Day Tripper

Our adventure began on a grey, dim Wednesday morning.  We boarded the tram a little before 7 a.m., headed toward Dublin City Centre and our date with the Wild Rover tour bus that would take us a couple hours south to County Wicklow.

The pick-up point for the tour bus was in front of a hotel that was right across from our tram stop.  We only had to stand for a few minutes, and then the bus pulled up to receive us.

The tour guide, Murphy (who said his full name is Joe Murphy, but anyone with the surname Murphy usually goes by Murphy, Murph, or Spud), checked off our name on his clipboard and asked from where we came.  We explained that we lived in Ireland, but arrived from Minnesota.  I wasn't sure why he was asking for that information, but it became clear throughout the day.

The bus seated 37, but we only had 27 so it wasn't packed which was nice.  There was an older couple seated across the aisle from us, and they were from Texas.  I asked which part of Texas, and the man said they were about 100 miles from Dallas.  I said that I'd lived in Tyler - they live in Sulphur Springs, which is about an hour north of Tyler, so they were familiar with it.  We said we had come from Minnesota, and he asked if we were Vikings' fans.  We talked a bit about the Vikings, and he mentioned he'd been to some Washington Senators games (this team became the Minnesota Twins) and that he saw a young Harmon Killebrew play.

While the bus was being piloted by the capable Darren, Murphy regaled us with information about our surroundings, throwing in some Irish history and sprinkling his commentary with jokes and humorous asides.  He took delight in poking fun at the nationalities of the tour participants.  At one point in the tour, we were visiting a monastery with a tall stone tower, and he said something along the lines of "Hey, people from Italy.  THIS is how you build a proper tower" (referring, of course, to the leaning tower of Pisa).

Our first stop was at Richard Cullen's Sheep Farm in Laragh, County Wicklow.  As we stood waiting for all of the tour group to gather in front of farm owner Richie, I took an opportunity to watch a group of lambs in a small fenced area.  They were so darned cute!  One was making himself known with a steady stream of bleats, and a few of them were playing with each other.

After a brief introduction to the farm, Richie led us up a small slope to a covered structure that looked out onto a rocky field with four sheep.  He brought out Spot, a three-year-old border collie.  When I tell you that Spot was ready to herd those sheep, he was REALLY ready to herd those sheep.  He was nearly vibrating as he waited for Richie to give him the command to do his thing.  Richie used both verbal commands and whistled commands.  "Walk On" is used when you want the dog to slow down his approach a bit, and Spot had such a tough time with that one.  His instinct was to bolt after those sheep, and it was really hard for him to keep himself in check.  He really didn't enjoy the "Lie Down" command which, as the phrase suggests, told him to lie down and stop.

The first photo is when he was herding four sheep into a small pen right in front of us.  The second photo shows the penned sheep, along with a larger group he brought over from a pasture that was farther away.

For the second demonstration, he barely waited for Richie to raise the whistle to his lips, and he was off like a shot, darting through the pasture gate before Richie could even get it open.  There was a moment when the larger group split - I'm not sure if that were by design or if the sheep just weren't having it - but Spot got them back together and drove them closer to us.  In the second photo, you can see Spot lying pressed to the ground and I know everything inside him wanted to go nip at those sheep.

Farmers use different colors of paint and different markings for specific purposes.  You can see that these sheep have a blue C on them.  When the sheep are grazing on the mountainside with sheep from other farms, this helps keep track of whose sheep are whose.

After the demonstration, we had an opportunity to hold a week-old lamb.  There were twins penned up with their mother in the shelter, and people took turns holding the little ones.  I didn't participate, but here's Eli with one of these wooly twins.  It's hard to describe exactly how sheep wool feels.  I touched this little spud's head, and it was like pressing your fingers into a firm, nubbly washcloth.

Eventually during this activity, both mama and babies began to voice their displeasure.  The babies began bleating a bit more, and I could tell that mama was getting agitated.  When Richie put the lambs back into the pen with her, she made a low, short sound and gave them a good sniffing. 

