Blogs from Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland, Europe - page 7

Advertisement

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin September 22nd 2018

Today we had a day off. This touristing thing can get tiring. After a nice calm night and relaxed morning we arrived in Dublin at around lunchtime, docking whilst we were at trivia (ahhh, we came last, or 6th as I prefer to call it). They docked our ship in the River Liffey, down a little ways from their troubles-scarred post office. We had lunch in The Restaurant and today they did a Mexican theme for entrees (quesadilla, wraps etc) but a chicken stir fry for our main. After lunch, everyone was going ashore, so we did our washing! And then had a two hour nap! We’ve been here twice before and we’re weighing up what we really wanted to do/see. We had a booking at La Terraza for dinner - at night it becomes the ... read more
A481840F-A5A4-4D61-9590-B2186E4EBF74.
24D3ABF6-C739-4039-BE8D-0533734615EA.
0FA6D774-B735-4F01-9582-A4D8D34EAD82.

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 25th 2018

I met the gang at breakfast this morning - all except David & Nick who were up early and on their way to Wicklow before I got up! After breakfast Brid & Alex were going to drive me to the train station to get a train to Dublin however, I didn't figure into the plan that Pope Francis was arriving in Dublin that morning. All the trains seemed to be booked out online but we figured we would head to Limerick Junction and try our luck. With 5 minutes before the train was departing at 11:20, I was able to buy a seat (at an inflated price of course!) but then it was a quick goodbye to Brid & Alex and I was on my way. The train was comfortable, quick and had good wifi! What ... read more

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 22nd 2018

I arrive back to Dublin from Belfast. As I was here already once before, and I got to look around, there was really only one more thing that I really wanted to do. I wanted to tour the Guinness factory, and to walk around in that area. With this day being my last, I wanted to make the most of it to the best of my ability. I settle into my hostel, and quickly make my way towards my destination. Not really sure how to get to the Guinness factory, I relied on a map to direct me. It was well within walking distance for me, as I am used to trudging several miles if need be. Weather permitting, this was my plan. Luckily it was not all that far. As I journeyed, all along the ... read more
IMG_1251
IMG_1257
IMG_1265

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 18th 2018

I arrive in Dublin from an early morning flight from Lisbon. Although tired and weary from the journey, I was eager to set out and see what Dublin had to offer. I got to my hostel, which was decent for a three bed room, and I unpack to start my journey. I knew I was only here for one day, for I was going up to Belfast, but I had plans to come back here to finish off my vacation. My main objective was to just walk around the streets, and to see what jumped out at me. I make my way to O’Connell Street. This street is Dublin's main, as well as widest (but not longest) street, and as near to being the very center of Dublin as you can be. O’Connell Street and the ... read more
IMG_0792
IMG_0806
IMG_0786

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 12th 2018

We started out day with breakfast on the Spey Restaurant balcony and then prepared for our departure from the Balmoral. After redistributing the weight in our suitcases to get as close as 20 kg per bag as possible we headed ashore to a blue line cab who whisked us away to the airport in light drizzle. We arrived more than 3 hours before our flight but caught up with some correspondence as there was no 4G reception in the North Sea crossing. Our Aer Lingus flight was a turbo prop plane which boarded from the rear so our first row seats gave us little advantage but within an hour, we were landing in Dublin At 2:00 pm. Renting a car at Dublin airport is not as efficient as many other places we have visited with a ... read more
Newcastle
Dublin

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 9th 2018

We’d had completely filled our day before and still had a partial day to fill after overnighting in Dublin. While every minute seemed well planned out for that first day, it could just be that we lucked out when our bus driver had come up with a Plan B to get us back to the ship; albeit, one-half hour late. The “Big Horse Show” had started yesterday and it had taken one couple two-and-one-half hours to take the Shuttle from downtown Dublin (by Merrion Square) back to the ship at the pier. At least our evening plans hadn’t gone up in smoke in a traffic jam. We took our good time about getting up, grabbed a bite to eat in the Lido, and I made sure to get a banana. I’m guessing that those Icelandic bananas ... read more
Different Colored Doors so Husbands can find their home in Dublin
John's Irish Flag
Statue of someone

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 8th 2018

Today we have a long day. To start, we have an early “All-Day” private tour and when we get back, it’s off to an evening of Irish food and entertainment that is sure to keep us in high spirits… in more way than one! I grabbed my deli-sandwich (which I put together myself) and Sharon had one simple request… a waffle with chocolate chips. The steward apologized, saying, “Sorry, no chocolate chips today! But I have these… even better! He then proceeded to pour what Sharon’s mom would call “Chocolate Jimmies” in a heaping mound atop her waffle. You and I might call them chocolate sprinkles. Either way, they looked like a million tiny ants. As I reached the table where Sharon had set down her plate, she was just staring at her waffle, “What am ... read more
Tower with Canon
Tower where James Joyce stayed and swam
Bathing area

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin August 1st 2018

At last, we had an extra bit of time to sleep in (until 7:45) and eat breakfast at a reasonable pace. I chose fabulous Irish ham (not juicy, not very salty, great flavour) and soda bread and strawberry jam. As we learned later, we could have ordered a hot breakfast also, but I was already full. Our hotel proved to be about 45 minutes from the centre of Dublin. When we arrived, a crucial street was blocked for repairs. The medieval streets were never meant for a 55-passenger tour bus. We applauded driver Tom each time he slid through very narrow, tight turns. Rain, then drizzle accompanied us around the streets, thus we were happy enough to be inside the bus. Half an hour late, we picked up our official city tour guide. The main points ... read more
Guinness Experience atrium
Steak sandwich, Irish style
Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin July 31st 2018

Breakfast at the Dromhall Hotelwas excellent, particularly since kippered haddock was on the menu – large, tender and smoky. This hotel has really treated us as guests. Driving through the Irish country side was a joy – green and gold fields saturated my mind with freshness. Our destination was Blarney Castle, which turned out to be much more historic than the cliché of its Blarney Stone. (View map) The emerald green park around the Castle was profuse with plantings and flower beds. At first Susan and I were of a mind to enjoy the outdoors, rather than queue for the Blarney Stone. When others from our group returned from the Castle and spoke highly of it, we deci... read more
Blarney knot garden
Micro-distillery
Watermill for power in 22 foot Mill Building 1794

Europe » Ireland » County Dublin » Dublin July 27th 2018

After breakfast at Ann’s Bakery, I checked out the bus stop for tomorrow and tried again unsuccessfully to get a working SIM card. One place gave me the SIM card for free and suggested Tescos (grocery) or Spar (convenience store) to get funds put on it (“topped up”). Both stores were nearby, but neither knew how to top it up. One clerk suggested Car Phone Warehouse – “around the corner”. Couldn’t find it, but I did find the fruit and vegetable market. This consisted of two pedestrianized blocks with two long lines of carts with the same fruits, being bananas (7 for a Euro), strawberries (2 Euro a box), blueberries and mixed berries. Uninspired I decided to walk to Grafton Street where yesterday I had seen a Car Phone Warehouse. Today is a cooler day, mostly ... read more
St Ann's Church 1721
Modern colour for the stone building
Samuel Beckett Bridge




Tot: 0.1s; Tpl: 0.007s; cc: 7; qc: 67; dbt: 0.0528s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.3mb