Dublin, Check!

I was excited about Dublin! My parents spoke so highly of it when they visited not that long ago! I took the rest of the afternoon that first day to write my blog posts. The two girls I met in my room had been living in Dublin for a few months already! They are looking for permanent places to live. We all went out for dinner that first night together but we weren't using the hostel for the same reason and I found I didn't hang out with them again. In fact, other than one woman who was 70 years old and from Manitoba, I didn't talk or hang out with anyone from my room.

On the first full day there I went on a walking tour. Great walking tour! It was 3 hours and we walked all over the city and the guide told us the history of Ireland using the old and new buildings to paint the picture. There was one story he told us that explains the jokester ability of the Irish I suppose. I don't remember the dates but it was the early 2000s. There is a plaque located on one side of the O’Connell Bridge dedicated to the life of a man who risked his life doing something. After two years of the plaque being there, people started to take notice and wonder who this man was. There is no mention of him anywhere and the city was about to remove the plaque but then they received a phone call. Apparently, it was a prank between two brothers. The face of the man on the plaque was their father who had died before they installed it. The two brothers said that they put on high-vis vests and hard hats and in broad daylight installed the plaque and no one questioned them or told them off! The city’s response was a slow clap. “Well done!” they thought, “you got us there!”. So the city decided to keep the plaque despite it having no historical relevance. Just a prank well done!

I met a girl on my tour and we decided to meet up later to go to a local pub. Did you know Temple Bar is an area dedicated only to tourists? It has no historical significance at all! A pint of Guinness anywhere else in the city would cost €6.50 but in Temple Bar, it could cost as much as €10.50! Outrageous! So I was keen on spending my nights in the more local areas of the city. I did enjoy a few pints of Guinness! One of them was at The Cobblestone which my parents recommended I go to. Live music, standing room only, very crowded. We got a couple of stools by the back of the pub so it was hard to hear the music, but it was nice to be in the atmosphere!

The next day I had an early start. I had a tour booked for Trinity College and the Book of Kells at 9 am. It was really nice being on campus before the hustle and bustle of people coming and going. The College is beautiful and very historic! You can see it in the building design. I would recommend a tour because otherwise, I wouldn't know what any of it meant.

The Book of Kells and the Trinity College Library were cool too. The Library is going through conservation efforts so a lot of the books have been removed and they will be closing the library next year for six years! They are cleaning, documenting, and digitizing the books. There were these bust heads of great figures throughout history, both men AND women, who had made their mark on history one way or the other. There was also this giant floating globe to signify how fragile our world is, similar to the Pale Blue Dot imagery. And I saw Ireland’s oldest surviving harp. Did you know the harp is Ireland’s national symbol? There was some deal made with Guinness because they trademarked the harp first and then Ireland had to ask for permission to use it.

Before the library, there was a self-guided tour of the Book of Kells and I got to see the book itself! Pretty cool! But then I went to the Book of Kells experience which is what they will be using in the meantime while the library conservation takes place. And the curated experience was pretty cool too! They used a lot of projectors and videos to make it feel like an immersive experience. They tell you more about the history and story behind the book and show you the books that are usually present in the library. Plus there is a little scene with the head busts that is fun to watch! Having done the library and then this experience, it was the two together that was special, but if you choose to do the experience without being able to see the library I don't think you will be disappointed. Obviously, there is the fact you won't be in the library, but there are rooms in the experience to help make you feel like you are there!

It was early afternoon by the time I left the College. I got a delicious cruffin from Bread 41! I couldn't wait to eat it, so I indulged sitting right outside the cafe. Damn pigeons were lucky that day because some of the crispy bits hit the ground for their greedy little beaks to snatch up. I walked to St. Stephen’s Green. There was a musical walking tour you could do. I tried it but I think I lost connection halfway through so my work didn't end up saving. It was a part of the Reid Walk app. There are other parks in the States and I think in London where you can do this activity. I meant to go to the Archeology museum but I was so drained from the day at this point that I had to go back to the hostel and veg. The days are lighter for longer which is so nice! But it means I don't have the setting sun to tell me I need to go back to the hostel after a long day of touring.

This next bit is for the plot (aka the story of my life) so no judging is allowed. I decided to get Tinder. I'm not planning on these dates to go anywhere but it gives me a chance to meet the locals and get out of my comfort zone some more… yay! (she said sarcastically). So I had a date with an Irish man and he was a gentleman! Paid for dinner and bought me a pint of Guinness. He suggested that I put black current in the drink to cut the bitter taste (apparently that's what the kids do when they are learning to like the taste of Guinness). The two surprisingly went well together! He jetted off a little while later and I had a chance to listen to some music in the pub/ hardware store where we were at. Then I walked home and a busker was playing some soft tunes to end the night.

My last full day in Dublin started with me sleeping in. Two relatively late nights back to back and that one early morning meant I wanted to just chill. I spent the morning in the hostel journaling and writing blog posts. Then left and went to explore the other side of the O’Connell Bridge from the side I was staying at. There was a weather warning for wind and they weren't joking. It was a nice sunny day but the wind was almost as bad as Skye! Then it started randomly raining later in the day but then was sunny still. I don't know… I was getting whiplash from the weather!

I got a donut at Rolling Donut to support my “Eating through Dublin” trend. Then I made the trek to the Botanical Gardens. They were beautiful and then it started to rain as I mentioned earlier, so the greenhouses became refuges. I made it back to the hostel with little damage and was able to relax before going out for dinner! I ate out at a Japanese street-style restaurant and finished the night off with Murphy’s ice cream which is made in Dingle. Damn! That was good ice cream! I tried a bunch of flavours but the two I picked were vanilla sea salt and Dingle gin. The sea salt was collected in Dingle and was the most interesting sensation because you could tell it was salty but it somehow didn't leave you parched or puckered. It was smooth and creamier somehow. The Dingle gin flavour was really good too! Tasted exactly like gin! They used actual Dingle gin and I had that scoop first and finished with the sea salt! Highly recommend giving this spot a visit wherever you can!

I liked walking around Dublin at night. I was aware of my surroundings but I loved the energy and the colours of the city. People out having a good time, music bleeding from the walls of pubs and bars, and colours lighting up buildings and monuments. I walked around a little bit more after my ice cream before retiring to the hostel to pack and go to bed. I would soon need to wake up at 2 am for a flight to my next destination!

You will hear more about that later! Thanks for following along, and see you again at the next post!

P.S. There is a new TV show coming out on Netflix about Sherlock and his Daughter! I saw some of the filming taking place around the city!

P.P.S. The doors in Dublin were so colourful and a variety of styles that there were too many to take photos of! But definitely makes the city feel more inviting!