Ah, Ireland. The home of some of my ancestors (presumably the ones who
provided my lovely pale complexion and scarlet beard), the source of
probably my favorite beer (Guinness), the origin of my
second favorite holiday (St. Patrick's Day), and the epicenter of of
something I'm now borderline obsessed with (Irish folk music). But
before I got bubblin in Dublin, I had to get there. And to do that, it
was fated that I should embark upon my first experience with Ryanair: a
6:30 am flight out of Glasgow.
For those of you who aren't familiar with Ryanair, they are an Irish-based super-economy airline. They are known for their ridiculously low fares (often less than $25-30), their ludicrous extras policies (often checking a bag will cost twice the price of the actual flight), offensively early departure times, draconian red tape policies (it is a huge pain to book on their website-the only place you can do so, or that you have to print your boarding pass and bring it with you or they charge you a huge reissuing fee), and their often less-than-convenient airport locations.
For example, my flight out of Glasgow wasn't actually from Glasgow International, it was from Glasgow Prestwick (about 45 mins away), and in order to get there for a flight that early, I has to take a special bus at 4:30 am from the bus station (or pay 35 pounds for a taxi). To make that bus I had to get a taxi from Alan's place at 4:00, and to be ready for the taxi I had to be up at 3:30. Since we didn't get to bed until after midnight, I arrived at Prestwick in a fine state. But provided you follow all of their crazy policies and can get to their inconvenient airports, flying Ryanair isn't all that bad. And it was heaps cheaper than I could have done otherwise.
For those of you who aren't familiar with Ryanair, they are an Irish-based super-economy airline. They are known for their ridiculously low fares (often less than $25-30), their ludicrous extras policies (often checking a bag will cost twice the price of the actual flight), offensively early departure times, draconian red tape policies (it is a huge pain to book on their website-the only place you can do so, or that you have to print your boarding pass and bring it with you or they charge you a huge reissuing fee), and their often less-than-convenient airport locations.
For example, my flight out of Glasgow wasn't actually from Glasgow International, it was from Glasgow Prestwick (about 45 mins away), and in order to get there for a flight that early, I has to take a special bus at 4:30 am from the bus station (or pay 35 pounds for a taxi). To make that bus I had to get a taxi from Alan's place at 4:00, and to be ready for the taxi I had to be up at 3:30. Since we didn't get to bed until after midnight, I arrived at Prestwick in a fine state. But provided you follow all of their crazy policies and can get to their inconvenient airports, flying Ryanair isn't all that bad. And it was heaps cheaper than I could have done otherwise.
Inside the airport, the most striking thing
about the Ryanair waiting area was that, at 5:30am, at least 40% of the
people were drinking. And it wasn't like these people were already
hammered and were having a bridge-the-gap beer to get them to their
destination. They seemed mostly sober- like it was the first beer of the
day. These people were legitimately starting their day drinking in the
Prestwick airport. And even more astonishingly, it wasn't all youngsters
on their way to some sort of tropical booze-soaked holiday. It was an
even split between youths and middle aged adults. I saw an old guy with a
glass of whisky and his wife with a Bloody Mary. You can see two guys drinking beers and the people at the bar in this shot. Even the little girl looks horrified.
Shaking off my surprise at this very surreal observation (it's rare I find myself looking at others having a drink and thinking "that just seems unreasonable"), it was time to board the flight. And by board the flight I mean line up like cattle in the middle of the "lounge" in front of the man holding the sign reading "Dublin" and wait to be unleashed onto the plane in an all out boarding frenzy. Another oddity: in people's rush to get seats in the very front or back they completely overlook the exit rows- so despite boarding about middle of the way through I got an exit row aisle seat. Ryanair and your patrons: you befuddle me.
Coincidentally, James from York and Edinburgh was going to be in Dublin at the same time so I booked into his hostel, The Generator, which was a tremendous decision as it's probably the best hostel I've ever stayed at. Really great beds, clean, safe, good staff, great bar w cheap drinks for Dublin, very solid breakfast (actually had it twice!), good Internet, excellent showers, and a really really awesome common area- with tvs, pool tables (yes TWO), and a ton of computers to use. It's located in a former hotel that was previously part of the old Jameson Distillery. The only two complaints I could have were that the rooms were a tad warm at night and the internet was spotty in the main area, but this hostel absolutely gets a 10 that notwithstanding.
