Dublin is, to me, the least Irish part of Ireland. I was not sad that we were only spending a day there. A day that happened to be the same day as the Dublin Marathon as well as a shit ton of construction they're doing in the city, which wreaked havoc with the hop on/hop off bus route we were taking. No matter, we soldiered on. And on and on and on. And around Trinity College at least three times, once for an eternity because we could not find the back exit.
I can't figure out how I want to share this trip because I'm not really into eleventy billion posts about one trip, but instead of being paralyzed by the how I figured I'd rip the band-aid off and get this long first day out of the way.
Things we saw:
General Post Office. The scene of the Easter Uprising of 1916, it was cool to be there on the 100th anniversary.
St. Stephen's Green, including this awesome house across from it covered in changing leaves.
Grafton Street, the city's shopping street, and its alley off-shoots - we trolled this street a few times as well
And of course, the Guinness store house. We walked through and did the Guinness Academy - Dad and Debbie were perfect pourers, Carol and I were not - then finished our drink up at the 360 Bar which was pretty cool.
We did a last round on the bus to see the rest of the city, then got off and had a drink at the Ha'Penny Bridge Inn. It has not changed in the past 13 years.
Street / urban art and random city pics:
Dinner at The Quays in Temple Bar. The food was good, but I was honestly so tired I could barely eat. And that's saying a lot because we were on the go all day and skipped lunch.
I think we walked over 10 miles this day? Maybe eight. We did really well for not sleeping. Go team!
Things we did not do in Dublin that were on the list of things to do: Kilmainham Gaol (ran out of time/energy) and St. Patrick's Cathedral on the inside (service going on both times we passed it).
We actually stayed at the Carlton the night before we left the country too, and they were nice enough to hold our bags for us while we were in Scotland. I'd highly recommend them if you need a hotel near the airport in Dublin.
Possibly breaking this trip down like this:
A Day in Dublin
Ireland: The Mountains, the Sea, and Bunratty
Ireland: Cliffs, Galway, Blarney
Scotland in two days
I'll likely go heavy on the photos and light on the writing, but will always include where we stayed, ate, and an approximation of travel time. If you want to know more about anything, please ask!
Personally I enjoy the photo heavy posts. I like to see all of the places you stopped at, but don't necessarily need to know exactly what or where they are unless it's a cool story. I like what you have in mind, look's like a good line up to me.
ReplyDeleteOh man, I would have loved to have been there during the Dublin marathon. I would have made sure I volunteered at it ;)
ReplyDeleteI dont think I've ever said that statement about being so tired I didnt want to eat ;)
I get stumped too when trying to recap big trips like this when you have so much photos and info to share. I'm happy you've gotten right into sharing your travels. Sounds like a trip of a lifetime and you all were definitely troopers for doing a full day of exploring running on no sleep.
ReplyDeleteI stayed at Trinity College while I was studying abroad and remember it took me like 20 minutes to walk from my room to the front entrance. Looking forward to seeing the rest of the vacation post.
ReplyDeleteI love photo heavy trip posts because it really speaks the tale for you! So sad that you were too tired to enjoy the food. That is my favorite part of any trip! But I will say, you guys sure fit a lot in for no sleep and lots of walking! Trip rock star status over there!
ReplyDeleteI think getting out and about on the first day is the best way to beat jet lag! Great job. Those leaves are amazing! My husband felt the same way about Dublin, which is why we stayed out of there and hit the open road. Love that the Carlton held your bags for you!
ReplyDeleteI like when you do photo heavy trip recaps because your photos are so pretty! Can't wait to see them!
ReplyDeleteDublin reminded me a lot of Boston. There were so many students and Americans there while we were there. It was so much fun following your travels. I look forward to exploring more of Ireland.
ReplyDeleteBummer about the construction. Looks like an interesting stop though! You must have been exhausted! I'd struggle to walk 8 miles on a full night of sleep, let alone none! That house with the leaves is so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteDublin is on my travel bucket list! I definitely want to see the Secret of Kells and the Guinness factory even though I don't drink beer!
ReplyDeleteI'm so impressed with y'all pushing through a whole busy day. I love the plan for posts! Ireland/Scotland is really high on my list of places, so I'll enjoy your scheduling and accommodation info :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a big supporter of just pushing through the tiredness and going for a big day when you arrive. That's the way that I've done every overseas trip, and I don't find that I suffer too much jet lag until I get home.
ReplyDeleteoh wow, what a crazy day with the dublin marathon and all that. good job on powering through on no sleep, i suck at that. the house across from the park is gorgeous! so pretty.
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