June 9 - Dublin

In the morning we had a guided tour of the highlights of the city and then went to see the Book of Kells at Trinity College. That was fascinating - both to think of the painstaking work by the monks who created it, and that it has survived so many centuries in spite of being stolen and ransomed several times. Of course, we couldn't take any photos of it. The library above the Book of Kells was amazing too - I love the smell of old books and there were thousands and thousands of them.

After finishing at Trinity College (and buying t-shirts for both of us!) we walked over to the Temple Bar area on the advice of sister Kris and her husband, who had discovered Gallagher’s Boxty House when they were in Dublin several years ago. Enjoyed our lunch there (a boxty is a potato pancake rolled up with a filling inside) and then walked around Dublin some more before heading back to the hotel to freshen up for our evening at the Guinness brewery.


My chicken boxty and ginger beer.

 

What's left of the old Dublin Castle

Lots of cool old buildings in Dublin - loved the flower boxes on this one.

Got a complete tour of the brewery - learned many interesting facts about it and got a pint to drink, as well as a demonstration of how to properly draw a pint and how to drink it. After a catered dinner there and a quick 20 minutes in the Guinness shop, we returned to the hotel to pack up again and be ready to move on.