I dropped off my stuff (while breaking my new pair of aviators in the process) and James met me in the lobby. First item of business: free walking tour. On the way to the meetup we got a lovely stroll along the Liffy river, which splits central Dublin from east to west, creating a natural rivalry between the northsiders and southsiders.
Since we had a few minutes before the tour we stopped in a cafe for a bacon sandwich (of course) and a coffee and we got to see the Guinness trucks sputtering by making their morning deliveries of fresh Guinness to all of Dublin's pubs. The first thing stop on the tour was the town hall building where apparently if you are a big enough deal they will serve you a champagne brunch right in the middle of the atrium.
Next up was the Dublin Castle which has been built, destroyed, rebuilt, destroyed, rebuilt and so forth over the years. The inner courtyard by the main entrance is relatively new.
From behind the castle you can see from right to left the castle chapel, the Record Tower (only remaining element from the original medieval castle), the more newish section, and the really new brightly colored part that our guide affectionately called "Legoland."
Right next to the Castle is the Chester Beatty Library. I know it's there because there are about 20 signs pointing to it, plus it's written on the front of the building in about 15 places, and just in case you still missed it, they hung some 40 foot banners. A short walk away is St. Patrick's Cathedral, funded by Benjamin Guinness (of Guinness Brewery fame), and at one time I believe there may have been a bar inside where you could get a beer. And if not there should have been. Salivation to go with your salvation, I like it.
Next main stop was a break in the infamous Temple Bar, not an actual bar, but coincidentally a neighborhood that happens to be loaded with them. Having been in the home of Guinness for over five hours without trying one, it was time to remedy the situation with all possible haste. So James and I used our break to savor the first of many Guinnesses over the next two days. And when people say it just tastes better in Dublin, trust me, they aren't lying.
After polishing off our liquid lunch, we rejoined the tour and I noticed seething odd. There was a sign advertising Papa Johns pizza. This was one of the first Papa Johns I've see in Europe. According to our guide, there are a ton of US fast food places in Dublin because of all the Americans living and working in the city. Only this Papa Johns was a bit odd.
One, it was combo'd with a burger, kebab, and sandwich place. Two, you could get fries and drinks with your pizza as a combo. Finally, taking a page from the Pizza Hut playbook, they offered a stuffed crust option. I really wanted to try it just to see what it would be like but I just couldn't justify getting Papa Johns in another country- I can't even justify it in the States. The last two stops on the tour were the infamous Trinity College (which I'll discuss more later) and St. Stephen's Green, which our guide claimed people say is just like Central Park but I informed her of the folly of her claim.
The tour ended around 2:30 and James and I unanimously agreed that the best, nay only, course of action for the remainder of the afternoon was to embark on the infamous Guinness Brewery Tour. The tour is pretty pricey, at 16€ self-guided, but it's really fun and exceptionally informative. It probably took us 2 hours to get through it. You get to stick your hands in some barley, smell live hops, see all the old Guinness marketing materials, and learn about the detailed history of the beer and brewery. It was really cool- well worth the money. Then, toward the end you get to pour your own "perfect pint" of Guinness.
Look at that concentration! I even wore green and black just for the occasion. Then you proceed up to the Gravity Bar which provides nealry unparalleled views of Dublin.
Shaking off my surprise at this very surreal observation (it's rare I find myself looking at others having a drink and thinking "that just seems unreasonable"), it was time to board the flight. And by board the flight I mean line up like cattle in the middle of the "lounge" in front of the man holding the sign reading "Dublin" and wait to be unleashed onto the plane in an all out boarding frenzy. Another oddity: in people's rush to get seats in the very front or back they completely overlook the exit rows- so despite boarding about middle of the way through I got an exit row aisle seat. Ryanair and your patrons: you befuddle me.
