Dublin

11 to 16 August 2024

Saturday, August 10th, Julie and Anthony took a train from Euston Station (minutes from our hotel) to Holyhead Port, where we were catching our ferry to Dublin. We were a little early so had time for Anthony to run and get us lunch. The burgers were SO GOOD!!

We were able to find a spot with a table and outlets to charge our phones, perfect. The ferry was going to take a little over four hours to get to Dublin, so after a bit we decided we needed a snack. Anthony got us soft-serve ice cream cones (Mr Whippy or 99 Ice Cream). As soon as Julie had finished her cone, she realized that she had BROKEN A TOOTH! It just keeps coming. Luckily, it did not hurt, just a little jagged. We landed in Dublin, and got to our hotel, the Albany House, with no further mishaps.

On Sunday, Julie and Anthony were able to find a tooth repair kit. Julie was able to plug her tooth up with wax so it wasn’t cutting up her mouth. We then went out and explored Dublin.

Below are random pictures from the day.

Julie was lucky enough to get an appointment with a dentist for Tuesday morning. The dentist was right across the street from our hotel, so very convenient. We then took the Hop On/Off bus to the Guinness warehouse.

The Guinness warehouse is very cool. They have done a very good job making their self-walking tour interesting and entertaining. After the tour, we had a late lunch in one of the restaurants in the warehouse. It was very tasty. Then shopping!!!

Below are random pictures from the bus and warehouse.

Sir Benjamin Lee Guinness statue at St Patrick's Cathedral

Anthony and Julie learned the secrets to the perfect pour. The secret is to use a Guinness pint glass. Step 1) Tilt the glass 45 degrees, pour to the bottom of the harp on the glass. Step 2) Tilt the glass horizontal and pour to the top of the Harp. Step 3) Set the glass down and chat for 90 seconds. Step 4) Push the tap handle away from you and pour to the top of the pint glass.

(Yes, Guinness have their own special taps).

Anthony

The Guinness glasses were so cool, we did get a set.

Monday evening, Julie and Anthony had scheduled a Haunted History tour. We left late for the tour, but did not have time for dinner. We got there with 4 minutes to spare, and ran across the street to get something to eat. On the way back, Julie was very careful at looking for traffic, however, she missed the curb and fell again. This was easily the worse injury yet. She could not put any weight on her right knee, so we had to skip the tour. Anthony was able to get her back to the hotel, got her ice (from a bar) and she started to ice and elevate.

The knee was not any better Tuesday morning. Between her walking sticks, Anthony’s shoulder, we made it across the street to the dentist. It turns out, she just needed a new filling!!! Of all the scenarios she had in her head, that was not one of them.

Once we got back to the hotel, Anthony went out again, on the hunt for crutches and a knee brace. He had to look around, but eventually was able to find both at a medical supply store about a 30 minute walk from the hotel. We took Tuesday off, Julie elevated and Anthony worked on the blog. That night, Anthony was able to get out and find some live music to listen to.

Anthony stopped at Murphy’s for Ice Cream.

Our guide Liam at the Smithwick Brewery in Kilkenny

Wed Bus tour to Kilkenny, Glenndalough Wicklow Mtns.

On Wednesday, Julie and Anthony took a bus tour to Kilkenny and the Wicklow Mountains. We had the most wonderful tour guide, Liam, who was from the Kilkenny area. Kilkenny is a fun little town. It has a wonderful castle, which we did not see (due to Julie being on crutches), the Smithwicks brewery ( fun fact: Smithwicks is pronounced Smit-icks, so pronounce it right if you don’t want to sound like an ijeet), and they invented Halloween.

Liam’s great grandfather’s bar, across the street from Smithwicks. Grandpa married the widow who’s husband owned the bar. Her kids weren’t too happy and sued to get it back. They are all gone now, and Liam is going to court to get it back.

