Trip Map and Flight Home

Our trip to the Dublin Airport was something of an adventure, with directions mixed among the guest house receptionist, a taxi cab driver, Belinda and our own instincts, but we did make it. We were very sad to part ways from the Aussie half of the Aussie Yank Tour Team, they heading to the ferry to go back to Wales and we jumping immediately into a bit of chaos.  There were no automatic machines that we could use to put our credit card in and print out our tickets, so we had to stand in a long line.  Security was another long line and I forgot to take my watch off so had to be frisked and they ransacked Nancy's backpack because of her knitting needles.  We didn't understand what the flight schedule board was saying about our flight, mistakenly assuming they would post a gate at any moment.  We got into the wrong line to get our value added tax refund, but finally got that done.  We shopped around a bit and ate some lunch at Burger King, watching the board all the while before deciding to ask what was going on.  Lo and behold, those flying to America had to go through another security routine, apparently to save us from having to do so when we arrived in the States--so another long line.  Thank goodness we asked before it was too late.  The flight was uneventful and we arrived in Newark early.  There was confusion about which luggage return we were to wait at.  In the meantime, I went into panic mode when I could not find my car keys.  They were right where I thought I put them in my backpack, but I hadn't look in the right pouch.  Getting the car was easy, and soon we were on our way home.  We encounter three traffic jams, all seemingly because three lanes were merging into two.  We arrived home a bit before 9:00PM, which would be 2:00AM Greenwich Time.  Soon thereafter we were asleep.

Good Night, Duckies

Glass Domed Shopping Mall

We passed this beautiful building on our way back to the guest house.

Bangers and Mash

Phil and I had the traditional bangers and mash (sausage and mashed potatoes, with a Guinness, of course.

Dinner

After a short kip, we headed back to the center of the city to find a place to eat.  We settled on the Duke and had a pleasant meal there.

Our Guest House in Dublin

We stayed at Staughtons on the Green our final night in Ireland.

St. Stephen's Green Park

"Famine"

This memorial statue, created by Edward Delaney, is in the park which was right across the street from our guest house.  This is where our tour conveniently ended.

Edmund Burke Statue

This statue of Edmund Burke, statesman and philosopher, is in the square at Trinity College.

Trinity College

We were soon at Trinity College, a university established by Queen Elizabeth I, and attended by Jonathan Swift, Bram Stoke, Oscar Wilde, and Samuel Becket.

Spire of Dublin

This 398 foot spire is variously named the Monument of Light, but Patrick said that there are many jokes about this monument because many question its purpose.  There are lights at the top so one joke is that helps those who stumble out of the pub drunk orient themselves for the stagger home.  But, of course, because of it's form it has earn a few nicknames: The Erection at the Intersection and the Stiffy on the Liffey, named for the river that divides Dublin in half.

Along Temple Bar

One end of the Temple Bar is dedicated to the arts and the other end is lined with pubs.

U2

Our next stop was the Temple Bar area and our next story was about Bono and U2.  Before they were known as U2, they won a competition in the building at the top and then went across the street to the Clarence Hotel to celebrate.  It was an upscale hotel and Bono and his band were not, so they were forced to leave, Bono vowing to come back and buy the place, which he did in 1992.  Patrick told us a Bono joke:  Question: What's the difference between Bono and God?  Answer: God doesn't think He's Bono.

Handel's Messiah

This is the George Fredric Handel Hotel.  The very first performance of Handel's Messiah was performed near here.

Chirst Church Cathedral

This is technically the seat of both the Church of Ireland and the Holy Roman Catholic Church in Dublin but the Catholic bishop uses St. Mary's.  The main cathedral was built in the twelfth century.

Jonathan Swift's Birthplace

Patrick indicated that this location along the Forty Steps was where Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver's Travels, was born here.

Forty Steps

Patrick joked about the Irish penchant for unimaginative names.  This passage way was the site for several films and is simply name the Forty Steps, running on the west side of City Hall.

Intersting Building

Most of the buildings we saw were either Georgian in style or twentieth century, this Gothic building was one of the more interesting and attacked to the castle tower.

Our Guide

 

Patrick Hughes, a young Irishman from Cork, was our very knowledgeable guide.

Dublin Castle

We began our Sandeman tour at City Hall.  What was left of Dublin Castle, constructed by King John, the notorious king of Robin Hood infamy and signer of the Magna Carta.  It was used for record keeping, but later as a prison.

Dublin's Writers' Museum

Upon arriving in Dublin Pat and Phil dropped us off at the Dublin Writers' Museum.  The plan was to meet them later for the Sandeman tour at 2:00.  At first we couldn't find the museum, but Nancy spotted it around the corner, on Parnell Square.  The museum was well organized, but of course most of the artifact were books and other printed materials.  I took these shots of Oscar Wilde and Samuel Beckett.  I had not realized that Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, was Irish.

Wednersday Morning Map

This is our route from our last B and B back to Dublin.  I will post Wednesday's events when I get home.

Tuesday's Map

At Conway's Again

We enjoyed Conway's, established in 1805, enough to go back Tuesday night, all ordering the special.  The proprietor sat down and "chatted us up" about our trip to Dingle, about the word "bloke" being too "Anglicized" to be used by the Irish, and other interesting topics.

Phil's Socks

Phil used one of our few warm and sunny days to dry out his socks in the car while we toured the ring of Dingle.

Blasket Sound

This stopped was at or near where Ryan's Daughter was filmed in 1970,

The Bee Hive Huts

Along the way we stopped at the site of an ancient Celtic dwelling.  This sort of dwelling was still being used up to around 1200 AD.

Dingle Bay

After Dingle we headed out to the end of Dingle Peninsula.

The Aussie Yank Tour Team in Dingle

Dingle Harbor

We worked our way down to the harbor, passing three or four ice cream shops along the way, so we had to stop for a sample on the way back.

A Mainie in Dingle

Reaching Dingle, we stopped for lunch--lentil and vegetable soup--in a tiny place along a back alley.  Then we spent some time exploring Dingle.  Pat and Phil had been there eighteen years ago, after they left us in Paris, but they said it seemed larger and busier, something one of the store proprietors verified.

From Donor Pass

From Donor Pass we could see both Brandon Bay on the north and Dingle Bay on the south, either side of Dingle Peninsula.

On the Way to Dingle

Estelle recommended that we approach Dingle by going over the mountains.  These shots with taken as we almost reached the Donor Pass.

The Beach at Ballybunion

Tuesday, our first stop was Ballybunion because it was where Marty was born.  We all met Helen and Marty on our 1997 Trafalgar tour together.  Marty has since passed and we stayed with Helen and her new partner in Queensland in 2012 when we were with Pat and Phil in Australia.  Marty's cousin still lives in Ballybunion but we didn't have time to look her up.

Monday's Map

Guinness on Tap

We had dinner at Conway's Pub , next door to our B and B.  Phil had another Guinness but I went for the pinot grigio instead.

Estelle's Garden

Estelle had a lovely garden too and she brought out a book so we could identify the bush with the blue flowers--ceanothus.

Afternoon Tea

We were treated royally when we arrived at our B and B in Glin on the River Shannon.  Estelle, our hostess, gave us tea--I had water--and homemade rhubarb pie.