Before we had reached the farm, Murphy said "You can take photos of the lambs, you can pet the lambs, you can hold the lambs - just don't steal the lambs."  I told Eli we had 10 empty seats on the bus so it stood to reason we'd have room to take 10 lambs, right?

Then it was back aboard the bus and off to Glendalough.  The Irish name is Gleann Dá Loch, meaning 'The Valley of the Two Lakes,' and there were indeed two lakes nestled into a valley.  But I'm getting a bit ahead of myself.

We first visited St. Kevin's monastery.  This is the gateway to the grounds, and they estimate that it was built in the early 12th century.  (Guy in the blue jacket is our tour guide, Murphy.)  Just inside the arch, there's a large stone inscribed with a cross which marked a point of sanctuary - violence could happen outside the arches but once you hit that stone with the cross, you were supposed to be safe.

The round tower was built around 1100, and it stands nearly 100 feet tall.  The cap of the tower was reconstructed in the 1800s but otherwise, the tower is original to the year it was built.  As you can see in the photo, this ground is also home to a cemetery.  It's an active gravesite, and there are present-day burials.  We didn't spend time looking at the markers (which I think would've been fascinating), but Murphy mentioned that many people lived into their 60s or 70s.

The Cathedral was built in phases between the 10th and 13th centuries.  There are numerous holes in the walls.  These are called "putlog holes," and they held pieces of timber that were used as scaffolding or as part of the structure.  Those pieces of lumber, as well as the wooden roof, deteriorated many years ago, leaving only the stone parts of the building.  Murphy said the Cathedral is still used for weddings.

I didn't get a photo of it, but there's a 10-foot-high stone Celtic cross called St. Kevin's Cross.  Legend has it that if you can embrace the cross from behind and have your fingers touch, you will have good fortune.  (Murphy said that if your fingers touched, you were holy - and if they didn't, you were a sinner.  Eli and I are both sinners but I'm sure that's no surprise to anyone who knows us.)

During a good portion of our tour, there was a helicopter making close passes along the treed mountainside and hovering around the area.  Murphy looked up and said, "Wonder if that's Elon Musk."  I can't remember for sure, but I think he may've called him President Musk.

Aside from the guided part of the tour, we didn't spend a lot of time in the monastery.  The trek to Upper Lake was going to take about about 20 minutes (40 minutes roundtrip), and we didn't have a lot of time before the bus would depart, so we headed for the lakes.

As you can surmise, we encountered Lower Lake first.  The slope down to the lakeside was a bit steep so I stayed on higher ground while Eli went down to touch the water.

We continued our walk, stopping every now and again to snap a photo.  I really wish I had a better camera because these photos pale in comparison to reality.  We may need to revisit during the spring/summer because I bet this place is even more breath-taking when everything is lush and green.

I was very excited because we saw some wild goats grazing up the hillside.  Eli took this photo, and I enlarged a section to show the goats more clearly.  In the upper left corner, there's a mama goat with a tiny baby!  None of them seemed particularly perturbed by our presence.  I'm sure they're probably used to humans rambling through their environment.

I took a couple of videos of smallish waterfalls we encountered, but this is my favorite.  Sound up to hear the water.

On we trekked, and the terrain began a gentle incline.  Well, it was gentle for people like Eli who are used to hiking around.  For out-of-shape me, it was like scaling Everest.  Just before we reached Upper Lake, we encountered some rapids.  Again, sound up to hear the water.  I probably could've just sat there all day, listening to the water.

We finally reached Upper Lake.  This photo doesn't do justice to the immense sense of grandiosity of a placid lake with views of mountains all around.

Eli again went down to the water's edge to dip his fingers in; I contented myself with standing at the lip of the water and watching some ducks paddling nearby.  As we walked back up to the path, we saw a drake and hen standing on a rock protruding from the shallows, and there was another drake on a different rocky area not far away.  I said to this drake, "Where's your hen?" Eli took the role of the drake and said, "I don't want to talk about her."

On the return trip, we didn't stop to take any more photos as we were pressed for time and afraid we'd be late for the bus.  As it turns out, we made it back just fine - but our departure was still delayed as one of the passengers had gotten lost somehow and was about 10 minutes late in returning.