Coincidentally, James from York and Edinburgh was going to be in Dublin at the same time so I booked into his hostel, The Generator, which was a tremendous decision as it's probably the best hostel I've ever stayed at. Really great beds, clean, safe, good staff, great bar w cheap drinks for Dublin, very solid breakfast (actually had it twice!), good Internet, excellent showers, and a really really awesome common area- with tvs, pool tables (yes TWO), and a ton of computers to use. It's located in a former hotel that was previously part of the old Jameson Distillery. The only two complaints I could have were that the rooms were a tad warm at night and the internet was spotty in the main area, but this hostel absolutely gets a 10 that notwithstanding.
I dropped off my stuff (while breaking my new pair of aviators in the process) and James met me in the lobby. First item of business: free walking tour. On the way to the meetup we got a lovely stroll along the Liffy river, which splits central Dublin from east to west, creating a natural rivalry between the northsiders and southsiders.
Since we had a few minutes before the tour we stopped in a cafe for a bacon sandwich (of course) and a coffee and we got to see the Guinness trucks sputtering by making their morning deliveries of fresh Guinness to all of Dublin's pubs. The first thing stop on the tour was the town hall building where apparently if you are a big enough deal they will serve you a champagne brunch right in the middle of the atrium.
Next up was the Dublin Castle which has been built, destroyed, rebuilt, destroyed, rebuilt and so forth over the years. The inner courtyard by the main entrance is relatively new.
From behind the castle you can see from right to left the castle chapel, the Record Tower (only remaining element from the original medieval castle), the more newish section, and the really new brightly colored part that our guide affectionately called "Legoland."
Right next to the Castle is the Chester Beatty Library. I know it's there because there are about 20 signs pointing to it, plus it's written on the front of the building in about 15 places, and just in case you still missed it, they hung some 40 foot banners. A short walk away is St. Patrick's Cathedral, funded by Benjamin Guinness (of Guinness Brewery fame), and at one time I believe there may have been a bar inside where you could get a beer. And if not there should have been. Salivation to go with your salvation, I like it.
Next main stop was a break in the infamous Temple Bar, not an actual bar, but coincidentally a neighborhood that happens to be loaded with them. Having been in the home of Guinness for over five hours without trying one, it was time to remedy the situation with all possible haste. So James and I used our break to savor the first of many Guinnesses over the next two days. And when people say it just tastes better in Dublin, trust me, they aren't lying.
After polishing off our liquid lunch, we rejoined the tour and I noticed seething odd. There was a sign advertising Papa Johns pizza. This was one of the first Papa Johns I've see in Europe. According to our guide, there are a ton of US fast food places in Dublin because of all the Americans living and working in the city. Only this Papa Johns was a bit odd.
One, it was combo'd with a burger, kebab, and sandwich place. Two, you could get fries and drinks with your pizza as a combo. Finally, taking a page from the Pizza Hut playbook, they offered a stuffed crust option. I really wanted to try it just to see what it would be like but I just couldn't justify getting Papa Johns in another country- I can't even justify it in the States. The last two stops on the tour were the infamous Trinity College (which I'll discuss more later) and St. Stephen's Green, which our guide claimed people say is just like Central Park but I informed her of the folly of her claim.
The tour ended around 2:30 and James and I unanimously agreed that the best, nay only, course of action for the remainder of the afternoon was to embark on the infamous Guinness Brewery Tour. The tour is pretty pricey, at 16€ self-guided, but it's really fun and exceptionally informative. It probably took us 2 hours to get through it. You get to stick your hands in some barley, smell live hops, see all the old Guinness marketing materials, and learn about the detailed history of the beer and brewery. It was really cool- well worth the money. Then, toward the end you get to pour your own "perfect pint" of Guinness.
Look at that concentration! I even wore green and black just for the occasion. Then you proceed up to the Gravity Bar which provides nealry unparalleled views of Dublin.
We decided hold off the pub crawl until the following night
so we could commit some serious time to that beautiful black beauty: my
Guinness. Have I mentioned how much I like Guinness? Despite perhaps
being just a trifle over zealous, I ended up getting a good night's
sleep. A little post-black velvet weariness aside, we decided to spend
the next afternoon taking a leisurely stroll around town. First was
walking across the ha'penny bridge. So called because in the old days it
was the only bridge from the north to the south and you were charged a
half penny toll each time you crossed.
