Weekend in Dublin

On Friday morning I left the house heading for Stansted Airport and Dublin. Looking at the Transport for London website, I planned my trip. Unfortunately, Friday was the anniversary of the July 7 bombings in London and the increased security and small delays meant that I was late getting to the airport. I was surprised that it took so long and cost so much to get to the airport. It was 14 pounds one way once I got to the tube stop. Adding another 28 pounds to the cost of the trip makes Stansted a more costly place to leave from. Live and learn.

Getting to the airport at the exact checkout time meant that I unless I could find the correct counter I was doomed. So, drawing on all my speed and skill.. you guessed. Doomed; bugger. I could not even find the counter and by the time I reached the front of the enquiry line, I was 20 minute past the checkout time and had to buy a ticket on the next flight. The new flight was about to leave and so I legged it down to the terminal. After waiting 15 minutes, there is an announcement that the plane will be 2.5 hours late in leaving. Double bugger.

I finally made it to Dublin and met Sean at the airport. We jumped on a bus and headed into the city. Apparently Dublin traffic rivals that of London and New York for congestion. Maybe not something to be proud of. I am happy to report that I made it to Sean's place in good time and headed out for a pint. So within an hour of landing I was in a pub drinking a Guinness. Nice.

Friday Kate cooked a lovely dinner for us. She was not feeling well so Sean and I headed out to see Temple Bar and a bit of the night life. We stopped in a bar and had a pint (or 2) and met a nice old guy called Felix who was a retired teacher. Nice to meet the locals. It was a bit cold and the day had been long so we headed home. Another country, another bed.

Saturday we went for a long walk. Taking in the Trinity College, the Guinness Brewery (though the line was too long to go in) and finally the Kilmainham Gaol. We probably spent about 5 hours walking around, plus a tour of the Gaol which was very interesting. Saturday night we went to see Pirates of the Caribbean. Very enjoyable if a little silly at times.

Sunday was more walking with a trip past Sean's office, then off to the Natural History Museum. Unfortunately, all the museums in Dublin are closed until 2:30 on Sundays. What the? Thwarted again. So back to Temple bar for a pint and bangers and mash. The B&M was excellent as was the pint. Again on foot we saw an excellent busker who was more of a stand-up comic on the street rather than a busker. After the show it was time to head back and go out to the airport so as to not miss the flight, again.

Catching a bus out to the airport I made it in plenty of time. Of course, the plane was 40 minutes late leaving and was over an hour late by the time we actually got to Stansted. This time I took a bus instead of the train. It was only 10 pound and a little quicker once it left, but we waited 15 minutes for that.

I had planned to watch the World Cup final back at Clapham with the guys. I finally arrived as the pub was emptying, game having just concluded. I saw none of the match, so cannot make any comment other than to say that Australia should have won against Italy and therefore the World Cup. Ok, so I can dream.

We stayed at the pub till late and had many a pint. A great weekend and big thanks to Sean and Kate for the their hospitality.