Ireland as a Family of 4

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This morning the 4 of us set out by taxi to the Limerick City Centre train station for what we thought would be an express train ride to Dublin. The ride was more like a slow boat to China; we enjoyed the leisurely, yet not always smooth, ride, plugged into our respective iPods. We arrived in Dublin just after noon and checked into The Shelbourne Hotel. We stopped for lunch at "Cafe En Seine", (how clever!), for a bit of totally unremarkable yet typical Irish food, then set off to the City Tour Bus stop for the "hop-on, hop-off bus tour".

My plan was to sit atop the open 2nd deck for great photography opportunities. Unfortunately, the temp was soooooo bitterly cold, I never even braved the 2nd deck. Eric, Shaun, and I rode the entire 23-stop, 1 1/2 hour loop without ever getting out of our seats. I never turned the camera on! We returned to the hotel, where Lisa stayed behind to nap, thawed our fingers and toes, and headed to the concierge lounge for appetizers and hot mulled wine. MMMMmmmmmm, that's much better!

We plan to repeat the bus tour early tomorrow morning, hopping off at Christ Church, the National Cathedral, the National Museum of Art (housed in a hospital!) and of course the Guinness Storehouse... a 7 floor brewery complex that offers a "free pint" at the end of the 3 hour tour..... a 3 hour tour.

Tonight, we shall pray for unseasonably warm and cloudless weather in Dublin on the 'morrow.

Erin Go Brah,
K Ray

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