Then it was off through the Wicklow Gap toward Kilkenny.  Our roads during the trip through the mountains were quite curvy and very, very narrow.  Our tour bus wasn't huge, by any means, but there were still times when we'd meet a larger vehicle coming from the opposite direction and need to slow down and veer to the left so we could pass without incident.  On the way down to County Wicklow, it wasn't as bad because we were in the lane closer to the hillside.  On the way back, however, we were in the lane closer to the edge of the hill/mountain, and there are no guardrails to speak of on these roads.  During both legs of the trip, my ears were popping as we either gained or lost elevation.

We passed through a small village called Hollywood and there, up on the hill, was a huge wooden HOLLYWOOD sign that mimicked the one in California.  Unfortunately, Ireland has had some bad windstorms recently, so the only letters still standing were H-O-L-L-W.

Once we reached Kilkenny, we had a chance to go with Murphy on a short tour.  However, it was 2 p.m. and breakfast had been 8-9 hours earlier, so Eli and I went in search of lunch.  Murphy had given some recommendations (based on passenger reviews) for places to eat, and we settled on The Fig Tree.  I didn't get a photo of the outside, but I grabbed this off the internet so you could see how hole-in-the-wall this place is.  The shops and stores in Kilkenny all were very narrow but tall - this restaurant had three stories.

Eli had the full Irish breakfast (vegetarian style) with tea; I had chicken goujons (tenders) with chips (fries) and Coke.  Because nothing says "Jill is in an unfamiliar restaurant" more than her getting chicken tenders and fries.

The food was served very quickly, and it was really good.  While we were eating, I could tell a couple of regulars came in because the servers didn't offer a menu, just mentioned a food item in the form of a question to ensure the person wanted their usual order.  After a trek up some steep stairs to the bathrooms on the third floor, we were fueled up and ready to explore.

Murphy had pointed out a stone tower as we got into town.  He said people could go up inside it and look out over Kilkenny.  Eli wanted to do that, whereas that wasn't my cup of tea (and my feet were bothering me), so I checked out a couple shops instead.  One sold a ton of Irish gifts - there were some really beautiful coffee mugs, prints, and shirts, along with some fun items (I should've gotten the magnet that said "Feckin' eedjit").  A sales clerk asked me if I needed help, and I said I was just browsing and that I was completely overwhelmed because there was so much to look at.

My main objective, however, was to visit this bookstore that we had passed on the way to lunch.  ("What did you do in Kilkenny, Jill?  Did you see some cool sites?"  "I went to the bookstore.")

I walked inside and just marveled at the wonderful sight of so many books and magazines.  There were signs inviting patrons to sit down and browse/read, and there was a stone tranquility fountain in the middle of the store.  I grabbed a couple of books (one is a book explaining/translating Irish place names so I'm excited to read that one), and as I was paying for my purchases, I told the clerk that I loved their store and she beamed.

Eli met up with me in the bookstore and before we headed back toward the bus, we went to Oh! Donuts to get a snack.  Eli got a cake donut that was covered in various forms of chocolate; I got a cinnamon-sugar donut.

I was tired and my feet were acting up, so I went back to the bus and sat on a bench while Eli took a detour up another side street.  We were parked right by Kilkenny Castle so I took a few photos.  There's a free tour, but we didn't have enough time to participate.

  

During the drive down, Murphy sang a song called "Molly Malone" and asked us to participate by singing the chorus.  On the way back, he sang a song called "The Wild Rover."  There's a place where we were supposed to give four claps but none of us did a very good job of it, and Murphy told us so.

Since we had folks from various places, he pulled up some songs from our home countries on his phone and played them over the bus speaker system, in case we were feeling homesick.  For the US, he played part of Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places" and The Rembrandts' "I'll Be There for You" (aka the "Friends" theme song).  Eli and I both clapped loudly in the appropriate place during this song.  Murphy looked back at us and said something like, "Oh sure, NOW you clap in the right place."  For France, he played "Frere Jacques."  He played a song for Italy, but I didn't recognize it.  For Australia, he played Kylie Minogue's "I Should Be So Lucky" - I love that song, and it made me smile a bit because Lissa and I used to sing along together when we heard it.

