Dublin

Friday morning it was up early (don't expect anything less when travelling with my dad) for breakfast. My Uncle John and his wife Jenny met us at our hotel so that we could all pile into the Mel's van (our driver for the rest of the trip) for a tour around Dublin.

Our first stop was St. Patrick's Cathedral.  It was built in the 1100's and is reportedly the sight of all the baptisms that St. Patrick did to convert the heathens of Ireland to Christianity.

Stained Glass Window in the Cathedral

Mom & Dad with the Altar behind them

Me & Dad with the Altar behind us

After walking around the inside of the church, we went out to the gardens. Where there's a plaque explaining that somewhere within those gardens, is the place where St. Patrick baptized people in the 5th Century. Gee, thanks for being so specific.

Mom, Dad, Jenny & Uncle John with the Cathedral behind them

Me, Dad, Jenny & Uncle John with the Cathedral behind us

Next stop was Pheonix Park, this is where the President of Ireland lives, also the US Ambassador lives there and was the site of the Pope's visit in 1979. It's a HUGE park with lots of trails, sports fields and even a zoo.

The cross that was erected for the Pope's visit in 1979

This is the President of Ireland's house. Look familiar? The guy who built our white house stole borrowed the designs from this one.

After driving around the park, we headed to Dublin Castle. It's been around, in some form, since the 1100's. The English used it as their seat of government/power when they ruled over Ireland, and it's now used by the Irish government as office buildings.

My Uncle John, standing in the guard stand. Sorry ladies, he's taken.

Standing in the courtyard, reading signs.

This picture was unstaged, my mom's a papparazzi. I seem to be the only one noticing she's taking a picture.

We decided we wanted a tour of the castle, so we bought our tickets and then made our way to the Cafe to wait until our tour time. Once the tour started, we got to walk around the rooms that were used by the "important" people of the time, and the Queens and Kings when they came to visit.

I look perplexed by whatever I'm reading.

The view of the gardens from the "estate bedroom."

This was the Ladies Lounge. You waited here until a guy decided he wanted to come and ask you to dance. If no one asked you, you stood there all night and then left. Notice there's a mirror every 4 feet.

The Chair that Queen Victoria sat on when she came to visit. It used to have "claws" for feet. But she was so short, and thought it looked not royal for her maids to help her on the chair. So they cut the feet off.

This is the dining room - also holder of all the portraits of the important people.

The state room.

After seeing the inside of the nice castle, we made our way to the old part of the castle. There are still remnants underground of the castle that was built in the 1100's. It still boggles my mind that people back then had the knowledge/technology to build something that could still be here thousands of years later...

My new, shiny friend. I was actually kind of scared someone was hiding inside and was going to scare the crap out of me.

After the tour of the castle, we had Mel drop us off near Grafton Street. It's a pedestrian shopping area, where most of the Dubliners do their shopping. But our first, most important stop was for lunch.

This was my mom's lunch, fish pie.

Mom, pretending to enjoy a Guinness.

My Uncle John and I chowing down on our food.

For as much as people warned us the Ireland isn't known for it's cuisine, the food was actually pretty good. I don't think Kenny would've necessarily agreed because it was a lot of seafood, potatoes and vegetables. If you're expecting the quality of food you would get in Italy, you will be sadly dissappointed. But if you realize they're working with what they got, it was all in all pretty good.

After lunch, we walked down Grafton street for a bit. My mom and Jenny did some shopping damage. All I got was a shot glass (I have a collection, sort of, from places I've been).

Hustle and Bustle of Grafton Street

After the damage had been done there, we made our way back to the hotel to freshen up before heading to the Old Jameson Distillery in Dublin city. The one that is currently in operation is in Middletown, Ireland...this is just a tourist attraction as well as a place for you to learn how they make the whiskey.

We got there early (shocking), so we wasted time by taking pictures and drinking the drinks they were making at the bar. They were all made from Jameson but none of them tasted like whiskey. I got an Apple Martini that basically tasted like Apple Pie. My dad got a straight up Jameson and everyone else got a pineapple concoction. Due to a miscommunication, Uncle John got one. But because of his diabetes, he can't really drink. Don't worry - it didn't go to waste, my mom made sure of it.

Dad, in front of his favorite drink.

Decorated for the Game

Hanging out

Cheers

Double fisting, and those were both gone in less than 10 mins.

After the drinking, came the tour. It was interesting, to a point. My dad was all about it...maybe trying to figure out how he can do some homemade brew? I was transfixed on this absolutely creepy stuffed cat. The tour guide pointed him out and explained that back in the day, Smitty the cat, was a champion. He caught a record of 20 mice a day. He was beloved by all the workers. And when Smitty died, they were all really sad. So, how did they fix the problem? They stuffed him. And he still sits there today, watching over everyone. I turned to my mom and told her to not get any ideas...

How creepy is this thing?!

At the end of the tour, they give you a glass of Jameson. You can either have it straight up, or mixed with cranberry juice or 7up. The 7up route was actually pretty tasty.

We were then lead to a dining room where it was time for dinner. The options were Beef (you should see how many cows they have roaming the countryside) or fish (they are an island). I went with fish, cause when in Rome Ireland, do as the Irish do.

Waiting for dinner

Other side of the table, waiting for dinner

After dinner was served, an Irish band came out to entertain us. They were really good and really funny. I think I understand my love of music and dancing now. Everywhere in Ireland, there is music constantly playing. And the Irish are constantly singing, tapping their foot, bobbing their head...they are doing something to show their appreciation for the music. So see, the dancing in the grocery store isn't my fault...it's in my blood :)

The Band

They also brought out some Irish dancers. I wish I had better pictures of them. But their little legs were going so fast, it was hard to capture an image. I wish I would've learned how to dance like that...

After the entertainment was over, we loaded back into the van. Mel dropped Uncle John and Jenny off at a hotel so they could catch a cab to their hotel (which was pretty far away), and then he drove us back to our hotel. Where it was off to bed for another early morning.