On the Streets of Dublin

Traveling to Dublin from Central London requires quite a bit of effort.  

All of the airports in London reside outside the city centre and therefore take a while to get to and from.  I was traveling out of Stansted this time around and therefore needed to catch a tube at 5:30am to get to my coach bus stop which would then transfer me to the airport.  Tube ride was 20 minutes and the bus ride was 55.  Finally I arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare as the security line was very short - I guess that's a bit to be expected at seven in the morning.  I was there very early, but better safe than sorry, right?  It then turns out that my flight was delayed an hour because of some weather conditions in Dublin.  But sitting in the airport for two hours waiting for my gate number to appear on the screen does have it's advantages...i.e. reading through 3/4 of my Dublin guidebook!  And as Brigid can attest I learned quite a lot!  It's amazing what your brain can retain after only four and a half hours of sleep.

Finally the gate number was released and there was a rush down to the gate, which seemed like it was at the other end of the airport.  See, I was flying RyanAir.  Haven't heard of it?  Yeah, it's because it's a budget airline that operates around Europe.  It's like a megabus of the air.  So yes the flights are rather inexpensive (especially compared to other commercial options), but they also try to nag you with extra fees everywhere you turn.  I was able to escape without being nagged.  Because of this you are only able to travel with ONE carry on and they are very strict on its size.  Extra purses, purchases, camera bags, etc all need to fit in that one bag.  (Side note: Yes I am flying with these same restrictions on my fall break.  Yes that is 12 days.  How that's going to work out is a bit of a mystery to me, but I'm gonna make it work somehow.  Good thing I'm traveling by myself for those trips because I'll probably be recycling quite a few outfits...haha.)  You also can only reserve specific seats ahead of time for an extra fee - of course.  So once you get to the gate you must wait in line and that determines the order in which you get on the plane.  Because I was there early, however, I had quite a great location on the line.  We finally boarded even though it took a while, it was quite a large plane, and I got a window seat.  Sweet!

After the hour and 20 min. flight I landed in Dublin, but not the city centre - of course.  Then had to take an hour bus into the city where I finally met up with Brigid around 12:30pm.  Needless to say at this time I needed some caffeine and some food.  So that's exactly what we did.

Vegetarian Chilli Boxty at Gallagher's Boxty House.  Boxty is a potato pancake famous in Ireland.  Absolutely delicious and extremely filling.

After lunch I was re-energized to walk around a bit and sight-see.  After all, I was in IRELAND!

Popular Dublin statue nicknamed "Tart with a Cart".

Brigid, my lovely host.  

(For family that may be reading this, or friends who aren't privileged with knowing Brigid, we went to high school together back in Skaneateles and did many a show together!)

Smiles in St. Stephen's Green.

Another beautiful park with more beautiful fall colo(u)rs. ;)

There they are, the streets of Dublin.

If you don't know, I LOVE CHEESE!  So of course I dog-earred the cheese place in my guidebook and made it one of our first stops.

We got to sample a few different cheeses and finally settled on a sweeter cheese called Comte which we then made into grilled cheese, tomato, and egg sandwiches the next morning and it was heavenly!

Cutting the cheese.  (Sorry, I had to do it... :P)

Merry Christmas in Gaelic.  Yes they already have some Christmas decorations up.  It's not even Halloween yet!!!

Beautiful buildings.

Crossing over the Liffey River

Battlewounds.  That's a gunshot in her breast from the war between England and Ireland.

The spire for the millennium.

General Post Office.

Can you see me?  I'm so small.  I felt like I was at the center of the world taking this picture.

Declaring their independence on Easter Monday outside of the GPO.

Next up: dinner!  And of course we had to get fish and chips!

Accompanied with beer obviously :)

Best chips I've ever had!

At night.

The next day we decided to take a day trip to Glendalough in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains National Park, south of Dublin.  Best decision EVER!  It was absolutely gorgeous and the fall weather was perfect.

I feel like faeries would live here.

The beauty of this place is indescribable.

You could say I was pretty happy to be there.

Yup, we're in Ireland!

Brigid standing on her rock.

Then the sun finally came out to play.

Ireland is SO GREEN!

The water's so still the reflection looks real.

I really wanted to pet it, but it was staring me down.

Right above the 'S' theres an opening across the lake.  There remains a cave where a monk named Kevin resided.

Driving back to Dublin.

Colorful doors of Dublin.

Trinity College - Dublin's main university

We hung around Trinity College that night with some of Brigid's friends and had a blast exploring the pub culture of Dublin.  We visited some old man pubs off the beaten path and some of the more commercial ones.  We also were able to enjoy some live Irish music at one.  It was a wonderful night!

I was also trying to get adventurous with my drink choices.  While in Ireland...

I had to have Guiness.

And I had to have whiskey!

I successfully was able to finish both drinks.  The taste just took a bit of getting used to.

Brigid and I in front of the popular Temple Bar.

The next morning we traveled back to one of the pubs we had been at before for a delicious Full Irish Breakfast!

Tea, orange and whiskey marmalde, brown toast, mushroom, tomato, fried egg, baked beans, and cheese and onion potato balls.  THE BEST!

Then we went to a traditional Irish Catholic service.  When in Ireland...

Cathedrals make for the best photos.

So gentle.

What a beautiful image of love and sacrifice this is.

"For God so loved the world..."

After church, we walked around and shopped.

Dancing on the streets.

And we visited the Book of Kells which was historically stunning!  Also got to see the famous Trinity College library which is also breath-taking.  A huge single room of multiple stacks of old books.  The smell is incredible!  And the history is palpable.

Could you imagine going to school here?

Light lunch. Wonderful vegetable soup and brown bread with butter.

Next up: Museum of Ireland.

Chalice

This used to hold an original piece of the crucifixion cross.  But it has since been misplaced.

Inside Porterhouse.  One of our most frequented pubs.

Dinner before I depart back to London.  I had to have some mashed potatoes! 

An absolutely delicious drink!

The front of Trinity on my way to the bus towards the airport to start my long strain of travels home. 

I had a wonderful weekend exploring Ireland with Brigid.  We made so many memories full of wonderful discussion and loads of laughter.  I'm so blessed to have her in my life and I'm so glad that we are both able to be studying abroad this semester.  I know we are both growing enormously - I can just feel it.  And it's due to God's ever-growing presence in our lives.  May we continue to draw closer to Him with every breath.

Watch out world, these blondes are comin' for ya!