Irish Finale (Aug. 17, 2009) Finally!

Well I started this telling of our August 2009, 7 day London/Dublin trip a respectable couple of weeks after it happened and now 9 months later I am tying up its loose ends.  Thank you, if you have been reading along (at all) and excuse me for this indulgence of re-living a delightful, maybe all too jam packed family journey.  Here goes....

"Up and at'em people" this was our last day.  And what was the breakfast of champions that got us ready to face the city-filled day?  Voila....

The wonderfully provided FULL IRISH BREAKFAST by the B&B. 

Our B&B was very basic, but close to one of Dublin's main thoroughfares, O'Connell St., and that along with it's helpful staff and generous (heart stopping) breakfasts included, made it a plus for our stay.  I liked eavesdropping and hearing the mostly non-Irish accents of the customers surrounding us (Italian, German, Czech, and yes, also American) in the mornings, typically reviewing the plans of the day and looking much like us...tourists.  Lou (mother-in-law, MIL)generally chatted along with one of the other lodgers each morning, and after breakfast would have a tale to tell of who she'd just met and I would marvel at her powers of conversation and how easily people would divulge so much in just meeting her. 

On our last day I just wanted us to take things as they came.  Did I have an agenda?....well, of course!....but I hoped that we would tromp along and happen upon a place, some music wafting from within a family friendly pub, or find a charming spot to linger.  But by golly, I know I am being repetitious, a family of six, ages 2-62, that is a bit travel weary, does not a spontaneous happy group make.  I laid out some suggestions for our day and not counting Sophia (2yo), 4 blank faces stared back at me, saying "whatever".  AHHHHH! The dreaded "whatever" of vacation travel is on equal terms with "Are we there yet?" and "How long is this going to be?". 

First order of the day: SHOPPING.  Lou and the girls perked up and we hit a popular touristy souvenir shop that seems to be on almost every other corner of Dublin: Carrolls. We happily, and easily found Irish trinkets with the right amount of local flavor and fun for family back home and once done we were ready to walk across the River Liffey on Ha'Penny bridge to check out some more shopping on Grafton street.

I thoroughly enjoyed walking through Temple Bar again, along old cobblestone roads and pedestrian walkways to Grafton street (again, no buses for us). 

Once we arrived I realized that our group was hungry AGAIN.  The shops and eateries around us were a bit out of our budget.  As I pondered where to direct us next, I heard the beautiful strains of the violin being played nearby and lead my family to its source.  A young violinist, and a few other musicians were playing and drawing a small crowd.  I paused to enjoy how the dreamy music fit my delight in being in Dublin and having this lovely day. 
Then a tap on my shoulder....
SARA: "What are we doing now?" 
ME: "Well, we are looking at this cool shopping area and listening to this neat music..dontcha think?" 
SARA:" I guess, but where are we going to eat?"
ME: "Well, we will find a place. Don't you want to look around here some?" 
SARA: " Can we go eat first?" 
So guess what we did?

We had an even lovelier walk BACK to the Temple Bar area to Gallagher's Boxty House (recommended by both our B&B manager and Rick Steves)...(oh, how I wanted to stop every few moments and peek into the interesting and whimsical local shops....but people were hungry!). 

After this longish walk, I was even hungry and the restaurant was very inviting with its timbered pub-like interior and long tables and benches. 

We ordered the obligatory Boxty, a savory potato pancake that is folded, taco-like around the filling of your choice (mostly meaty) with a gravy/sauce accompaniment,

ummm...this was so much tastier than it looks, I promise

and David and I each enjoyed an Irish pint of Murphys. 

Uh, and Lou enjoyed two (hehe just kidding LouLou).

Anna caught in the act of savoring her Irish soda bread....yums.

I know, we are awful parents.

The lunch was a triumph of Irish cuisine again, and the family was ready to join in a historical walking tour that covered Dublin's world renowned Trinity College down to Dublin Castle.

Trinity College

Once the group was assembled outside the main college entrance with our professor-ly Irish tour guide, we set off.....ah, and the rest is a blur.

Sophia and I walking into Dublin Castle

I remember a pretty day, the guide's wonderful Irish accent telling of times of struggle/oppression for the hardy Irish, mass immigration to the hope of America, and rebuilding. 