The story goes that back in the 1290s, there lived a woman named Dame Alice Kyteler. She came from a wealthy family, and it was said she was very beautiful. Her first marriage was to an older, wealthy man William Outlawe. It was during this marriage that Alice opened the Kyteler Inn. Alice and William had a healthy baby boy. Sadly, after a few years, William died, leaving all his wealth to his loving wife. Over the next several years, Alice marries two more times, with each husband leaving all their wealth to their wife. Her fourth marriage was to the widower Sir John Le Poer. When he started showing signs of illness, his children convinced him that Alice was up to no good. He eventually found suspicious powders, potions and vials he went to the Bishop accusing poor Alice of attempted murder. Alice was eventually imprisoned, but escaped. Rumor was that she fled to England where she lived out her long life under an assumed name. The Kyteler Inn remained a popular business and is still operating to this day.

So what’s the connection to Halloween? Alice kept many black cats as pets. The Kilkenny Cats, the local hurling team, has orange and black for their team colors, and a black cat for their mascot. A nod to Alice. It is said the Irish brought this tradition to America and Halloween was born.

Saint Mary’s Cathedral was erected by Irish Catholics in the late 1800’s. Recovering from the famine/starvation the Irish Catholics started building their own Cathedrals. Building these beautiful churches gave the Irish people pride in their craftmanship and was one of the first steps to Irish independence.

String Quartet in front of Kilkenny Castle

On the bus tour, Liam educated us on fairy trees. Fairy trees are solitary trees that are found in an otherwise cleared pasture. You do not want to mess with a fairy tree. You don’t touch it, you certainly do not cut one down. If you do, you will anger the Others and woe be to you.

There is a famous legal case involving the M18 and a fairy tree. In 1999 the plans for the M18 called for the cutting down of a fairy tree. A well known storyteller and historian (seanchai’), Eddie Lenihan (who we think may be a cousin or relation to Liam) wrote a letter to the local newspaper warning the public that if the fairy tree was cut down, there would be deaths on the motorway. The Irish Times picked the story up, and it eventually became world news. With the international attention, it was decided to reroute the road around the tree.

The other story Liam told us was about the De Lorean plant. The story goes that John De Lorean cut down a fairy tree when he was building his plant which was the real cause of the car company going out of business.

Liam also told us that you need to be very careful around people who have grown up in an area where a fairy tree sits on a hill. Of course, he grew up not far from said tree on hill.

Our tour then took us to the small town of Glendalough, in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains. It is famous for the medieval monastic settlement founded by St Kevin in the 6th century. The cemetery is still used today.

There are two lakes above the town that feed the beautiful Poulanass river. Anthony went off with Liam and others to hike to the two lakes. Julie stayed behind to hobble around the cemetery.

The tour ended with us visiting a sheep ranch with a herding demonstration. We also got to pet lambs.

Thursday found us visiting a couple of museums. The first was the EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum. It talked about why the Irish emigrated in such large numbers, and how they did it. It also talked about all the famous or important folks who have ties to Ireland. Nest we visited the Leprechaun Museum. It was not a museum filled with leprechaun status, but a venue for story telling. We heard some famous Irish folk tales. It was very fun.

Afterward, Anthony went out to the Cobblestone and Temple Bar. Julie stayed in the room with her leg up.

Sculpture of different types of transportation involved in the Irish Emigration

Liam our Tour Guide on Wednesday was an accomplished Hurler in Kilkenny. Hurling is a rough sport, requiring skill and toughness. The 2024 All-Ireland Hurling Championship Game was exciting and worth a watch.

At the National Leprechaun Museum, a historian told us the legends of the history of Leprechauns and Faries in Ireland. The stories were supported by beautiful props and images.

More than one person told Anthony that the Cobblestone was the best place to hear traditional Irish Music. Apparently, other people got the same message and the bar was packed. The music was good, but honestly Anthony thought the traditional Music Jam on Monday night at Oscar Blues brewery in Brevard, NC is just as good.

Anthony walked back from the Cobblestone to the Hotel, stopping at bars with live music along the way.

pronounced Smit-ics

You know who you are

On Friday, we got out early to pick up our car. Unfortunately, we needed paperwork to prove we had car insurance. We had to wait four hours until someone was available in the US to send it to us.

Maps: 1) Walking around Dublin 2) Guinness Tour 3) Murray Medical Supply 4) Kilkenny, Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough 5) Epic and National Leprechaun Museums 6) On to Cork

11 to 16 August 2024

Cork

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