Murphy and our driver Darren had a running joke with each other.  There was a drawing posted above the driver's seat showing them as stick figures.  Each time we got back on the bus, something had been added to the drawing.  By the time we got on the bus for our trip back to Dublin, Darren's stick figure was wearing a crown, a pink dress, and there was a word bubble that read "I'm a princess!"

We pulled back into Dublin around 6:30 p.m., truly worn out and ready to be home.  After a 40-minute tram ride, we walked back into the apartment.  Patrick was eager to tell us about his day - or he was cussing us out for being gone 12 hours, I'm not sure. Norris was eager to get petted, because he saw we were petting Patrick.  And I was eager to take my shoes off and melt into the couch.

Musings

More random things incoming....

***

Unless you have a book or are messing around with your phone, it can be pretty boring riding the tram.  There are a lot of apartment buildings track-side and in an effort to combat the tedium, I've been mapping out windows where I've seen a cat tree.  When I go past, I see if any kitties are perched on their tree; so far, I haven't seen any.  There's a couch on the balcony of an apartment near the Central Park stop (Central Park in Irish is An Phairc Lair - pronounced "an fark lar") where we once saw what looked like a golden retriever napping.  I haven't seen the pupper again but it's probably been too chilly for him/her to be out on the balcony.

***

A while ago, I was riding the tram, and in the seat across from me was an unattended carry-on bag.  I thought, "Oh great, I come all the way to Ireland only to be blown up by a damned bomb."  When we reached the Brides Glen stop, I let the tram driver know about the bag.  He grinned and asked, "It's not ticking, is it?"

***

We haven't been on the motorways much, but it's interesting to note that there really aren't any billboards.  It's a refreshing change from most of the US highways.

***

Aside from over-the-counter medications, there are no TV commercials for pharmaceuticals; it's illegal.  I do kinda miss the Jardiance commercial though.

***

When you think of Ireland, you think of shamrocks, Guinness, whiskey, leprechauns, and potatoes.  My favorite potato of all time is the russet.  It's very earthy and meaty, and I really like the flavor of it.  There are no russet potatoes in Ireland, of course, and I haven't yet been able to find one that I enjoy.  The irony of not liking potatoes in a land synonymous with them isn't lost on me.  "Water, water everywhere/Nor any drop to drink."

***

Many of our cable channels originate in the UK.  I've noticed that the UK seems very committed to pre-death funeral planning; there are at least three different commercials for it.  I've also noticed that UK commercials are a bit more...blunt.  In an ad for an incontinence product, one woman asks another woman to join her in some activity and the second woman says, "Oh, and worry about people seeing me bulky pee pad?"

***

Gelatin is called "jelly" here.  This photo looks like it's a box or packet of gelatin powder, right?  The kind where you add hot water to make it?  Yeah, no.  It's actually a pouch containing a slab of pre-made Jello.  I bought one, and I'm a little afraid to try it.

***

More words that are different here:

Rocket = arugula

Sorted = figured out (I got my issue sorted)

Courgette = zucchini

Chicken goujon = chicken tender

Biscuit = cookie

Cupcake case/pie case = cupcake liner/pie crust

In range = the items a store carries (their lineup/stock)

All Aboard

On Friday, we boarded a Luas tram a couple of hours before sunrise (which doesn't sound as heroic when you realize that sunrise doesn't happen until 8:30 this time of year).  There was a dense fog and between that and the dark, it felt like I was in a cocoon.  I hadn't ridden a tram in the dark before, so it was a bit jarring.  Inside the tram, it seemed brighter than usual with no outside light to mute the glaring overhead lighting.

Our destination was the Irish Rail (Iarnród Éireann) Dublin Connolly station.  About 23 stops later, we exited the Green Line Luas tram and walked a bit to get to the Red Line Luas station at Abbey Street.  The tram takes you directly to the Connolly station, but that leg of the route wasn't running yet, so we got off the tram at Busaras and walked the couple blocks to the station.

