Tuesday we hung out at the hotel and in Temple Bar, and had a low-key day because we knew that today would be nuts! And it was.
Today was St. Patrick's Day, and on the advice of the hotel desk staff, we found a great spot on Dame Street to watch the Parade. We got to our spot around 10, but the parade didn't get to us until nearly 1. It started at noon. There was just over an hour of bands, floats, and people in all kinds of costumes. It was amazing to see in person. The hotel has cut me off from uploading things, that or the bunch of business people are keeping me from being able to do it, so I'll get some pictures on here after I get home and can use all the bandwidth I want! Our flight leaves Dublin at 9:45 tomorrow morning, which means we have to be up and out of the hotel by 6:45 to make it to the airport by 7:45. After that is a short flight to Amsterdam, followed by a 9.5 hour flight to Minneapolis, and a 4 hour layover there, and finally our flight to Rapid. The weather looks like it may snow, but I'm praying it'll hold off until after our plane lands and we make it home! It's been a great week, and we can't wait to come back here again!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
Day 5: last minute plan change leads to seeing more sights in Dublin
We showed up a few minutes early for the Newgrange tour we were supposed to go on today, but were told the tour doesn't start until April. It seems Expedia has been selling this tour, even though they know it doesn't run this time of year. The lady working at the desk for the tour was very nice and gave us advice on some things to do in Dublin, and a free pass for the hop on/hop off tour again. We first went to Trinity College and saw the Book of Kells and the Long Room in the Old Library. There's no photography allowed inside, but we did get some pictures of the campus.
Next we got lost and spent nearly an hour trying to find Dublin Castle. We eventually found it and joined the next available tour. Dublin Castle is where all the important government functions take place, and several movies and TV shows have been filmed there. They're currently negotiating with the producers of the next Harry Potter movie to film parts of it there. Underneath one of the buildings, they found part of the original Viking foundation and castle wall during an excavation in the 1980s. You can also see where the River Poddle seeps through the walls into where the moat would have been. The name Dublin comes from the phrase Dubh (sounds like dove) Linn, meaning Black Pool, and the part of the River Poddle that seeps in is where that name came from.
Our final stop of the day was Kilmainham Gaol, a jail that dates back to the 1700s. That was where the leaders of the 1916 Uprising, as well as many others, were executed. They also sent about 4000 people to Australia, since that was used as a type of prison for awhile. It's quite an ominous place to visit, but well worth it. They've also filmed several movies and TV shows there. I think I may start watching 'The Tudors' after this trip.
We have nothing really planned for tomorrow, but I may wander down to St. Stephan's Green and take some pictures there. It's kind of nice being able to just play things by ear.
Next we got lost and spent nearly an hour trying to find Dublin Castle. We eventually found it and joined the next available tour. Dublin Castle is where all the important government functions take place, and several movies and TV shows have been filmed there. They're currently negotiating with the producers of the next Harry Potter movie to film parts of it there. Underneath one of the buildings, they found part of the original Viking foundation and castle wall during an excavation in the 1980s. You can also see where the River Poddle seeps through the walls into where the moat would have been. The name Dublin comes from the phrase Dubh (sounds like dove) Linn, meaning Black Pool, and the part of the River Poddle that seeps in is where that name came from.
Our final stop of the day was Kilmainham Gaol, a jail that dates back to the 1700s. That was where the leaders of the 1916 Uprising, as well as many others, were executed. They also sent about 4000 people to Australia, since that was used as a type of prison for awhile. It's quite an ominous place to visit, but well worth it. They've also filmed several movies and TV shows there. I think I may start watching 'The Tudors' after this trip.
We have nothing really planned for tomorrow, but I may wander down to St. Stephan's Green and take some pictures there. It's kind of nice being able to just play things by ear.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Day 4: River cruise and a carnival
Today we went on the cruise of the River Liffey. It's about 45 minutes long and takes you out to the mouth of the Dublin Bay. There's a ton of things to see along the way, so I'll just add some pictures to take care of that.
After the river cruise, we split up for a couple of hours and each wandered different places. After that, we walked to Merrion Square for the carnival there. We rode the 150ft ferris wheel, the view was amazing, but our pictures didn't turn out too well. Maybe we'll go ride it again in the day time. Tomorrow we head to Newgrange to see burial mounds that predate the Egyptian pyramids, so there should be plenty of pictures from that.
After the river cruise, we split up for a couple of hours and each wandered different places. After that, we walked to Merrion Square for the carnival there. We rode the 150ft ferris wheel, the view was amazing, but our pictures didn't turn out too well. Maybe we'll go ride it again in the day time. Tomorrow we head to Newgrange to see burial mounds that predate the Egyptian pyramids, so there should be plenty of pictures from that.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Day 3: County Wicklow
Today was our trip to County Wicklow, just south of Dublin. Before we headed to Wicklow, our tour stopped at the coastal town of Dun Laoghaire. It's a beautiful suburb of Dublin, with views of Howth, and fishing village, and the Irish Sea. While we were there, a bunch of people were going swimming. They have to be insane! The air temperature was around 40F, and I froze just putting one bare foot into the water.