Feeling a bit peckish I happened to notice out of the corner of my eye a place that looked way too familiar: Ray's Pizza. Not Famous Original mind you, but a Ray's pizza. No way it could have any connection but I decided to check it out anyway and sure enough the place was plastered with NYC stuff and what's more, the slices looked good! It was too much to overcome- I had to have one.
I had pizza, and it was good. We took a long stroll up past the canal to the north part of St. Stepehen's Green. On the way I got to do something I've been wanting to do since my early days of Scouting: help an old lady across the street. This poor tiny white haired Irish woman was having trouble with her vision and couldn't see the oncoming cars so I took her arm and led her safely across the street. She was so adorable! "Thank you- you're a good lad" she said as I sent her on her way. After some 16 odd years I can finally check that merit badge off the list! Eventually we made our way to the Museum of Archeology which is free and has a ton of artifacts from Ireland's past including Viking skeletons and weapons and the remnants of a hymn book that's over 1000 years old.
Our final stop of the day was back to Trinity College. Inside the Trinity College Library are three things definitely worth seeing: (1) the Book of Kells; (2) the oldest Irish harp; and (3) the Long Room of the library. But I would recommend going 30 minutes before closing as you get in for half price and it's only about 20-25 minutes worth of seeing anyway. The Book of Kells is a surviving script of the Bible in Gaelic with exquisitely elaborate drawing and engravings throughout the text. The only bad thing is they only display 2 of the 4 volumes at a given time and only 4 pages of the volumes are visible. But if you're interested in a fun fictionalized account of it, check out the animated film The Secret of Kells.
The harp was about as expected. The best part, in my opinion, was the Long Room. Unfortunately they don't let you take photos of any of these things because of a squabble with George Lucas. Lucas wanted to use the library as the Jedi's archives in Attack of the Clones but the University wouldn't allow it. So he sent a minion to take hundreds of photos and then digitally recreated it. That guy. But here is a photo courtesy of radicalpatron.com:
And for good measure, what it looks like in Star Wars:
That night James and I grew a pair, summoned all our courage, and joined the Dublin Pub Crawl. Let me just say, it lived up to everything I had hoped it would be. The girl running it was hilarious, more Guinness was consumed, but by far my favorite part was going to the old school Irish pub where they had live Irish folk music and we all had to dance Irish jigs.
This one night of music also started me on what I'm calling the "Great Irish Folk Music Bender of 2012." it's all over my iPod and grooveshark. I simply cannot get enough. Later that night, James and I met some new Canadian friends who were nice enough to humor us in our dancing and long-straw-concoctionnery attempts.
It turned out to be a pretty late night and the next morning I could barely drag myself from bed, wish James a fond farewell, and make my way to breakfast. At breakfast I checked my messages and found a note from Ula, one of my friends I met way back in Porto who lives in Dublin. She suggested I take the train out to Howth, a small Irish town by the sea, so I could traipse along of the famous Irish cliffs. Great idea! The town itself is a seemingly sleepy little harbor and fishing town which apparently has a massive passion for sailing. As I strolled down the main street in the beautiful sunshine I noticed something rather foreboding on the horizon- just past all of the moored sailboats.
A typical Irish rainstorm was on its way. But what true day of Irish exploration would be complete without a little rain? As you make your way up to the cliff walk, you are afforded some great views of the surrounding area. And if you're lucky, a rain shower.
But once I had joined the cliff walking trail the sun came back out and the foliage along the path was beautiful.
But that of course paled in comparison to the cliffs themselves.
About an hour into the walk you will come across a great vista which provides you an incredible view of some of the cliffs and the old lighthouse jutting out at the end of a sharp peninsula.