It was close to the time of our Irish Rail departure, so we didn't linger too long at the station.  Eli had reserved two seats for us, so we went to a ticketing kiosk to print our paper tickets and then headed for the platform.  There were gates you had to go through before you could enter the platform - like subway turnstiles.  You fed your ticket into the machine and it would open the gates and allow you to pass.  Eli had to put his ticket in multiple times to get it to work.  The machine kept buzzing and not letting me pass, so in swooped a member of the station staff.  He said, "Is it not working for you, luv?" and he swiped his security card to get the gate to open.

We were in the C car, so we walked down the platform until we found our carriage and got onboard.  This sign helpfully indicated that we had reserved these seats, which I thought was pretty cool (it's hard to read but it lists our names).  We put our backpacks and coats in the overhead storage and settled in for departure.

The conductor came through, asking people for their ticket so he could punch them.  I wished him good morning, and he said, "It'd be a good morning if I were in the pub."  🙂  A bit into the trip, a woman came by with a trolley, inquiring if we wanted a drink or snack.  I told Eli I had to bite my lip not to say "We'll take the lot," which is what Harry Potter said to the trolley lady in the first HP movie.

Our car was fairly empty and quiet.  There was a pair of younger ladies in the seats across the aisle from ours, and they came fully prepared for a two-hour trip.  They had fruit, drinks, cookies, and a small snack pack that had crackers and salami.  They kept up a steady chatter of Spanish for the entire trip, and it was fun to try to catch words I understood.  (As we got closer to our destination, one of the women started applying makeup, using her phone's camera as a mirror.  The train's motion was fairly steady with a few bumpier stretches, and I was in awe that she was brave enough to have a sharp eyeliner anywhere near her eye.)

The fog lifted as we moved farther away from Dublin.  It was still grey but eventually, there was enough light to see the surroundings as we flew past.  There were small, green pastures that were outlined by fences made of stacked stone.  They were devoid of livestock, so I said, "I was promised sheep."

And I got sheep.  Lots and lots of sheep.  Along with a few cows and some horses.  Some of the sheep were close to the tracks, some were just smallish white dots on the horizon.

At some point during the ride, Eli got a text notification so he glanced at his phone.  It was our mobile provider, Virgin, letting him know that international roaming was now in place.  For those of you who may not know, Northern Ireland is part of the UK so even though it's on the Irish island, it's a whole 'nother country where they use pounds instead of euros and sing "God Save the King."

We arrived at Grand Central Station in Belfast on time, leaving the train and headed for the station.  Again, there were machines that required you to swipe your ticket to get into the station but they were also apparently being recalcitrant because a staff member was just waving people through.

We stopped at the Customer Service desk to see if we could get a visitor transportation pass there, and happily, we could.  The passes were about £7 each, and they were valid for unlimited travel all day.

Our first stop was the Botanic Gardens.  The gardens were established in 1828 by the Belfast Botanic and Horticultural Society, in response to public interest in horticulture and botany.

There were many different types of trees and flora, and we heard a lot of birdsong and saw many squirrel friends.  At one point along the walk, a couple of squirrels seemed to be wanting to approach us - I'm sure people feed them, so they're used to getting handouts from humans.  I didn't shoo them away, but I told them to get back.  Getting bitten by a squirrel in Belfast didn't sound like the best use of my time there.

They had a grass labyrinth laid out with various types of rose bushes along the sides of the walking area but, being December, all of the bushes had been cut back in preparation for winter.  I'm sure that's quite a sight to see in the summer with all of the different rose varieties in bloom.

Inside the grounds is a building that houses the Tropical Ravine.  As shown in the last photo, the temperature was 24.4 C which is around 76 F.  I love ferns, so I was tickled to find a couple fern species there.  The waterfall was wonderful, and I got a video.  I was cursing internally while filming though because there was a woman talking VERY LOUDLY nearby.  Lady, I want to hear the water, not you.

Also on the grounds is the Palm House, which was built in the 1830s and is one of the earliest examples of a curvilinear cast iron glasshouse.  The first plant photo is some kind of cactus-ish creature, and it made me laugh.  There's this innocent-looking bouquet of blossoms at the end of a nasty stem of spikes.  It's like "party in the front, bloody screaming death in the back."

