Lovely Day For a Guinness

Friday afternoon Norah and I took off for Dublin. We had planned on a three hour and forty minute bus ride, but it was more like four hours and ten minutes. So we arrived in Dublin after dark, a bit road weary and starving. Luckily our hostel was very near the bus station and after walking the block for a bit we found it, put our bags away and hit the pavement for some food. We tried to look to eat cheap, but it was all about the same so we settled on a restaurant right across from the Spire on O’Connell. The food we ordered was delicious but not nearly enough (both for our appetite and the price). We watched as the other more affluent patrons ordered the four course special and agreed we would head to McDonald’s across the street for dessert. But fortune had a little something else in mind for us. Two women to the left of us had ordered the four course meal and had enjoyed three of them, they impatiently snapped at their waiter for their dessert but decided to leave before it came. The waitress looked flummoxed as she stared at the empty table, Norah and I looked pathetic as we stared at the sundae and pastry balls she held on her tray. We both groaned as she walked back to the kitchen with the desserts, and prayed we would get the bill fast so we could get our own. But instead our waiter brought out the abandoned Neapolitan sundae with two spoons announcing, “On the house, I saw the way you looked when we took it back.” Giggling and gleeful we dug in; it was the best sundae I have ever had. It was still pretty early when we left the restaurant so we walked the area around O’Connell street, down the Quays, by Temple bar and commented on the lights and people. I had had the feeling as we were pulling into the Dublin bus station that was reminiscent of my return trips to Chicago and walking around I was reminded a lot of Chicago, maybe because it’s the biggest city I know well. Dublin was very different from any of the other parts of Ireland we had been to, it was active and crowded and modern.

The next morning we woke up early so we could fit as much in as possible. I don’t know how but Norah and I have been very lucky on the weather we get for our trips. We awoke to a beautiful blue sky and busy city. At breakfast we decided to head towards Trinity College first and then to some of the squares around that area. Our hostel’s location couldn’t have been better; we were very close to all the sights we wanted to see. We made it to Trinity, a beautiful campus, it reminded me of Notre Dame a bit, snapped a few photos of the buildings and then decided to pay to see the Book of Kells, the real treat though was walking through the Long Room, a two-story library with all the old archived books, and it was beautifully maintained. We left Trinity and planned to head towards Merrion Square, but before we got there we ran into the National buildings (my name for them not the official one). The National Library was having an exhibit on Yeats and since it was free, we ducked in, it was a beautiful exhibit, as you walked in there was a sort of enclosed seating area with two openings and a bunch of screens. Some of the screens had striking photos of nature projected on them while others were somewhat sheer and had Yeats’ poetry projected on them, a woman’s voice overhead read aloud the verses. Next door to the National Library was the National Museum, again it was free so we went in. The most interesting thing about the museum for me was how they displayed three different mummified bodies. All bodies found in bogs, each was given their own little viewing area that was a circular enclosure in the room. I thought it was somewhat respectful, as these were actually living people at one point, ones who never thought they would be put on display in death. We didn’t stay long in the museum both of us too fidgety to read displays and the day too nice to be indoors.

Hungry, we decided to pick up some sandwiches and have a picnic in Merrion Square. The walk to the square was beautiful; we strolled along tree-lined rows of Georgian houses. At one point I stopped to take a photo of a doorway and an off duty tour guide stopped to tell us, that the real Georgian doorways were a few blocks south of us, so naturally we stopped there later. When we got to Merrion Square I was expecting something a bit more like Central Park, large and open, but fences and high bushes enclosed the square. Still lovely we strolled around looking at statues and for a nice sunny bench to eat lunch on. The square was too quiet though, so we decided to walk back along the way the tour guide had told us and see if we couldn’t find some more action. We decided to try St. Stephens Green and this proved to be exactly what we were looking for. A lot like Central Park, the Green was busy with people, and bursting with fall colors, which were a joy to see. We walked through it and came out on the other side to Grafton Street. The entrance from Grafton Street to the Green is a large archway one recognizable from the movie Once, which is exactly what I shouted, to Norah’s surprise, upon spying it. Grafton Street was very crowded. Filled with lots of shops and cafes it would be a fun place to people watch, but as we had no desire or money to shop we just walked straight through and found ourselves back in front of Trinity.

We were a bit leg weary so we ducked into a Starbucks (one of the only ones in Ireland) so I could have some chai. Looking out we commented on the beautiful facades of the buildings. It was one of our favorite things about the city, how all the modernity had settled in to the old buildings. We were treated with a visit from a pigeon who wandered in off the street, a poor barista had to chase it under people’s legs and take it outside. After our rest we headed to Dublin Castle, an English administrative building, but as the exhibits cost to go in, we kept moving on to Christ’s Cathedral. We were convinced that the Cathedral had to be free, but we were wrong, deciding to skip the Viking museum attached to the cathedral (no joke) we paid the three euro to see the interior, which while attractive was no Notre Dame Basilica. After the cathedral we walked down to the Quays and out a bit from the city center.

We had discussed going to Guinness brewery, but weren’t sure we wanted to pay the 14-euro charge to get in, even if you do get a complimentary pint. Norah had heard the best part was the Gravity Bar, a bar on the top of the storehouse with 360 degree views of the city, we were hoping we could just get in there and buy a pint, we weren’t so lucky.

First of all the Guinness factory takes up 60 acres of land in Dublin and Norah and I walked pretty much the entire perimeter of it. We had approached it from the wrong way, but we finally made it to the entrance. It was pretty busy when we went in and we quickly saw there was no way to get up to the bar for a pint, so we decided to shill out the 11 euro charge for students and complete our Dublin experience. What you see as a visitor is not in fact the brewery but instead the storehouse, which is just a museum displaying info on the ingredients and history on the beer. Although to be fair it’s not like any museum you’ve ever been to, as Norah put it, “Its sensory overload.” Very sleek, it was comprised of lots of televisions, glass panels, humongous displays, including a huge coopering barrel and an indoor waterfall. Although the fact is there isn’t a whole lot that goes into Guinness, just hops, water, and barley and Norah and I didn’t really care about the info provided. We stopped in each of the rooms (including the tasting lab where you get a quarter of a half pint of Guinness) but quickly made our way to the bar. Unfortunately the Gravity Bar was packed, we were able to see out the windows and see a lot of Dublin, but there was nowhere to sit and it was very hot. So we took our pints down a floor to the Source Bar, and looked out one of the windows. In the end we paid 11 euro for a pint of Guinness but after our long walk, it was well worth it, and made the trip to Dublin feel complete. We took our time sipping our pints and then headed back towards our hostel. We had dinner around the Temple Bar area, and decided we needed another drink. In a move that will pleasantly surprise our parents we opted for milkshakes instead of ale. Back on O’Connell Street we found an Eddie Rockets, the Irish version of Johnny Rockets, and sipped our shakes. Pleased with our day but tired we called it an early night.

This morning we checked out of our hostel and headed to a few last minute sights, the famine memorial (depressing) and Abbey Theatre (destroyed and poorly rebuilt). We caught a direct express bus back to Galway and made it home in two and a half hours.

Dublin Photos