I love history people, but watching a 2 year old, and plain ol' tiredness set in and the man might as well been Charlie Brown's teacher..wha,wha, wha, wa, wha, wha.  And the girls were so good, but I am sure if I would mention "historical walking tour" to them now, they would start glazing over. 

So this was the state of us after the 2 hour tour as we hoofed it back to the bed and breakfast.  And then another dreaded decision....where to eat?...da, dum!   I remained silent.  I had trooped this group up, down and all around and I guess I just acted out by keeping shut.  The response....10 sad minutes of a suggestion and general moodiness and silence.  I did not want to pull out the guide book again, and I knew Lou and her still sore ankle would not want to deal with walking 20 minutes out of our way to a new eating spot and then possibly having to get on another dreaded bus (she dreaded them, not us). 

So guess where the family of 6, long in the tooth, decision weary American tourists decide to eat?.....Mickey D's naturally.  But oddly, our family, who probably eats at Mc Donald's back in the states about once a year was comforted by the familiar as we sat on the second level section of Mc Donald's overlooking O'Connell St.   

Then Lou, who I would have bet was mentally noting to herself "I will never travel with David and Jenny, AGAIN", offered a somewhat upbeat perspective, "You know, when we got to London, all I could think was it was so crowded, loud and busy....but after being here in Dublin, I realize that the Tube was actually really helpful, and London was surprisingly clean.  And in Ireland I am not as impressed with Dublin as I would hope to be, with the dirty streets and smell of people smoking everywhere, but the Irish countryside is gorgeous, the people are so friendly that I would come back." 

I was thankful that she shared something positive that caused us all to reflect a bit and give thanks.  We had safely, healthfully (mostly), sanely (yeah, I will stand by that), and with all our original luggage (minus some toilettries) traveled as a family of 6 from Dallas, London, Ireland and were happily ready to head back home.

Chillin' at the B&B

We tucked in early-ish, packed and got ready for our early and lengthy 2 connecting flights back home.  Honestly, we came home grouchy and ready for separate activities of home, work and school (remember this was last Aug. 2009)....but just the other day two things occurred...

1. Anna was staring out the window of the truck on the way home (at our pitifully dry, yellowed Texas landscape) and piped up that "I would love to go back to Ireland and just tour all the countryside again."  ME, "Sounds great, I hope we all get to do that again"

2. Lou, talking about hopes to travel again said, "You know, if I was able to travel overseas again, I think y'all's style of traveling is most like mine.  We should all do it again."  All I have to say to that is thank you Lou, and Wow. 

Peace out

AHHH, Ireland (August 16, 2009)

OUR DAY IN PICTURES....and yes, a few quips...

Ready to head out.  It was quite chilly/cold.  Perfect Irish weather. Here you can see down O'Connell Street.
And yes we eventually got a jacket on Sophia.

Our drive through Dun Laoghaire (pronounced "done leary").

Our car....hardy har har.  No way, but this was a darling Mini Cooper that provided a photo op.

AHHHH.....Powerscourt Estate just south of Dublin ('bout 30 minutes) and gorgeous.

"David, can you get a close shot of us and the fountain? " I asked.

Okay....not close, but the awesome Sugarloaf Mtn. is trying to get in the shot too.

"No, David, I don't want to be in the pictures." 
Our sweet flowers in this beautiful garden

Sara ponders Powerscourt...ahhh.

Anna is growing so fast.

Bam ram ewe!  (she was eye ballin' me). 
On our way to our next stop, I made David pull over many times.

My camera just couldn't get enough.

The Glendalough Ruins in Wicklow County Ireland.
It was all very "Oooh Ah" worthy...the buildings, this history and the wild greenness all around.

Lou in the chapel ruins.
The long stones on the ground are ancient tomb markers.

The Wicklow Heather Restaurant. Our delicious unplanned stop. 
In the town, just by the ruins...we stopped at the first restaurant we saw and it was the best of our entire trip!

Cozy wood interior, with lovely upolstered high back chairs.

My Irish Stew....ummm, all mine.
The sippee....not mine....Mommy had the delectable champagne that is nearly finished in this shot.
Everyone's meal was wonderful.

DAVID...FULL STOP! 

