Trips

Best of Ireland and Scotland

May 6 -- 22, 2013

        This past May, we undertook an long anticipated trip to Ireland and Scotland (Insight Vacations) and to Wales (Road Scholar). All three are beautiful countries, not least of which because it rains nearly everyday - and it did - about 22 of the 24 days we were there we had some kind of rain. Since we have been exceptionally lucky on all of our other trips and have had very little rain, we probably were due for a wet experience. In addition, since rainy is their climate, that is how you need to see them.

 

Trip Map
5/6-7	Estes Park to Washington, DC to Dublin
5/7-10	Dublin: Trinity College; Guinness; Christ Church; St. Patrick's Cathedral; Book of Kells
5/11	Irish National Stud Farm; Waterford
5/12	Cobh; Blarney Castle
5/13	Ring of Kerry; Killarney
5/14	Limerick
5/15	Galway; Village of Cong
5/16	Londonderry, Northern Ireland; Giant's Causeway
5/17	Ferry to Scotland; Robert Burns Memorial
5/18	Glasgow; Loch Lomond; Highlands; Loch Ness
5/19	Balnuaran of Clava; Culloden; Sheep Dog Demonstration
5/20	Blair Castle; St. Andrews; Edinburgh
5/21	Edinburgh Castle; City tour; the Royal Mile
5/22	End of Best of Ireland and Scotland tour; join Celtic Wales tour

 

Mon-Tues, 5/6-7 - Denver to Washington, DC to Dublin

          We left Estes Park at 8:45 AM and flew United to Washington, DC/Dulles (3 1/2 hours).  We had a 3-hour layover in Dulles and took another United flight (6 1/2 hours) to Dublin, Ireland.  We arrived in Dublin at 10 AM (5/7) minus Gale's suitcase - it was still at Dulles. 
           We took a public "air coach" from the airport into town and were dropped off at Leeson Street and St. Stephen's Green.  We asked directions twice but walked through St. Stephen's Green with lots of people and green grass and planted flowers, and found our way to the Drury Court Hotel on Stephen Street Lower.  It was too early to get into our room so we left the one suitcase and one knapsack at reception and went out wandering. We stopped for lunch at a small cafe (Busy Feet and Coco Cafe) near our hotel and had "ploughman" sandwiches of cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce, and some sort of pickles on brown bread and potato-leek soup.  It was tasty, quick, and not too expensive.

Our trip started in Dublin and ended in Edinburgh with lots of stops in between.
Flag of the Republic of Ireland	EU and non-EU license plates
Symbol of the City of Dublin	Our first stop was Trinity College.  The college opened in 1592 and is one of the best in Europe.  The buildings are all old and multi-floor with high ceilings.  There are several green lawns ("please stay off") making it quite pleasant for students, faculty, and tourists to sit around.  Evidently today was a day of exams and there were crowds of students doing last minute cramming.
St. Stephen's Green	Entrance to Trinity College
Trinity College grounds	Trinity College grounds
Next we viewed the innovative Samuel Beckett bridge.  The structure is a beautiful cable-stayed design. The shape of the spar and its cables is said to evoke an image of a harp, a symbol for Ireland, lying on its edge.          Then we crossed the Liffey River (on the Samuel Beckett Bridge) near the unique glass convention center and walked along the river. We passed an interesting group of statues forming a memorial to the Great Famine and Emigration.
Samuel Beckett Bridge (the glass tilted cylinder to the left is the Dublin convention center)	Samuel Beckett Bridge
Memorial to the Great Famine of 1845-1849	Memorial to the Great Famine of 1845-1849
Wed., 5/8/13 - Dublin - Touring on our own         We walked to Dame St. and got on a double-decker #123 bus, which took us to the Guinness brewery and storehouse.  The Guinness Storehouse is a seven story museum explaining everything about brewing Guinness.  We toured at a leisurely pace and learned about the barley, hops, yeast, and water that have created this beer since 1759.  We learned about oak casks, advertizing for the beer, and its world status.  Up on the seventh floor in the 360° Gravity Bar, we had free (with the price of admission) pints of Guinness Draft and looked out on all of Dublin.  Boy is that beer smooth!  We spent several hours there and ended in the company store to buy a T-shirt and souvenir spoon.
Typical street sign in English and Gaelic
	Beautiful sculpture! Great beer!!
After our beers, we walked back to the Viking and Medieval area of Dublin. Walked through St. Audoen's 12th century church with its ancient stone baptismal font and some original Viking era stones.  Behind the church is some of the old city wall and an original gate.
City sights - meat market	Meat market - looks almost good enough to eat
Interesting shop	Sign on a public house
Old City Wall	St. Audoen's Church
St. Audoen's Church	St. Audoen's Church - organ
We toured Christ Church Cathedral (1030 AD) and read about the history of the church.  It is now an active Anglican/Episcopal church with a museum of artifacts from its history.  Many of the artifacts are on display in the large crypt beneath the sanctuary.  Many 1500's Books of Prayer are displayed.  The skeletons of a cat and a rat made famous by James Joyce in Finnegans Wake are hanging on the wall.  The foundations of the 1030 AD original Viking cathedral are exposed outside beside the church.          Across Fishamble St. from Christ Church is a plaque commemorating the first performance of Handel's Messiah.  The choirs from Christ Church and St. Patrick's Cathedral were the vocalists for the 1742 performance.  The building is now a hotel.
Christ Church Cathedral	Christ Church Cathedral
	Nice street sign
We walked to the Dublin Castle, built in 1204, and looked at the rotunda and chapel but the whole block of buildings was closed to get ready for a meeting of the European Union.	Dublin Castle
An interesting Theater with a stained glass entry (or whatever you call it)	We walked back to out hotel for a nap to recover from our five-hour walking tour!  We ate dinner again at the Hairy Lemon.  The pub got its name from an old Dublin character, who caught stray dogs for the police.  He had yellow skin (jaundice?) and scruffy whiskers so he was called the hairy lemon.  Marge had fish (cod) and chips with "mashy peas" and I had cottage pie, which is like a shepherd's pie but with beef, not lamb and topped with mashed potatoes and cheddar cheese.  For dessert we splurged on a dark chocolate mousse "infused with Guinness beer."  Boy was it wonderful!

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