it got it's name, but it seemed appropriate. Tomorrow morning we pick up a car and leave Dublin and drive 180 miles on the wrong side of the road across Ireland to Dingle.

After a busy night at the pub

Flower piles everywhere

Day 2 Dublin

The day started off with breakfast at the hotel. I ordered what they call a Full Irish Breakfast, a traditional breakfast that consists of eggs, sausage, bacon (actually more like ham), mushrooms, roasted tomato, potatoes, beans, and toast. Whew! I ate it, but I won't do that again. Sylvia's a bit more sensible and went much lighter. I finished it all and waddled back up to the room for a bit before heading across town to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells. It wasn't crowded so we walked right in and did the audio tour - it was interesting and well worth seeing, especially since it only took an hour. What I thought was really cool was the library. It's a huge old, tall wooden structure with vaulted ceilings containing over 200,000 very old and ancient books. It looked like something out of a Harry Potter movie.

Fish Pie

Matt the Thresher

Still feeling stuffed from breakfast, a big walk seemed in order so we walked over to St Stephen's Green and wandered around. It's a beautiful 22 acre park in the middle of town with not much in the way of flowers for this time of year, but you could imagine how pretty it must look in summer. After an hour of walking it was getting time for lunch and I wasn't a bit hungry, but duty called, so we found a restaurant recommend to us by Randy and Noreen called Matt The Thresher (crazy name huh?).  This restaurant is somewhat noted for the time Michelle Obama, Natasha and Malia went there and ate lunch.  The menu looked pretty good so we gave it a try anyhow. We ordered a wine with a grape that I wasn't familiar with called Piquepoul. It's a white wine that goes well with seafood and ended up working perfectly with what we ordered. I had Seafood Chowder and Fish Pie - like Shepard's Pie only with fish and a cream sauce. Sylvia had a Yellow Beet and Apple soup, and a Smoked Hake Fishcake. Everything was excellent and the restaurant was well worth going too. I'd go back, no problem.

Waddling again, we walked back to the Grafton St. shopping area and just

looked around at all the shops...and pubs. When we couldn't waddle much longer, we stopped in O'Neill's Pub, an famous old traditional Irish pub with a lot of little nooks and crannies scattered about. The main bar has 45 beers on tap and since we were there, I ordered one. Although I couldn't eat another thing, the food served cafeteria style looked great. After that we headed back to the hotel for a bit. Around 6 o'clock we decided to skip dinner and walk across the river to another part of town. After an hour of walking it started to drizzle, and amazingly we just happened to walk by a place called the Gin Palace - what a find! It a busy gin joint that keeps about 150 gins around. They have lots of beer too but gin is their thing. After chatting with Derek our bartender, he made us a drink with Dingle gin on the rocks with an orange slice and a cinnamon stick. It was really good, even Sylvia liked it and she hates gin. That one was so good that I had to try something else so Derek made me a drink with Bertha's Revenge gin and cucumber. Bertha's Revenge gin is made from milk and Bertha was the oldest cow ever. She lived to be 48 and gave birth to 39 calves. The Gin Palace is a great place and yes I would go back again...maybe tomorrow.


Today was a Hallmark Day. Today was the first time in the gazillion years that I've known Sylvia that she's asked ME how to spell something. She asked me how to spell Guinness. It's just one more thing that proving that the "Golden Years" are bullshit. BTW, I actually didn't spell it, I just said it had two n's...I thought.

Day 1 Dublin

Okay, so I decided to do this damn blog again.  A trip to Ireland seemed like a good idea since we had been planning on going to a wedding in Edinburgh, Scotland on October 17. So we booked an Aer Lingus flight to Dublin from Dulles airport at a pretty good rate of $750. The plane left yesterday (Sunday) at 5:20  pm and overall it was a pretty good flight with not so good food, but the flight attendants were very nice and it wasn't crowded. We hoped to get a few hours sleep on the way over, but as usual that didn't work out. The plane landed ahead of schedule at 5 am local time and it was raining. This was going to be a long day. We grabbed a bus from the airport to city center Dublin and it left us off five or six blocks from the hotel which was no problem except that it was pouring rain, which was no problem either except that Sylvia was along. She toughed it out and hardly said a word...for a while. The hotel we booked was the Paramount Hotel and our room wasn't ready, but the receptionist was nice enough to give us a temporary room to store our wet stuff in and let us dry out a bit. Feeling pretty tired but not wanting to take a nap, we found a coffee shop and hung out until the rain let up. We walked around town trying to get a feel for the area and it didn't take long to realize that there's no shortage of pubs in Dublin.

Around noon we stopped in The Temple Bar pub and had a not so good sandwich with wine and beer, then ambled back to the hotel to swap rooms and get a bit settled. The room was smallish but okay except it only had one electric outlet and it was going to be a challenge to keep two phones, two tablets, and a laptop charged up. I can't even talk about the hair dryer issue.

Later in the afternoon we walked up to the Christ Church Cathedral for a brief tour and it was fairly interesting. Afterwards, feeling a bit parched, we stopped at the The Hairy Lemon pub and had a bit to drink, then up the block to J. Grogan's pub for another. Hairy Lemon's has a good looking menu and we'll probably go back there again sometime. J. Grogan's was a true pub and the only food they had was a cooler full of cheese sandwiches. We'll probably go back there again too. We then walked about a bit more and decided to eat a light dinner. Since we hadn't slept since we left home, we thought it a good idea to eat early. We decided to try out the Porterhouse pub up the street from the hotel. It was a good choice, I had a terrific seafood chowder and Sylvia had two smoked salmon and cod fishcakes that she really liked. I'd like to back there too. We got back to the hotel early and it didn't take long to fall asleep well before nine.

One thing of interest was the language. I've been to at least a dozen countries in Europe and language was never a problem, but it's amazing that here we're all speaking English and most of the time I can't understand a damn thing they're saying. Hopefully my ear will get tuned up to the Irish brogue. Meanwhile I'll continue to pretend to know what they said and just nod like an idiot.