- Lucky Charms Ireland: Introduction
- Lucky Charms Ireland: W Boston
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Aer Lingus Gold Circle Lounge Boston & Air France Business Class Lounge Boston
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Aer Lingus Business Class Boston to Dublin
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Four Seasons Dublin
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Exploring Dublin
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Ritz Carlton Powerscourt
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Hilton Dublin Airport
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Aer Lingus Gold Circle Lounge Dublin
- Lucky Charms Ireland: Aer Lingus Business Class Dublin to Boston
- Lucky Charms Ireland: InterContinental Boston
Dublin was, for lack of a better word, the “easiest” European city I’ve ever been to. I’m not sure if it’s just the common language or if there’s more to it, but it felt a bit like Europe “light.” Unfortunately the weather was pretty miserable for the three days we were in Dublin, as it rained almost nonstop for two of them, meaning we had only one full day to see stuff (though we did as much as we could on the other days as well). We did one of those hop-on hop-off bus tours which I’m usually not a huge fan of, though the attractions in Dublin are quite spread out so it seemed to make sense.
Dublin has a beautiful pedestrian area, Grafton Street, which was just as charming as the ones in Munich, Vienna, etc.
Grafton Street
Mall near Grafton Street
Right next to that is St. Stephen’s Green, which is a beautiful park.
St. Stephen’s Green
Christ Church Place
Next we stopped at the Guinness Factory. The tour was fascinating and spanned about five floors. The “reward” at the end was a glass of Guinness. How anyone can call that vile substance a reward is beyond me. 😉
Guinness Factory
Guinness Factory
“Reward”
Another great area of Dublin is O’Connell Street, one of Dublin’s main streets, with more shopping and restaurants.
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O’Connell Street
On O’Connell Street is The Spire, a 400 foot structure, which I’m not sure actually served a purpose.
The Spire
While the countryside of Ireland is a lot more interesting than any of the bigger cities, I still really liked Dublin, and would definitely return for a weekend sometime given how close it is. I think the city is definitely worth 2-3 days, be it part of a quick mileage run or part of a larger itinerary.
To the best of my understanding there is no Bailey's factory tour (see link below) or even anything remotely interesting to see if there were such a tour. Apparently Bailey's manufacturing consists of a series of commercial trucks supplying preprocessed ingredients to a modern no-thrills utilitarian bottling plant. I've enjoyed Baileys on the rocks from time to time, but mainly as a dessert. If I'm drinking I generally prefer something much better tasting than Guinness...
To the best of my understanding there is no Bailey's factory tour (see link below) or even anything remotely interesting to see if there were such a tour. Apparently Bailey's manufacturing consists of a series of commercial trucks supplying preprocessed ingredients to a modern no-thrills utilitarian bottling plant. I've enjoyed Baileys on the rocks from time to time, but mainly as a dessert. If I'm drinking I generally prefer something much better tasting than Guinness but not nearly as sweet as Bailey's.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g186591-i88-k4950079-Baileys_Irish_Cream_Factory_Tour-Ireland.html
Is there a Bailey's factory tour that you can go on? There would definitely be a great reward at the end of that one!
Dublin is a fabulous, friendly, accessible town. Spend some time & talk to the folks.
Lucky, I love your blog & have learned large over time, but I may have to stop reading due to your "vile substance" comment.
Maybe I should just relax. To each his own, right?
Guinness is one of the great tastes in the world...sort of like good coffee, chocolate, cigars...
I'd wait good & long for a pour of the black...
:)
Given all the other choices in the world, going to a place where you are guaranteed at least one rainy day and possibly all days that you are staying there, this is not my cup of tea
Whoops you guys are right, sorry about that!
@ The Montane Vole -- Drank about two thirds of it before I was ready to puke.
The Spire was built in 2003 as a replacement for (Admiral) Nelson's Pillar (built ca. 1811), which was long much-resented by Irish nationalists as a symbol of English hegemony; it was destroyed by an IRA bomb in 1966. The Spire is (deliberately) about as non-political as you can get!!
Re Guinness: I totally agree with FortFun on that subject, though I admit it's an acquired taste. How much of the "vile substance" did you actually...
The Spire was built in 2003 as a replacement for (Admiral) Nelson's Pillar (built ca. 1811), which was long much-resented by Irish nationalists as a symbol of English hegemony; it was destroyed by an IRA bomb in 1966. The Spire is (deliberately) about as non-political as you can get!!
Re Guinness: I totally agree with FortFun on that subject, though I admit it's an acquired taste. How much of the "vile substance" did you actually consume? Did you make it past the foam "crown"? Did you actually finish your pint?
I hope you walked through the Trinity College campus... definitely a gorgeous place.
p.s. -- Nassau is the one that runs perpendicular to the bottom of Grafton St, just south of Trinity, with all the bus stops.
a) Grafton Street
b) Christ Church Cathedral
c) If you don't like the Guinness at the gravity bar, you are defective.
That is all. ;)
"How anyone can call that vile substance a reward is beyond me" - my thoughts exactly. Do they only offer the darkest drink or are their lighter choices as well?
Haha, thought the Same! Yes, it is Grafton Street. I am working on a Dublin Post, too. ;-)
When I've been there it rained 3 days nonstop...
Isn't Grafton Street, not Nassau Street, the big pedestrian area?