Bubblin' in Dublin

After arriving in Holyhead around 23:47, we indulged in Pumpkin Café’s finest snacks and began our never ending game of Gin Rummy.  Unfortunately, the next ferry would not arrive until 2:30, so we had some time to kill.  Once we finally made it onto Irish Ferries Sea Truck, we were extremely surprised to find hundreds of people facedown on nearly every inch of furniture in this massive beast of a ship.  Nearly four hours later, we finally made it to Dublin and rushed to the Avalon Hostel and crossed paths with my friends from Deerfield, Alex Forrey and Dan Piemont, who were unfortunately ending their month long Eurotrip that morning.  With the entire morning to kill and a strict 14:00 check in time, we realized we were in a bad place and went to the Dublin guidebook for some enlightenment.  Our prayers were answered when it said “if you only have a half day in Dublin, you must spend it at the Guinness Storehouse” and at 9:00, a Pint of Dublin’s finest and 360 degree view of the city seemed like the perfect solution. 

On the way we hit some hotspots around town – the Dublin Castle, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Christ Church and finally reached the Guinness Factory/Museum.  After a quick introduction, we self guided our way through the tour, learning the ins and outs of fermentation, yeast, hops, barley, etc.  We moved through the seven levels, getting the proper “taste experience,” of listen, look, touch, smell and taste.  At last we had arrived top cheddar at the Gravity Bar and could sit down and enjoy our complimentary pint of Guinness.  After waiting 119 seconds for the perfect pour, our bartender began to breakdown his back story to our friendly faces without hesitation.  Apparently he went to the University of Galway, located in “the best city in the world where the girls are quite savage but it is still a class place.”  In addition “if you like drinking pints (pronounced Points from here on out) Galway is the place to be.”  We sat down at the windows to take all 360 degrees of Dublin and met a couple from Nottingham on their anniversary (see Robin Hood).  Sleep deprived and one Point deep, we walked along the banks of the Liffey River, capturing everything around us.  We successfully checked into our first hostel of the trip, signing up for a six bedroom, mixed gender! with the “best bathroom in the building (not true).” 

 

We woke later in the evening and upon suggestion from a receptionist, headed to O’Neils for a delectable meal, great conversation, and live music.  Not disappointed, we paid our tab and made our way to Temple Bar, a famous nighttime attraction in Dublin and threw back a few more pints before calling it a night with an early excursion to the Cliffs of Moher already planned.