June 12, 2012 To the "Ireland" Dublin

We stayed next to the Glasgow airport at the Ramada which was not that nice but very handily located.  We took the shuttle to catch our short and easy flight with Air Lingus.  Well, it would have been easier if "Kenly" had not had a weapons infraction!  He mistakenly left his pocket knife in his carry on and of course it was caught on ex-ray.  Wouldn't have been so bad if it was not declared an "illegal weapon" due to the switch to open the blade.  The Scottish Police had to come and interrogate Kenly but thank goodness they let him go after confiscating the weapon.  What an exciting way to start this leg of our journey!   

Notice Ken's look of humble humour. 

It's not hard to tell where we are going is it?

What's this?  Now we have to switch our money and our minds to adjust to the Euro. 

This is our Irish rental...a vauxhall zafir.  It is very roomy and after the debacle at the rental place in Glasgow we were happy to be underway without delay. 

We found our way through the streets of Dublin to the lovely Burlington Hotel.  What a treat after the Ramada we had stayed at last night!  We picked up our package from "Exploring Ireland" here at the hotel.  They booked our accommodations and were to supply an itinerary for us.  We were disappointed in the lack of detail in the itinerary since we were feeling a little discombobulated.  I know, how much different can Ireland be from Scotland?  Even though they all speak English they somehow don't sound the same and there are many other differences once you start looking.  Time is ticking so we didn't worry too much about it right now.  We would study the package later.  

We didn't waste any time getting out and about to tour Dublin since we only had one night here.  We hopped in a taxi (no chance of getting lost). First stop...Guinness Storehouse!  

http://www.guinness-storehouse.com/en/EventSpaces_GravityBar.aspx


You would not believe this place.  It is on the grounds of the original Guinness Brewery but the tour is not of the actual brewery.  Sounds crazy but it is well worth seeing.  You go on a self guided tour of a very high tech and modern presentation of the history and process of making Guinness but in an old setting.  It's hard to explain which is why you should check out the website.  You work your way up and finally arrive at the top, a circular glass shape, a Guinness glass shape perhaps,  and have a tasting...a pints worth.  The views of Dublin from here are spectacular. 

You can buy everything Guinness here! 

Ann is a self declared Guinness hater at this point.  Wait until later...she will change her tune! 

An important ingredient eh Hops?

Clear water is added to the hops. 

Cool lighting and presentation. 

The copper kettle has a movie in the windows.  

John and Ann have a high I-Q! 

Gravity bar...what a great atmosphere! 

Any decent Irish Guinness bartender can whirl in a shamrock! 

360 degree views of Dublin

Yup...that's a Guinness mustache I'm sporting. 

Happy Wally

From the Guinness Storehouse we walked toward the "Temple Bar" area of Dublin.  According to locals this is touristy but after all we are tourists!  So why not?  There were some strange sights along the way.  We had trouble picking a pub since there were so many to choose from but finally settled on Farringtons.  

Colourful sights...who knows what they are.

Dublin is not a city of high rises.

Garish costumes in these windows. 

Farringtons Pub.  We were in the midst of the world soccer playoffs so encountered the flags everywhere.   This is serious sport here.  I love the enthusiasm.

Studious... it is serious business trying to decipher our first menu in an Irish Pub.  We didn't take long to get the hang of it.  Guinness Pie, fish and chips...good stuff!

Ahhhhh...a beautiful room with a big bed.  Just what we need after a long day.  And notice it isn't dark out.  No problem.  Everywhere we stayed had darkening curtains to help block out the long daylight.