After Dun Laoghaire, we headed into the Wicklow Mountains National Park. Anyone who has seen 'P.S' I Love You' knows the area we were in. We even got to stop for pictures at one of the filming site, and I got a bunch of pictures there.
After that stop, we stopped at the overlook for Lough (Loch) Tay and the Guinness estate. There was some snow at this elevation, which is roughly the same as Spearfish. We played in the snow for a minute, then took pictures of the beautiful scenery there.
Lunch was in a small village called Laragh. They have a creek that looks a lot like Spearfish Canyon in places, so we walked to that and took some pictures.
After lunch, we finally made it to Glendalough, a monastic city founded by St. Kevin around 900AD to convert the Pagans to Christianity. It's a beautiful place, full of history. Glendalough gets its name from the two lakes that are right by it, and we hiked to both.
Tomorrow we don't really have anything planned, except going on the river cruise that was canceled yesterday.
After Dun Laoghaire, we headed into the Wicklow Mountains National Park. Anyone who has seen 'P.S' I Love You' knows the area we were in. We even got to stop for pictures at one of the filming site, and I got a bunch of pictures there.
After that stop, we stopped at the overlook for Lough (Loch) Tay and the Guinness estate. There was some snow at this elevation, which is roughly the same as Spearfish. We played in the snow for a minute, then took pictures of the beautiful scenery there.
Lunch was in a small village called Laragh. They have a creek that looks a lot like Spearfish Canyon in places, so we walked to that and took some pictures.
After lunch, we finally made it to Glendalough, a monastic city founded by St. Kevin around 900AD to convert the Pagans to Christianity. It's a beautiful place, full of history. Glendalough gets its name from the two lakes that are right by it, and we hiked to both.
Tomorrow we don't really have anything planned, except going on the river cruise that was canceled yesterday.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Day 2: The adventure continues with a much earlier start
Today started off much earlier, and after grabbing something to eat at SPAR (my favorite convinience store with a sandwich shop), we rode around on the tour bus until we got to the stop for the Jameson Distillery.
This tour, unlike Guinness, is a guided tour that takes you through the whole process. They have rooms for every step of the process, and several short films to better explain things.
After the tour, everyone get a free drink, and some people get to be whiskey tasters. Last year, Annie got to be one, and this year I got to do it! They put Jameson up against Johnny Walker Black and Jack Daniels, but there's really no competition.
After spending more money at the Jameson gift shop, we headed back to the hotel with plans of catching the last river cruise of the day. That was scrapped by the tide dropping the water level too low, so we headed back to the hotel and hung out here for the rest of the evening. Tomorrow we head south to County Wicklow for the day.
This tour, unlike Guinness, is a guided tour that takes you through the whole process. They have rooms for every step of the process, and several short films to better explain things.
After the tour, everyone get a free drink, and some people get to be whiskey tasters. Last year, Annie got to be one, and this year I got to do it! They put Jameson up against Johnny Walker Black and Jack Daniels, but there's really no competition.
After spending more money at the Jameson gift shop, we headed back to the hotel with plans of catching the last river cruise of the day. That was scrapped by the tide dropping the water level too low, so we headed back to the hotel and hung out here for the rest of the evening. Tomorrow we head south to County Wicklow for the day.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Day 1: The adventure begins with late start
After a late start because I slept more than I should have, we headed to O'Connell Street to catch the Hop On/Hop Off tour. We road on that for a bit, then decided to get off at the stop for the Guinness Brewery.
The tour through the brewery is self-guided, so we took our time, nearly 2 hours of it, and explored the whole thing.
The tour ends on the top level, called the Gravity Bar, where you get a free pint of Guinness. The Gravity Bar has glass walls, giving you a 360 degree view of Dublin and the surrounding area.
Since I can't have hops, I had a sip of mine, just to try it once, then made Dowdy drink both pints. He didn't fight that.
After we left the brewery, we realized we missed the last bus back to the city centre, so we pulled out the map we got from the gift shop, and made our way back to the hotel. It was only about a mile walk, so it wasn't too bad. Plus I found a shop that sells Dr. Pepper just down from the hotel, yay!
We're planning on eating at the Flanagan's Restaurant here, and wandering the city centre to finish getting souvenirs. Tomorrow we're going to the Jameson Distillery and on the cruise of the River Liffey.
The tour through the brewery is self-guided, so we took our time, nearly 2 hours of it, and explored the whole thing.
The tour ends on the top level, called the Gravity Bar, where you get a free pint of Guinness. The Gravity Bar has glass walls, giving you a 360 degree view of Dublin and the surrounding area.
Since I can't have hops, I had a sip of mine, just to try it once, then made Dowdy drink both pints. He didn't fight that.
After we left the brewery, we realized we missed the last bus back to the city centre, so we pulled out the map we got from the gift shop, and made our way back to the hotel. It was only about a mile walk, so it wasn't too bad. Plus I found a shop that sells Dr. Pepper just down from the hotel, yay!
We're planning on eating at the Flanagan's Restaurant here, and wandering the city centre to finish getting souvenirs. Tomorrow we're going to the Jameson Distillery and on the cruise of the River Liffey.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
We are in Dublin!
Just a quick note to let everyone know we made it to Dublin after a long trip. I'll put pictures up tomorrow, after I've had some sleep since it's been over 30hrs since I slept.
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