Day #9 - Onward to Dublin!

We flew out of Glasgow the next morning via Ryanair. We flew them once previously between Italy/Malta, and although they are a budget airline-  the fun for me never gets old when taking cheesy Ryanair photos with a slightly mortified Ryan!

We caught a cab to our hotel, the Spencer, which was right on the waterfront of the River Liffey. We loved that it was a very pedestrian-friendly walk with wide sidewalks, artwork, tons of shops/restaurants nearby, etc. 

We had booked a deluxe triple room, and when we walked in, were like- hmm. We are not snobs, but this is definitely neither a triple, nor deluxe. Fortunately, some pineapple gummies and macadamia nut chocolates fixed that little scenario fairly easily and quickly, and we were moved over to the correct room...which was quite spacious and offered a view of the river.

It is rare that I can afford to stay at a hotel with monogrammed towels. So when I do, you better believe everyone will know about it.

Before the trip, I had researched a couple of famous bridges along the River Liffey to check out, so we set out to walk along the river to go and find them.

This bridge was perhaps a 150 yards from our hotel, and was the most impressive- Samuel Beckett Bridge. What was most impressive about it was that it night, it had a light display that was pretty vibrant and colorful.

Although not particularly famous, this was my second favorite bridge (I think it's the Millennium Bridge), as I am an absolute sucker for a neon rainbow that flashes like you're at disco. I still remember this same color scheme from an elevator we rode in Sweden and loved that one, too! It's also a pedestrian only bridge.

This was another famous one, called 'Ha'penny' Bridge, which was the fee to cross over it at one time. This bridge also once separated a more affluent area from a humble one.

Our walk through Dublin had a few noticeable differences from Edinburgh- 1. There was almost no litter/beggars in Ediburgh...there was a bit more in Ireland. And 2. The architecture was a lot more modern...significantly less older buildings. 

Not far from our hotel was this building, whose name now escapes me...but when it was lit up at night, it was a stunning display of colorful snowflakes!

I was anxious to check out the Temple Bar drinking district across the river, because you know...it's Dublin! And although there are many historic and appealing storefronts throughout...it also felt very much like any bar district- slightly sticky from spilt beer. Wildly overpriced shops offering vegan t-shirts, piercings, vintage comic books...just a slightly eclectic vibe mixed with drunken tourists and loud bars.

That's not to say there wasn't a good handful/sprinkling of charm!

Our primary destination after cruising the Temple Bar area was to check out Christchurch Cathedral, the massive grounds of the Guinness Brewery and Kilmainham Gaol. 

Christchurch Cathedral definitely lived up to my expectations (architecturally). I had decided before the trip to spend our pounds touring the interior of St. Patrick's Cathedral, but still wanted to see the famous arched walkway of the cathedral.

The first day we saw this amazing arched walkway over the road, we walked nearby it. We had no idea that a few days later, we would actually get routed to drive under it on our way to St. Patrick's once we had our rental car.

Although I forget the name of this cathedral, I will not forget how TALL it was.

Entering the prison that once held political prisoners (who fought the British), and the many victims of the Potato Famine who were jailed for stealing (food)... Interesting facts we learned from our guide- children could be sentenced/jailed, even without their parents present. The youngest known 'prisoner' was 4 years old, and there at the same time as a parent (a male, who stole food), and the youngest known children in prison without parents were about 11-12 years old.

Inside one of the heated cells

The prison was built to let in the light of God, and also provide free lighting for the prisoners. It was also designed so that guards could view most of the cells from any one point.

Further into the prison, there were additional cells without the lighting (guessing the more serious and noteworthy 'criminals' were jailed here, as many had placards of their former inhabitants names).

This was the rather sobering yard where executions took place by firing squad. Many of those killed looked like fresh-faced youths, who were revolutionaries fighting the British occupation vs. hardened, violent criminals. Quite sad.

Our walk back into town wasn't short, and in all, we clocked in over 9 miles that day. We did more than a few times on the trip, and always appreciated those days, as so many other days we were stuck on airplanes all day or sitting in a rental car. Any day we could move our legs to burn off some of the insane amounts of food we were intaking was a good day!

On the walk home that night, we passed some seasonal light displays that so enamored us country folk! We loved gazing at these on our walk home...never got old each night!

The last bridge (Samuel Beckett) near our hotel was my favorite, as the displays 'moved' and changed...these penguins were waddling along. 

All in all, a fabulous first day in Dublin!