Dublin

The trip from Dingle to Dublin seemed to last forever! We left at 8am and were scheduled to stop at Muckros house at 10am. The drive from Dingle to Muckros was beautiful; we got to see more of the countryside and the ring of Kerry.

We arrived at Muckros house a little early and had time to take a potty break and wander through the gardens. We spent the most time in the aboretum looking at all of the bushes and trees. As we were walking we noticed a few rock pathways and decided to follow one of them back to the house. We walked through a pathway surrounded by huge boulders and then climbed a stone staircase. When we got to the top of the staircase, we had arrived at the house and a small walled garden. It was beautiful! As we walked to the front of the house, we stopped to look at the view of the lake and to admire the beauty of the scenery.

The tour of the house was interesting. The house was built in the 1840s and has only had three owners. We walked through several rooms and saw the rooms that Queen Victoris stayed in. She only stayed with the family who owned the house for two days before returning to England and when she came, she brought her own bed. SMART!! The amazing thing was that the house had been restored to the way the family who hosted the Queen had decorated it. They had spent six years fixing things up, painting the walls, putting up velvet and silk wall coverings, all so Victoria could spend two days with them. TWO DAYS! I was completely amazed by the amount of effort they'd put forth. Apparently the family had done all of the work in hopes that they would be given a title; however, when Victoria and Albert returned to England, Albert died suddenly and the family never got a title.

After Muckros house we got back on our bus and were headed to a village an hour away to get something for lunch. Our bus driver, Patrick, asked us if we would like to wait for lunch and stop in Cashel instead. Patrick told us that we would be close to Cashel and that if we waited, we could see the Rock of Cashel and eat lunch. We all agreed that seeing a full castle complex, an ancient castle complex, sounded like fun, so we ate a few snacks to tide us over. As we drove into Cashel, none of us were really sure what to expect, ruins, sure, but I don't think any of use expected to see a walled fortress rise above us. Patrick parked the bus in the carpark across from the Rock of Cashel and we all tumbled out. Most of the group headed toward a little cafe at the base of the Rock, but Liz and I decided to try the cafe that Patrick had mentioned as we entered the village. I'd woken up sick that morning and didn't really feel up to climbing the hill to see the Rock of Cashel and my camera battery had died, so after lunch I stayed near the bus and took as much in as I could.

We got to spend about an hour at the Rock of Cashel before getting back on the bus for the drive to Dublin. We all fell asleep on the bus and were awakened by Dr. Mack announcing our arrival into Dublin. We entered the city from the north side of the Liffey and then were forced to take a detour south of the river and then back over to the north side. There had been an accident, so part of the road was blocked off. The detour worked to our benefit though; we were able to see a bit more of the city and the area we would be staying in. We arrived at the hostel a short time later and had a half an hour to ourselves before meeting up with the group for a walking tour of the city.

The walking tour was fast paced and brief. We were all tired and hungry. However, we saw Trinity College Dublin, The Bank of Ireland (former seat of Irish government), Dublin Castle (not really a castle), and then Dr. Mack released us to get food. A few of us went to O'Neills a pub with a carvery (full dinner) and a sandwhich bar. Most of us went for the sandwhich bar, however, we were met with people who weren't very interested in helping us get food. I managed to get exactly what I wanted, but the other girls were treated a little rudely. Once food was procured, we sat around talking and laughing.

Our first night in Dublin, though initially a little rocky, was GREAT!