Dublin The Republic of Ireland

On 29 Sept Jeff had a full Belfast breakfast with bacon, sausages, eggs, toast, blood pudding, fried mushrooms, back bacon - a huge meal. I ate a piece of toast with bacon from his plate.

A dapper little man in a black overcoat took a seat at the table beside us. His name was Stanley, wee Stanley, he ate breakfast here most days before going to the pub for two beer followed by whiskey, not a bad routine since he is 94. He recited a poem - "As I was Going to Saint Ives" and made sure I knew all the words before I left - yes I had heard it before but this was better.

We took a bus from Grand Central Station in Belfast to downtown Dublin, Busaris stop. The train is more iffy right now and requires a transfer - this will all be straightened out by mid October as the Grand Central Station in Belfast is brand new and they are working out the kinks. While waiting for our bus I chatted with the lady beside me and it turned out she and her husband were taking the same bus to Dublin and staying at the same hotel - the Premier Inn - so she explained how we would catch the tram to the Point and walk about a block to the hotel. Seniors in Ireland get a transportation card and they can travel all over the UK and Ireland for free. Great idea. This was the second person who told us about it as wee Stanley from breakfast also mentioned he would be using his free pass to visit pubs in Scotland and Ireland in October.

Our room is nice and big very pleasant just as nice if not nicer than that last hotel in Iceland and costs about one hundred Canadian per night. It is very quiet. Lovely.

On Monday 30 Sept we take the tram downtown, it's raining and chilly. I am getting a sore throat. I am hoping it's a result of the acid from heartburn but as the day progresses I am really dragging my feet and looking forward to burrowing under the duvet on my bed. We tramped around Trinity College and stopped at the Students cafe in the Arts Building for a drink and a treat.

Then we went to the National Archaeological Museum which is free. We spent more time with the BOG people and at the Viking exhibit, but pretty much walked through the entire museum.

I definitely have a cold and a slight fever. Dry cough, glad I have Tylenol for colds and flu and some throat lozenges packed. On Tues we went on a free - by donation - walking tour with Keith. Really good tour and a beautiful blue sky day. I was proud of myself for keeping up and not coughing too much. We saw many points of interest including where the Vikings first landed - the Liffey River came all the way to this grassy knoll back then so the Vikings landed and took slaves including Irish children but eventually became a part of the fabric of everyday life and many Irish people have Viking DNA and many Icelanders have Irish in their DNA.

Was exceedingly happy to crawl into bed and have a nap when we got back!
Wed Jeff went out on his own and bought a used phone and a SIM card so now he is set up for Europe. His tablet has not been working well so not much use from that. Could be these hotel wifi connections, hard to know. Today we are going out for an Irish lunch and tramp around by St Patrick's Church and the library where Bram Stoker and James Joyce both spent time in, writing. It's not raining so that's a bonus!
We had Irish stew with mashed potatoes at a bar called The Hairy Lemon. The lamb was plentiful and tender. Delicious.

St Patrick's Cathedral has Evensong at 530. It lasts for about 40 minutes and is beautiful with the choir. Saint Patrick's Cathedral was founded in 1191 as a Roman Catholic cathedral, but is currently the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Anglican. Jonathan Swift was a Dean of the Cathedral and is buried here.

I am noticing these street plaques on the sidewalk depicting finds from Viking times:

The tram was a crowded going back to the Point - we were packed in so tightly, not my favourite.
If anything my cold is worse - cough, runny nose and lots of sneezing. It's exhausting. We stepped out for breakfast today and walked to the river and I called it a day.

It is sunny again - bonus - but the wind is sharp.
Tomorrow we fly to Crete - the airport bus stops a few blocks from here and we've booked our tickets online - 8 E each. We can check out at noon and dawdle to the airport.

Judging from the cranes in every direction Dublin is booming. A lot of building going on. 1,2 million people in Greater Dublin.
So it's not that windy on 4 Oct. We checked out at noon and went to Starbucks before getting on the Express Bus to 1 Terminal Dublin Airport. I am checking a bag - this is the only time - brought a carry on size suitcase but had planned on a bigger one at the time I booked the flight. We are so early I can't check the bag yet so chatted with a lady from Galway who is also flying to Crete. We have now checked the bag and passed through security. In half an hour will be boarding. Irish children learn Irish in school although it seems everyone speaks English the signage is bilingual.