After our journey around the Botanic Gardens, we took the bus to CastleCourt Shopping Centre.  Eli wanted to tour the Crumlin Road Gaol (jail); I had no interest in that, so I said I'd wander around the mall instead.  I like to take my time while I'm window shopping; Eli isn't as fond of that activity so this seemed like a good compromise.  It was near lunchtime, and we were both hungry, so we stopped by the food court.  Eli had a falafel dish and I had KFC - as one does when you're in Belfast.

Then he was off to jail and I was off to explore the mall.  There were the usual clothing and shoe stores, but there was also a candy store called Gobstopper and a Bargain Books where everything was 50% off.  I had to force myself not to buy anything at the bookstore.

Feeling a bit peckish, I went to a shop called Muffin Break and got a chocolate chip muffin.  This thing was the size of a softball and only £2.80!  Believe me when I tell you that I thoroughly enjoyed this confectionary delight.  The edges of the muffin top were slightly crunchy, and the rest of it was moist and delicious.

My feet were tired, so I found a comfortable place to sit down.  I texted Eli my location and in short order, he arrived to collect me.  Our train back to Dublin was slated to leave at 4 p.m. so we decided to head back to the station.

The bus stop was right in front of an amusement center (a casino, basically) in a slightly sketchy looking part of town.  As we stood waiting for the bus, a person exited the casino, speaking loudly and angrily in a different language.  I tensed up, ready to defend if necessary, but they continued on their way, still angrily barking as they moved down the street.

Back at the station, we had time to kill before our departure so we went to Pret a Manger, which is Starbucks-like.  Eli got a falafel and halloumi wrap as well as a grape and elderflower fizzy drink; I got a Coke; and we split a chocolate croissant.

We went to the platform, but they weren't allowing people to board yet so we took a seat.  It was interesting that a large line was forming, but they didn't let people through until about 5 minutes before departure.  Staff was punching people's tickets at this checkpoint, which slowed things down even more.  I didn't think they'd let the trail pull out while people were still working their way onto the platform but I hoofed it to car D just to be on the safe side.

The outside of this train looked old, but the inside was modern and looked fairly new.  I didn't get a photo, but again there was an LED sign that had our names listed.  The seats were purple and covered with a velvety upholstery.  For the trip back to Dublin, our seats were oriented facing the front of the train; on the trip to Belfast, we were sitting backwards.

It was dark by this time so there wasn't much to see out the windows.  I read a book for a little while; Eli played around on the socials using his phone.  We had trolley service again but, as we had had a snack at the station, we didn't get anything.

The ride back was fairly uneventful.  A group of people boarded at the first or second stop, and they were talking quite loudly.  I was like, "Dudes, read the room.  It's quiet in here besides you."  Thankfully, they got off at the next stop, and the train was quiet again.

We pulled into Dublin Connolly around 6:20 p.m.  The Red Line tram that would've taken us from the station to Abbey Street was again in service....and we just missed it.  We caught another Red Line tram to Abbey Street and walked a bit to get to the Green Line tram that would take us home.

On the front of each tram, there's a lighted digital sign that tells you the tram's final stop.  The tram that pulled up when the Brides Glen tram was due said "Not in Service."  We still piled on, and the driver never kicked us all off, so we figured we were good to go.  It was packed with people so we had to stand for quite some time.  I sat down as soon as a seat opened up as my hip was bothering me, and Eli eventually got a seat as the population thinned.

We'd been away more than 12 hours so the cats were glad to see us, and I was just as glad to be home.

As Eli pointed out, I've now been in three different countries since August (US, Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland).  Not bad for someone who had never been outside the US in over 50 years.

So This is Christmas

Eli took today off work, and we visited the Christmas market at Dublin Castle.

We rode the green line Luas tram to St. Stephen's Green and then had about a 12-minute walk to get to the market.  I had never been through that part of the City Centre before, and it was quite overwhelming.  Tattoo shops, pubs, eateries, donut shops, grocery stores - just store after store after store.  Some of the places were basically a small hole in the wall where people could walk up and get pizza or a snack.