Notice the stream gliding down the hillside....this sound, with the gentle chill breeze,
and the sloping valley...we love you Ireland

AHHHHH!

Our first Irish day (August 15, 2009)

We awoke Saturday ready but a little forlorn about leaving London (not Lou though). We had enough time to have a snacky breakfast of leftover items that we couldn't stuff in our one allowed Ryanair carry on pack. I was the official packer for all of us, especially with the strict, strict, Ryanair limits, but Lou had gotten up super early and packed all her goodies away before we were up.

Mark ("London's best cabbie" ....so he told me) proved to be just that and more. The almost hour ride was filled with lively talk about London, his beloved East Hammersmith neighborhood (future home of 2012 Olympics), favorite TV shows, politics and favorite vacations spots (who knew Las Vegas, and Florida were so popular with the cabbie set?). Once we arrived at the airport I noticed that the cab total read 120GBP (yikes) and as I handed him the cash, he cheerily counted it to 100 pounds and handed me back the rest saying he would be as good as his word, and that he was glad to drive a nice family to the airport and have a good chat. What a dear. If we were not in a hurry (my constant travel state of mind...my poor, poor, family) I would have been so glad to have taken his picture with our crew.

Then a glitch. We actually had plenty of time and as we were orderly going through security I was called back (double yikes!) in an assertive tone. "Is this your bag ma'am?" Me: "um, uh, well it is my family's bag but my mother-in-law packed it." (yeah, I am such a fink) Then he showed me the industrial size shampoo and the way too large specialty lotion bottle packed in her carry-on and Lou said, "Oh, no, I wanted that to go in my checked bag" And in no uncertain terms the man let her know that those items were no longer hers and asked her a few more questions and briskly sent her on her way.  "Oh, no" thought I. Lou was very glad to be traveling, but these small hassles were mounting and I could sense they were starting to snowball in her mind. 

Ah, Ryanair what should I say about thee. Well, it is most definitely the least expensive for us. But the luggage restrictions were in the extreme and outside of the shampoo debacle, we made the cut! I even paid extra for our priority seating and noticed that we were not at the front of the line, but of a mob that pressed us forcefully onto the stuffed small plane. Then there was some kind of ticket mishap (thankfully not any of us) but it had us waiting on the plane, parked for almost 2 hours.

So when the mood of our group should have been refreshed by our arrival to the coolness of the Emerald Isle, we were all a bit quiet and edgy.  What a shame.  At the airport, I bought our bus passes for our ride into Dublin and for our transportation for the next two days.  But after our ride into Dublin and problems "ala me" not exactly knowing the Bed and Breakfast's location...well, Lou stated again that she did not want to take another bus. 

We stayed at the The Charles Stewart Guesthouse (budget B & B), referred by our old friend Rick Steves. 

It was a good stay for the price plus location.  But being in such a historic and near central area it was compact, plain but clean, creaky but quaint, and a bit musty.  David, the girls, and I expected this and I was actually delighted (cleanliness goes far with me) but again Lou, was troubled by her room, on a separate floor from ours (it could not be changed but Anna was her roomie) and how decidedly different the room was from the luxury we had in London.  Ack! We needed some cheering and what we got was a dose of Irish charm in the being of our grandfatherly hotel manager, William.

Even for us twangy Texans, we craned our necks, and squinted in the effort of trying to make out his quick and lyrical welcome and information about our amenities.  He chuckled after we asked him kindly to repeat the times for the (excellent) price included FULL IRISH BREAKFAST.  I then wondered aloud if there were alarm clocks in the rooms...

William: "No there aren't dear, but what time would you be needin' the wake up call?"

Me: "Oh, there are phones in the room?"

William: "No, by way of wake up I think a quick toss of water should do the trick."

Me: "Er?"

William: "See there's where you should be sayin' that 'it's my husband needs the wake up.'"

Oh, you silly, silly William.  We chuckled and settled on a time and I knew I was in love with the Irish lilt.  Lou was slightly charmed too, but I was hoping our dinner stop and scheduled entertainment would set us to rights.