This is another one of those times you should pop on over to flickr because there are just too many for me to post. After about an hour and a half you get to a junction. You can either wall back the way you came, take another route that gets you back to town in two hours or so, or continue around the peninsula and complete the loop in about 3 more hours. Having nothing to do and loving the walk I elected the latter. At one point, though, I lost the trail and ended up walking trough a very ritzy neighborhood. Eventually I found my way again through this lush meadow pass.
The cliff walk ends near the Martello Tower which faces across the back to Blackrock. From here you more or less follow the road back to the Howth town center. By this point I was pretty hungry and Ula had insisted that I try the fish n chips and seafood chowder while out there. I really wanted to pick some up at this cool little kiosk but they were all out of soup. Right across the street was a little restaurant that happened to have a lunch combo of seafood chowder and mini fish n chips. Perfect!
The fish was a bit different from what I had before, kind of an Italian style breading, but the benefit was that it was way less greasy. The chowder was one of the best I've ever had. Chips were just meh. Thoroughly full, I made my way back to the station to catch the train back to Dublin. In the city I did some souvenir shopping for the family. I don't usually do that but since it was one of our "motherlands" I thought it was appropriate.
I had planned to meet up with Ula for some dinner later in the night but by the time I made it back to the hostel I was absolutely gassed and I had another early flight the next day back to London. So we decided to defer until next time as there is a reasonable chance I get back to Dublin before the end of Stint 2. Honestly my trip to Ireland was too short. I wanted to do Belfast and Galway and maybe even Cork. But that just means I have big reasons to come back.
The reason I was off to London was to crash with Mike and Deana for one night (and make use of their laundry hospitality- huge thanks again!!) before flying of to Ljubljana, Slovenia the following day for the start of my one month crushing the Balkans! And it couldn't come soon enough- I was losing all of my tan! That night in London Mike, Deana, and I went up to the pub so I could try the last English delicacy that had escaped me- steak and kidney pie with mash and a real English ale. Oh baby, it was everything I had ever hoped it would be. And more!
To top it off we had another local treat, sticky toffee pudding. By this point I was bursting. Thanks UK and Ireland. Between you and France I gained back all the mass I shed in Spain, Portugal, and Morocco! But that's ok, hot hot Balkan weather and lots of walking should fix that up. Oh- and no more ale and my beloved black velvet. Here's to some hot days and sober nights!
Feeling a bit peckish I happened to notice out of the corner of my eye a place that looked way too familiar: Ray's Pizza. Not Famous Original mind you, but a Ray's pizza. No way it could have any connection but I decided to check it out anyway and sure enough the place was plastered with NYC stuff and what's more, the slices looked good! It was too much to overcome- I had to have one.
I had pizza, and it was good. We took a long stroll up past the canal to the north part of St. Stepehen's Green. On the way I got to do something I've been wanting to do since my early days of Scouting: help an old lady across the street. This poor tiny white haired Irish woman was having trouble with her vision and couldn't see the oncoming cars so I took her arm and led her safely across the street. She was so adorable! "Thank you- you're a good lad" she said as I sent her on her way. After some 16 odd years I can finally check that merit badge off the list! Eventually we made our way to the Museum of Archeology which is free and has a ton of artifacts from Ireland's past including Viking skeletons and weapons and the remnants of a hymn book that's over 1000 years old.
Our final stop of the day was back to Trinity College. Inside the Trinity College Library are three things definitely worth seeing: (1) the Book of Kells; (2) the oldest Irish harp; and (3) the Long Room of the library. But I would recommend going 30 minutes before closing as you get in for half price and it's only about 20-25 minutes worth of seeing anyway. The Book of Kells is a surviving script of the Bible in Gaelic with exquisitely elaborate drawing and engravings throughout the text. The only bad thing is they only display 2 of the 4 volumes at a given time and only 4 pages of the volumes are visible. But if you're interested in a fun fictionalized account of it, check out the animated film The Secret of Kells.