And there were so. many. people.  We had to weave our way around slower walkers or people who just decided it was a good idea to park themselves in the middle of a narrow sidewalk.  Many different dialects and languages floated around us as we made our way to the castle.

Once there, we had the "rat in the maze" experience of doing that switchback waltz as we moved through the barricades they had in place to contain a large queue - there was no queue today but considering it was around 1 p.m. on a Monday, that wasn't surprising.

This was the entrance into the castle courtyard.

There were vendor booths set up with all manner of handicrafts - candles, jewelry, handmade wooden puzzles, clothing - as well as a handful of food vendors.  Nothing says Christmas in Dublin like one cart selling churros and another one selling corn dogs.

There was a carousel set up in the center of the courtyard.  Of course I rode the carousel.  My trusty steed's name was Robert.  Eli was next to me on a horse named Codi, and the horse on the inside rail was named Dylan.  Who named these horses?

We took a tour of the State Apartments, which are part of the castle.  As you might imagine, this place was very opulent.  Lots of huge paintings on the walls, velvet couches, the whole nine yards.

We also visited the Chapel Royal, which is right outside the courtyard.  It boasted soaring arched ceilings, lots of stained glass, and a humongous pipe organ.

After we left the courtyard and before visiting the Chapel, we got a drink from one of the vendors and stood beneath a small shelter, sipping our hot chocolate and listening to the Christmas music being piped over loudspeakers:  Wonderful Christmastime (Paul McCartney), All I Want for Christmas is You (Mariah Carey), The Christmas Song (Nat King Cole), White Christmas (Bing Crosby), Happy Xmas (John Lennon and Yoko Ono), and Santa Claus is Coming to Town (Bruce Springsteen) were just a few of the songs we heard.  I was certain they were going to play "Last Christmas" by Wham and I'd get Whamageddon-ed, but it didn't happen.

Hot chocolate:  How it started vs how it ended

Adventure complete, we headed back to the tram stop outside St. Stephen's Green, past the busker singing in the Centre square and the man feeding a huge flock of pigeons,  accompanied by a light mist that never fully blossomed into all-out rain.  Feet tired from walking on cobblestones, it was good to sit and let the tram take us home.

(If you want more information on Dublin Castle - including learning the names of some luminaries who have been entertained within its walls - go here:  History | Dublin Castle )

Everyone Knows It's Windy

Eli was on the hunt for some tennis shoes so we headed to Dundrum Town Centre this morning.  Or rather, we blew all the way to Dundrum Town Centre this morning.  It's extremely windy here at times - today being one of those times.  I had to hold my headband to the top of my head for fear the wind would snatch it away.  I'm going to have to pull my hair back into a ponytail or something because looking like Cousin Itt isn't great when you're trying to navigate stairs.

We journeyed to three or four different stores inside the mall but had no success.  For whatever reason, it's very difficult to find wide-width shoes in stores here.  Eli and I both got some winter gloves, and I found a raincoat.  It may shock you to learn that it rains here in Ireland.  A lot.  And I didn't have a medium-weight, waterproof coat so it was nice to remedy that today.

Holiday shopping is in full swing so the mall was full of people and noise and lights.  Not my idea of a swell time, by any stretch of the imagination.  I managed to pass by the bookstore without being drawn in by its siren song.  Please clap for me.

We tried a new restaurant for lunch - one I had suggested.  I know - shocking!  I tend to stick with the tried-and-true places so for me to both be willing to try something new and to have been the one to suggest it was a pretty big deal.

The bells of the church down the street had just rung 12, so I was afraid that the place might be full.  Happily, we walked in and there were only a couple people there.  It probably helped that the restaurant is in a little alley a block or two from the mall entrance so they probably don't have a lot of foot traffic.  Or at least they didn't today.  Business did pick up a few minutes after we arrived.

Nando's is a South African multinational fast casual chain that specializes in Portuguese flame-grilled peri-peri style chicken (description from their Wikipedia page).  If you know me, you know that about the only word I'm comfortable/familiar with in that sentence - culinarily speaking - is chicken.