You silly, silly Jenny.  The evening was chill and breezy.  August and jacket weather....it boggles a Texan's heat scorched brain.  We moved along with the quick moving crowds on our way down busy O'Connell street's nice wide side walks across the River Liffey to the Temple Bar area.  But here is my silliness.  It was a Saturday evening! If we thought the walk to our eating spot was crowded well Temple Bar (not a building but a street and night scene area) was swollen with people chumming about, drinking, slowly pub crawling....and here were the Griswolds, eh, us, stroller and all trying to snake our way through the crowds to our stop, Gallagher's Boxty House (Boxty being a Irish specific dish).  Once we found the place(happiness!) they told us we could be seated in about two hours (despair!)  I whispered a prayer that inspiration would strike...and the Lord is so good. 

What the Lord sent David's way (as I was head in guidebook trying to find another option)was a pretty college age girl, dressed to get attention, handing out coupons to any that needed them to the nearby Luigi Malone's restaurant.  He pointed to our girls next to him and asked if it was family friendly and she cheerily announced "Of, course!" and walked us the half block to the door. 

Now for the Irish warmth, and friendliness. It abounds.  Ireland is beautiful, tortured and lush geographically with a hard history so that you would think that people that inhabit this territory could be hard bitten and, let's face it, cranky.  But what we encountered at each turn was open friendliness, willingness to help and listen, some kidding around, and smiles.  What a welcome.  So as we walked in the somewhat posh looking Luigi Malone's and the young woman called to the host to help us, I was hopeful.  I explained to him that yes, we were a larger party of 6, and yes, it was near 7pm and we hoped to be done eating and out by 8pm for a show....could they seat us?  (all this asked as I peered over his shoulder and saw the full dining area behind him).  The young man smiled, unfazed by the request, and looked over at the reservations and said, "That'll be perfect for us, as we have a table waiting for a large family at eight.  It'll be a bit of a rush dinner, is that alright?" "Yes!", David, Lou and I seem to answer at the same time. 

And dinner....well I can hardly remember who had what.  What I distinctly remember is just the sense of relief of the friendly timing of our meal, and thankfulness to the Lord for its provision.  We all remarked at how the demeanor of the Irish people we had encountered thus far was good for travel beaten spirits.  They were good to their word and we were in and out in great time and off to find our entertainment.

Now in Dublin there are plenty of nighttime possibilities for the over 21 set...but with our wee ones...well besides the movies, eh, cinema...there wasn't much else.  Through the always helpful Trip Advisor, I had found out about the less racy Irish House Party at the Lansdowne Hotel and Bar. 

There are a number of venues of Irish music, dancing and comic banter, but typically ages are restricted. This is what we needed to cap our night.  The chatty and audience involving entertainers taught us a few things about Irish music, culture and history.  Even the girls were grinning and Sophia caused the musicians to chuckle as she would giggle and clap loudly, tickled by the uplifting music.   

It was late when the evening ended, and I wished I could say that the last thoughts of the night were happy ones....but we got quite turned around about directions and a bit lost on our walk back and forced Lou on a bus to the B & B.  All I could do was cover us with prayers and give all our hopes for a better tomorrow to the Lord.  He is so very very capable and I was oh, so tired.    

On St. Patrick's Day

The white patches are sheep, lounging happily in their Irish countryside

Dear Ireland,

I heard so much about you before I ever met you.  I read so much about your gorgeous greenness, your rolling fields, wonderful landscapes, and friendly people and it was all true.  Pictures don't do you justice...you are more beautiful in person.  But I barely got to spend the time with you that I wanted.  I miss you. And I will, Lord willing, see you another time.

Knowing we will meet again, Jenny

Happy St. Patricks day to all!  I was excited about posting on the second half of our August '09 trip, as our last 3 days were spent in Ireland....but I just couldn't do it.  You see I have the Yicks.  What do I call the "yicks"?  It is a blending of a cold virus, gray weather outside, dampness all around, and having a usually playful little girl, now sick and feverish and trying to make her feel better when I just want to nap. 

She is now napping, my head is a little clearer and I thought I would post some lovely images I tried to capture of Ireland and I will post on our trip later.

Powerscourt Estate County Wicklow, Ireland

Hills and horses of Ireland

How green

Glendalough Ruins, Ireland

Glendalough tombstones

Blessed Femina :

Has a lovely entry today about the heart of St. Patrick himself.