All three of us landed in Dublin on May 18th within minutes of each other and were able to share a ride to our wonderful hotel — The Alex. It was an exhausting day for Jay and me, and Ylenia had a fairly long day also, so after checking in and getting settled in our room, we simply had dinner in the hotel then crashed!
We made up for our initial lack of sightseeing on Friday: The city is full of sculptures and interesting sights. Here are highlights from our morning, which included Trinity College:
We eventually made it over to the Liffee River, had lunch (which included a French Dip sandwich made with pork), then we continued our self-directed walking tour to shop on Henry Street:
Exhausted (again!), we headed back to the hotel and tried to get reservations for dinner. Big mistake! Dublin has a very active nightlife and all our preferred restaurants were already fully booked. We finally decided to experience our first pub meal at Ginger Man, right next to our hotel. Ylenia and I grabbed drinks and the three of us hung out at the bar until a table became available. (Note: In Italy, we would expect to spend 2-3 hours actually eating a meal, but here much of that time was spent people watching in the bar!)
Yes, people really do wear kilts to dinner! And I discovered that (to my taste) Irish bangers are much more flavorful than English bangers. We didn’t have a traditional shepherd’s pie (yet) — Ylenia’s pie was cooked with Guinness and mine was a yummy chicken pie unlike any I’ve had before.
I think we must have walked about 8 miles today, and it was early to bed, in an attempt to eliminate our jet lag! We have another full day planned for tomorrow. See you then…
Jay's & Pat's Adventures 
Aren’t adventures wonderful and always special when accompanied with granddaughters. Thank you for the great photos.
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Yeah, so glad that in spite of your jet lag and demanding sightseeing days, you have time to give us your report. THANK YOU.
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Wow! What a great start to your big adventure. It looks like y’all are having a wonderful time. It’s good to see Ylenia also. And the parties just getting started! Thanks for keeping us updated.
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You guys know how to have fun and blend in with the locals. Keep hitting those pubs! They are such fun and the food is good. Enjoy and stay safe. Love to Ylenia!
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Sounds like a great trip and looks like you are off to a good start! Thanks for sharing your adventures with us. It reminds us of our trip to Ireland and Scotland with our Preston and his Carrie. I know how much time it takes to do a blog, but it sure helps in keeping the great memories of wonderful times!
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Hello my dear friends. Did not know that you were on another big tour.
Please keep sending those interesting pictures and comments. I’m in Austin,
TX, helping our daughter and family to get ready for their permanent move
to Augusta, GA at the end of this months. Then we too will leave for Europe,
1 week London, 1 week Paris and one week Switzerland, however I will be
staying until End of August. Are you just staying up North or traveling South,
too?
Happy and safe travel.
R e n e
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Hi, Rene! We’re traveling all around Ireland… We started in Dublin then moving to Belfast. We’ll spend a few days in the North, then visit the western side of Ireland and return to Dublin
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Love this and that you 3 are together! Have so much fun!
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Great pics!! You all look great! Oh and the food looks absolutely yummy!!!!
Enjoy your adventures and keep the pics coming!!
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