SATURDAY, DAY 7
The last time we were in Dublin we didn't get a chance to explore the nearby towns on the
DART. It's a regional train that goes up and down the coastline around Dublin. Because we didn't have any weekend plans, it seemed like a good idea to do some exploring a little less close to home. I put Tim in charge and away we went. Our first stop was at the cafe right next door to our apartment,
Two Pups. As many of you know, I love to eat. In fact, one could argue that food is an influencing factor in most of the decisions I make on a daily basis. Therefore, it is with some degree of authority that I can say this was one of the best breakfasts of my life. The picture below does not do the dish justice. **Skip this part if a prolonged description of avocado toast doesn't interest you.** What you're looking at is a thick slice of toasted multi-grain bread slathered with peanut butter and topped with half an avocado and two fried eggs. This heavenly concoction is then garnished with shaved red onion, sliced jalapeno peppers, cilantro, and crushed peanuts. It was like a Thai peanut noodle dish transformed itself into breakfast. It was shamefully good.
After breakfast, we made our way to the DART via bus. Here are a few pictures of the 77a bus stop across the street from St. Patrick's Cathedral.
Another aside: As with the last time we visited, every manner of Irish person has informed us that the weather is not usually this nice. But, in my experience this is the only kind of Irish weather to be had. I swore I wouldn't get burned this time, but it's really unavoidable with the never ending sunshine and temps in the low to mid 70s.
As soon as you reach the train platform, the views are breathtaking. Because it was a clear day, we could easily view towns up and down the coastline. For more ambitious explorers, there are lots of hikes and trails that connect each of towns.
This bug hotel was affixed to the side of the DART stop--isn't it adorable?!
Our first stop was in Blackrock where we stopped at the market for a look around. The market is sort of like an indoor shanty town. There are tons of little booths of varying sizes and constructions that have been cobbled together. We joked that we wished we had five stomachs--the food booths, most of which only sat one or two people, were kicking out the most tantalizing smells and arrays of food. I only snapped a few photos because it seemed rude to take photos of people while they're eating. The other thing I loved about the market were all the vibrant colors and textures. We were all smitten, especially when we found the rolled ice cream.
We decided that we should try rolled ice cream and chose to split one dish. Around Ireland (and probably the rest of Europe) touch payment has become really popular--our new credit card chips are already old here. Everywhere we go, we slow things down because they need to bring us a slip to sign. In the rolled ice cream booth, they never get cards like ours, so Tim had to go behind the counter to sign--this provided a photo opportunity. Notice that he's even wearing the guy's hat.
The woman scrutinizing the process walked up to the booth while ice cream dude was making our meringue and strawberry rolled ice cream. She wanted ice cream with no nuts, no contamination. Given the process of making this stuff and the general set up, this seemed unlikely.
The final product was delicious and we demolished it.
While I've seen a few paintings of cats, I haven't seen one in the fur yet!
After the market, we walked around a bit. Before we left home, I remember reading about Carnegie libraries in Ireland (in addition to the U.S. and England). I was surprised to find one in Blackrock, and it's a beauty.
After Blackrock, we hopped back on the DART and headed down to Greystones. Everything was bustling--the DART was packed, the stop was packed, you could barely get to the sidewalk once we reached our stop. And, the sun was beating down on us. We sought refuge in a gorgeous, and miraculously unoccupied, bar called Mrs. Robinson. There we found giant gin and tonics and a friendly barkeeper to chat with. Below: Tim chatting about the Green Bay Packers and Peyton focusing on his cocktail.
Once refreshed, we headed out to the beach for a walk. There wasn't much sand; instead the beach was comprised of small, slippery pebbles. This made for difficult walking, but the views were breathtaking.
Exhausted, we grabbed a bite to eat and started plotting our trip home. We had some time to kill after dinner and before our train arrived, so we walked around town a bit more. Peyton found his first 99 Flake of the trip and then got himself locked in a bathroom in the grocery store. This is the theme of our 2018 trip to Ireland.
SUNDAY, DAY 8
While Peyton and Tim made plans to go to the Guinness Storehouse for a fancy tasting, I decided to take Elle up on her invitation to hang out with her family in Howth and to take a trip to
Ireland's Eye. Our trip on Saturday took us south of Dublin, but Howth is to the north. So, now I've been fortunate to see the coastline both north and south of the city. When my train pulled into the DART station I saw Elle, Dermot, and the girls (Elsa and Jane) waiting for me. I never get tired of seeing their faces!
Our first stop was the Howth market. Dermot and Elsa headed to the combo churro and crepe booth while Jane made an immediate beeline for this impressive display of cupcakes. Difficult decisions had to be made.
She's a lot more excited than she looks in this photo. Jane is known for her good appetite--I would estimate that this cupcake lasted approximately 2 minutes before it was entirely consumed. Jane then happily moved onto churros and her sister's crepe. Jane and I share the same food instincts.
We then found a bit of information regarding hikes in the area and ferries to Ireland's Eye. I saw this advertisement for Bloomsday and giggled at the "magnificent breakfast."
I wasn't really paying attention at the tourism booth where we found info about the ferries. But, before I knew it, we were in a boat and heading out to Ireland's Eye. This was the first trip to the island for all of us--I'm not sure what Elle was expecting, but I imagined the island to be sort of touristy. And, that maybe there would be a dock. I was wrong on both accounts.
As we approached the island and the boat began to slow, I had a sense that we would be docking soon. I started craning my neck around looking for where we might be getting off. The closer we got to the island, the more apparent it became that we would be scrambling up the rocks to get to the island. The guys navigating the boat had a large hook attached to a long pole and they used it to grab onto the rocks near the island. Then, they basically pulled the boat flush with the island. It was then that I saw some rough steps had been cut into the stone, but they were wet, barnacled, uneven, and steep. In other words, I worried about our ability to get off the boat. So, we all took deep breaths and just went for it. I wondered aloud how many people bit the dust and fell into the water every year.
Once we made it to the island though, we were assaulted by the cries of about five million seagulls--each of them with a nest full of adorable, albeit squawking, baby seagulls. Gullettes? Sea babies? In addition to the squawking was the swooping. Mouths agape and in full-on chomp mode, we had gulls aiming for our heads. So, to recap, a harrowing ferry disembarkment and attacking gulls greeted us at Ireland's Eye. But, after that things improved.
Eleanor was less than thrilled about the girls walking close to the edge of the cliffs on the side of the island.
We walked around the island and finally found a beach the girls could play on. I skipped stones with Elsa and Jane hunted around for the makings of a sand castle. For a long while, we basically had the beach to ourselves. Well, us and the seagulls.
Along the way, Elle found a good stick for beating the gulls off the children. Later on that pole served as the centerpiece of a good looking sand fortress.
After a long sit on the beach, we decided that we had better find food and we began the walk back to the place where we figured the boat might show up again. Our pick up spot was near an old and abandoned garrison of some sort.
Miraculously, we all made it back on the boat and to shore unscathed by either bird or boat. We found lunch in one of the MANY fish and chip shops along the shore. The place we stopped in also sold fresh seafood. While we were waiting for our food, I convinced one of the workers to let me taste fresh samphire. It's delicious and tastes like green and ocean.
After lunch, we drove to the top of Howth and took a walk along the cliffs. The scenery was breathtaking. We didn't have a great plan for how the hike would unfold and ended up walking a good bit further than we intended, but it really was an incredible afternoon with some of my most favorite people.
I would guess that between the two days I probably walked somewhere around eleven or twelve miles. I'm going to need to up my exercise game when I get home to keep up this pace. Derm and Elle gave me a lift home and I rewarded myself with my favorite pear cider. Whew!
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