Not knowing if we should wait or seat ourselves, we stood by the door and the hostess approached with a smile.  She asked if we'd been there before and, when we said we hadn't, explained how to order (either using a QR code or going up to the counter), pointed out where the drink station was, and also asked if we had any food allergies.

Eli ordered a mushroom and halloumi pitta with sides of broccoli and chips (aka fries) along with a hard cider; he also had an appetizer of spiced olives.  I got chicken butterfly (grilled chicken breast) with sides of mac/cheese and garlic bread along with a bottomless glass of Coke.  And it was soooooo good!  The garlic bread was soft on the bottom/middle but crispy on top and had a great garlic flavor.  The mac/cheese was very thick and creamy.  The chicken was tender and coated with peri-peri sauce, which tasted to me like a sweet BBQ sauce.

We didn't save room for dessert but if we had, I was eyeing the bottomless tub of soft-serve vanilla ice cream.  Doesn't that sound wonderful??

The staff came over multiple times to ask if we needed anything else, always with a smile and always so pleasant.  There was music playing but it wasn't so loud and obnoxious that we couldn't hold a conversation.

All in all, it was a really good meal and good experience.

I will leave you with a few more bits and bobs of random stuff:

- Rather than stocking stuffers, these items are called stocking fillers.

- You do your grocery shop or Christmas shop - not shopping.

- Underwear is called knickers.

- A basket is a hamper - so a gift basket would be a gift hamper.

- Sweaters are jumpers - e.g. I'm wearing my ugly Christmas jumper.

Pod People

Eli's birthday fell mid-week, so we celebrated yesterday by going to a restaurant at the Carrickmines mall called The Vanilla Pod.

It was a very grey day, and the sky was quite close to the ground.  There was a constant drizzle - enough to make you damp but not really make you wet.  I felt a little like produce in the grocery store when the mister jets engage.

We got to the mall a few minutes past noon.  The restaurant opened at noon, and there was already a line out the door.  We stood for a few minutes before deciding to do our shopping, hoping that when we returned, the place would've cleared out.

Our shopping quest was for salt and pepper shakers.  I had ordered some from Ikea but for whatever reason, those couldn't be shipped to us.  Don't ask me to explain it because I can't.  One of the home stores we went to had a Pier 1 mood - lots of cute holiday paraphernalia with fabric reindeer and fluffy seasonal blankets, with a pleasant scent of spices in the air.  You wouldn't think salt and pepper shakers would be hard to find, but you'd be wrong.  We eventually found some and went on our way.

Since we had time to kill, we went into a store called Woodie's.  It's basically Menards with housewares, tools, gardening stuff, paint, etc.  I had seen online that they carry rubbing alcohol (it's like a unicorn - you can't find it here very easily and when you do, it's mega expensive) but we didn't find it after wandering around.  Eli did get a tea ball though so it wasn't a complete waste.  Plus, as I told him, it was nice to see what types of items they have, in case we need something in the future.

Stopped at a pharmacy called Boots which is much like Ulta. They didn't have the products I was looking for but again, it was nice to make a reconnaissance ramble to see what they have on offer.

Back to The Vanilla Pod we went.  There was still a line, but it was shorter and moved along very quickly.  The three parties ahead of us were seated in short order and then it was our turn.

Eli had a pasta dish with an elderberry lemonade; I had a pepperoni pizza with a Coke.  Everything was very good - and very expensive, but that's the way things are everywhere, not just here.   My only complaint was that it was quite loud, making it hard to have a conversation.  In psychology, "the cocktail party effect" happens when you're surrounded by external stimuli but can still focus on something - e.g. you're in a loud restaurant but are able to focus on the conversation you're having with one person.  I have the opposite issue - if I'm surrounded by voices, I can focus on none of them.

Eli wanted to visit a mall in Dun Laoghaire which is accessible by bus.  The bus stop is right across from the tram stop, so he went to stand by the bus stop sign while I went to wait for the tram.  Even though I wasn't planning to ride the bus, I was apparently close enough to have an effect since it was late.  🙄  But eventually it arrived and eventually the tram arrived, and we both got to where we wanted to be.