The harp was about as expected. The best part, in my opinion, was the Long Room. Unfortunately they don't let you take photos of any of these things because of a squabble with George Lucas. Lucas wanted to use the library as the Jedi's archives in Attack of the Clones but the University wouldn't allow it. So he sent a minion to take hundreds of photos and then digitally recreated it. That guy. But here is a photo courtesy of radicalpatron.com:
And for good measure, what it looks like in Star Wars:
That night James and I grew a pair, summoned all our courage, and joined the Dublin Pub Crawl. Let me just say, it lived up to everything I had hoped it would be. The girl running it was hilarious, more Guinness was consumed, but by far my favorite part was going to the old school Irish pub where they had live Irish folk music and we all had to dance Irish jigs.
This one night of music also started me on what I'm calling the "Great Irish Folk Music Bender of 2012." it's all over my iPod and grooveshark. I simply cannot get enough. Later that night, James and I met some new Canadian friends who were nice enough to humor us in our dancing and long-straw-concoctionnery attempts.
It turned out to be a pretty late night and the next morning I could barely drag myself from bed, wish James a fond farewell, and make my way to breakfast. At breakfast I checked my messages and found a note from Ula, one of my friends I met way back in Porto who lives in Dublin. She suggested I take the train out to Howth, a small Irish town by the sea, so I could traipse along of the famous Irish cliffs. Great idea! The town itself is a seemingly sleepy little harbor and fishing town which apparently has a massive passion for sailing. As I strolled down the main street in the beautiful sunshine I noticed something rather foreboding on the horizon- just past all of the moored sailboats.
A typical Irish rainstorm was on its way. But what true day of Irish exploration would be complete without a little rain? As you make your way up to the cliff walk, you are afforded some great views of the surrounding area. And if you're lucky, a rain shower.
But once I had joined the cliff walking trail the sun came back out and the foliage along the path was beautiful.
But that of course paled in comparison to the cliffs themselves.
About an hour into the walk you will come across a great vista which provides you an incredible view of some of the cliffs and the old lighthouse jutting out at the end of a sharp peninsula.
This is another one of those times you should pop on over to flickr because there are just too many for me to post. After about an hour and a half you get to a junction. You can either wall back the way you came, take another route that gets you back to town in two hours or so, or continue around the peninsula and complete the loop in about 3 more hours. Having nothing to do and loving the walk I elected the latter. At one point, though, I lost the trail and ended up walking trough a very ritzy neighborhood. Eventually I found my way again through this lush meadow pass.
The cliff walk ends near the Martello Tower which faces across the back to Blackrock. From here you more or less follow the road back to the Howth town center. By this point I was pretty hungry and Ula had insisted that I try the fish n chips and seafood chowder while out there. I really wanted to pick some up at this cool little kiosk but they were all out of soup. Right across the street was a little restaurant that happened to have a lunch combo of seafood chowder and mini fish n chips. Perfect!
The fish was a bit different from what I had before, kind of an Italian style breading, but the benefit was that it was way less greasy. The chowder was one of the best I've ever had. Chips were just meh. Thoroughly full, I made my way back to the station to catch the train back to Dublin. In the city I did some souvenir shopping for the family. I don't usually do that but since it was one of our "motherlands" I thought it was appropriate.
I had planned to meet up with Ula for some dinner later in the night but by the time I made it back to the hostel I was absolutely gassed and I had another early flight the next day back to London. So we decided to defer until next time as there is a reasonable chance I get back to Dublin before the end of Stint 2. Honestly my trip to Ireland was too short. I wanted to do Belfast and Galway and maybe even Cork. But that just means I have big reasons to come back.
The reason I was off to London was to crash with Mike and Deana for one night (and make use of their laundry hospitality- huge thanks again!!) before flying of to Ljubljana, Slovenia the following day for the start of my one month crushing the Balkans! And it couldn't come soon enough- I was losing all of my tan! That night in London Mike, Deana, and I went up to the pub so I could try the last English delicacy that had escaped me- steak and kidney pie with mash and a real English ale. Oh baby, it was everything I had ever hoped it would be. And more!
To top it off we had another local treat, sticky toffee pudding. By this point I was bursting. Thanks UK and Ireland. Between you and France I gained back all the mass I shed in Spain, Portugal, and Morocco! But that's ok, hot hot Balkan weather and lots of walking should fix that up. Oh- and no more ale and my beloved black velvet. Here's to some hot days and sober nights!
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