I am back from an amazing weekend in Ireland with my high school friend Taylor and Christine. Taylor goes to Trinity University in Dublin for her undergrad, so we were able to stay with her in her dorm and get shown around the city by someone who knows it well. Though we were only in Dublin for a day and a half (our flight was at 7:50 this morning), we got to see quite a bit.
We got to Taylor's dorm, where she lives in flat-style living, and took the bus into the center of the city. I thought Pollock Halls were far away from campus at a 20 minute walk, but it takes Taylor 45 minutes to walk to campus because it's 2 and a half miles away. So I'm not complaining anymore. Anyways, we walked around, saw Trinity which is so beautiful, old, and magical. Similar to Cambridge. I wish Edinburgh had the old feel...but I suppose it's so old they had to build new buildings. Sad. That night we went to one of Taylor's friend's flat parties which was a nice change of pace from the pubs and clubs. We also got to meet all of her friends who are incredibly nice. Most of them are from Germany on exchange for one year.
Yesterday we took the bus into the center of town, saw an adorable street market and then went to the Guinness Storehouse. I thought we would be seeing the actual factory, but the Storehouse is where the factory used to be and is now a tourist attraction. The building is built around the world's largest pint glass and is quite informative about the making of beer and the history of Guinness. The best part is that you get to enjoy a free pint of Guinness in the gravity bar on the top floor of the pint glass and get great panoramic views of the city. Taylor's friend then picked us up from the Storehouse and drove us to Howth, which is a 30 minute port town outside of Dublin. We walked around a little bit, took in the scenery, and ended the day with the first fish and chips of my trip (delicious)!
Last night we went to two different pubs, hung out until 3 AM when they closed, and then I decided not to go to bed since we had to wake up at 5:30. It was sad to say goodbye to Taylor since I haven't seen her in so long, but it was amazing to see and and she was truly the best host!
My (what I consider) interesting thoughts about Dublin:
- Oscar Wilde went to Trinity and studied classics, like Taylor
- Arthur Guinness signed a 9000 year lease for the Guinness factory. They are only in the 250th year
- Irish people, especially the cab drivers, are unbelievably friendly
- It is incredibly expensive. Made me appreciate Edinburgh prices.
- They love the fact that tropical plants, such as palm trees, are able to grow there so they have them on the streets, in the parks, anywhere they can really
- birds chirp at odd hours, similar to Edinburgh
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| Trinity University |
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| Olives at the market |
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| palm tree? |
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| Howth |
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