The Doors of Dublin

I just returned last night from three nights and three days in Dublin, Ireland and it was a lot of fun! The best part about Dublin is all the house's doors. Back during one of their many revolutions the government told the people that they had to paint their doors black. The Irish being very rebellious people refused and instead shoved it in their face by painting their doors colors of red, green, blue and bright yellow. All of the houses in Dublin are like Townhouses so they are just blocks and blocks of three story brick buildings...which extremely bright doors. I thought it was awesome...when I grow up I want to have a Dublin Door.

Night One:
We had plans to arrive early to the airport just to be safe...be unfortuneatly made it very late. The bus and the train took far too long and before we knew it we were running down Terminals of Manchester Airport. People here complain about American Airports...well I complain about airports in the UK and EU because they are sooooo spread out. It took forever to get from gate to gate! Luckily we made it on! The flight was only a half hour which was great. When we arrived at 10:30pm we all decided to go out. We were staying at Lauren's friends house who was studying abroad in Dublin...which was a HUGE savings. We went to the largest club in Dublin and saw Coolio. Coolio was a famous rap artist from when I was in junior high. I am lucky to be in Manchester because even though they use Euros everything is much more expensive in Dublin. A got one cider at it was 5 euro!!!

Day One:
This day we went to the Guinness Storehouse Factory. I was pretty excited to see it because it is considered the most popular tourist site in Ireland...everyone just raves about it. When we arrived I couldn't believe how awesome it was...probably one of the best museums I've been to in my life. The storehouse was 8 stories high and was shaped like a pint glass. Each floor was so informative one floor was about ingredients, tasting lab, advertising, etc. I had no idea that Guinness was such a huge part of Ireland. They do so much harvesting at 2/3 of their barely that they crop goes straight to Ireland Guinness. Arthur Guinness was the first to bring beer to Ireland.

The very top of the museum is called the Gravity Bar. It is a 360 view of Dublin, the highest point in Dublin. There you get a complimentary pint of Guinness. I had tried Guinness before and didn't like it from the can... its so dark. But when trying it fresh from the Storehouse it was pretty good. The top is so creamy that it feels like you need to grab a spoon and eat it as a dessert. We sat at the Gravity Bar and looked at the scenery for about and hour then headed out.

That evening we ate at a place called the Cellar Bar. It was way down low in the ground and only had four things on the menu (two being different kinds of burgers). We all had the cheeseburgers which were absolutely amazing. They use Chiabatta bread, Spinach, Mozerella cheese, mayo and really really deep cooked meat....mmmmm. I did notice that in all restuarants whether they be bars or sit down places...the menus are very limited compared to back home or in Manchester.

Day Two:
We went on the Malahide Castle and Dublin Bay tour. Malahide was a gorgeous castle in the middle of a huge field. As we approached the castle we noticed that there was a full on rainbow right above it (you can faintly see it in one of my photos). The castle was not as pretty as the Wale's one (that one being so intricate with amazing waterfront views) but still pretty. This castle was haunted by a ghost named Puck who has his own small door in the dining room. He is only four feet tall and comes out whenever something is being done to the castle that he doesn't like. His last appearance was in 1975 when original pieces of the Castle were being auctioned off.

Next we went by Dublin Bay which was so beautiful. If I ever get a chance to go back to Dublin I would love to take a boat out to Ireland Eye. This is a island that has a cathedral and lighthouse that you can see faintly out in the distance...it looks beautiful. The weather was rainy and windy but us Manchester people are pretty used to it by now.

After the tours we at a classic Irish Pub. I had the BLT which was amazing.

Day Three:
Our Hop On Hop Off Tour. This tour takes you to 18 famous spots in Dublin... you can choose to get off at any of them it just continues on the route for 24 hours. We stopped at Dublin Castle, Church of Christ Cathedral, Dublina, St Patricks Cathedral, and Dublin Jail. We paid to tour St Pattys Cathedral and the Dublin Jail. St Patricks was extremely beautiful but a little smaller than Westminster Abbey. The Dublin Jail was very interesting to learn about the different revolutions that have gone on in Ireland. The Irish always point out their flag and the meanings of the four colors. Its a little humorous because they always point out the white which is for peace between "Ireland and Northern Ireland...who have decided to stay with the UK ... but they should be with us...but there is peace between us." hahaha right.

So that is my trip in a nutshell. If I could change anything I would have like to done some more planning as far as how to get places and fit more things into each day. But this is my first big trip and I was a guest so now I know how to prepare myself for the next ones. If I go back I really want to go to Galway and Belfast. When I come back to the US I am planning on getting a large map of the world for my wall...I want to mark each place I have visited and each place I need to still see (there is so much to see!!)

PS- I have decided that the Irish are far more friendly than the English. The bus drivers were so helpful and people we constantly stop to help me when they saw I had a map out... without even asking! The humor here is much easier to understand since the English humor is much more dry and sarcastic. I love the Irish!!!

I have 6 days in Manchester for school and then I leave for Edinburgh, Scotland. I plan on seeing Edinburgh Castle and Hollyrood Palace.

Words US to UK:
-vaccum -hoover
-bathroom -a place to take a bath

Natalie