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| Shot Of Moon Off Our Wing Somewhere Over Greenland |
We hopped on the express bus and made our way down to the Temple Bar area where we will be staying for the next few days. First order was to locate the mobile store I had scoped out before arriving, to buy a European SIM card for the trip. I had a printed map to the store and we found it without going in any circles. Next order of business was to see if we could check in to our hotel early, or at least drop our bags off. The area we are in is divided by the River Liffey. There are quite a number of bridges across it, both pedestrian and vehicle. It is very picturesque. We crossed back over the river and were at the hotel by 13:45. Unfortunately they could not check us in yet, but they did offer to put our bags in safe storage, which was a bit of a relief.
We spent the next couple of hours exploring the area. Jojo quickly made some new friends...
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| Jojo And His New Friends |
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| A Sample Of The Colourful Pubs In The Area |
After a coffee stop we went in search of the Molly Malone statue. Molly Malone is a song set in Dublin which has become its unofficial anthem. She worked as a fishmonger but also as a working girl and died in one of the outbreaks of Cholera that regularly used to sweep the city of Dublin. The statue of Molly and her cart is affectionately nicknamed 'The Tart with the Cart' by Dubliners. Once we found the statue we noticed that it seemed to be a tradition to touch her prominent bosoms, presumably for good luck. Jojo commented that everybody must do it because the bronze of her bosoms was much more polished than the rest of the statue. 🤣 Oh well, when in Dublin....
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| Molly And Her Beautiful Bronze Bosoms - I Apologize If This Is Offensive... |
Our next stop was a few blocks away at Trinity College. To say the campus was beautiful would be an understatement. We walked around and found a bench beside a sports pitch and enjoyed the view and the warm sun - yes, we got some sun today!! 🎉 We are hopeful that it is not our last bit of it, also!
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| Jojo At The Trinity College Gate |
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| Campus Art |
Next it was back to the hotel for check-in, showers, and a little rest. We watched some trivia on TV, before heading back out. First stop was Bowes Whisky Bar for our first pint of Guinness. This bar was recommend on a Top 10 Pubs In Dublin article I read before the trip. The Guinness was yummy, and the atmosphere was very good - friendly, noisy, and dimly lit.
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| Cheers!! |
After our pint we decided to look for somewhere to eat. We ended up at a place called Oliver St. George Gogarty’s (Irish poet and author). Jojo had the fish and chips, and I went with the Classic Irish Stew (lamb and root vegetables). We were both happy with our choices. After enjoying the meal and some live music we decided to walk around Temple bar for a bit. We ended up at the oldest cathedral in Dublin - the Christ Church Cathedral, which was built almost 1,000 years ago. Our timing was pretty good as the church bells were being rung as we approached.
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| Dublin Christ Church Carhedral |
We decided to head back after walking around the cathedral. Temple Bar definitely seems like a popular destination on a Friday night. Lots of people, lots of bars, and lots of live music. As I sit here typing this I can hear lots of hustle and bustle, and music down on the streets, The bars are all brightly painted on the outside and dimly lit on the inside. It is very cool, and likely a photographers dream come true.
We are probably going to hit the hay at a reasonable time tonight as the 3 hours from last night on the plane is quickly catching up. Tomorrow’s plan is the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour, as well as the Guinness Storehouse tour where we will learn to pour our own pint of Guinness. I would say Day One was a success. We are both excited to be here and looking forward to the experiences that will be coming our way in the next couple of weeks!!
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