Dublin & London

“No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.” – Lin Yutang

Our last full day in Europe before heading home.  We spent the morning in Dublin, Ireland checking out a few more things while we are here.  It was another day where we didn’t set an alarm and just wake up when we woke up.  A quick shower and shave (with my last blade) and we made our way down to the basement where breakfast was being served.  After that, we dragged our suitcases down to the main lobby where we stored out bags for the morning.

Out the door to the bus stop so that we can get to the areas where we want to explore.  Yet again, we didn’t make it to the stop before the bus came around the corner.  After flagging him down and getting on board we rode until we made it to the stop closest to Dublin Castle.

Dublin Castle, was, until 1922, the seat of the United Kingdom government's administration in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland. The Castle served as the seat of English, then later British government of Ireland under the Lordship of Ireland (1171–1541), the Kingdom of Ireland (1541–1800), and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1800–1922).  After the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in December 1921, the complex was ceremonially handed over to the newly formed Provisional Government led by Michael Collins.

We walked around the courtyard and then decided to take a guided tour of the facility.  It was interesting to see some of the hidden treasures of this building.  Only one of the turrets from the castle has survived today and even that one has some instabilities as we were not allowed in it.  We saw a number of parts of the castle including some underground items as well as the State Apartments which are the most important state rooms in the country.  It was a good morning.

Dublin Castle

The only surviving turret (which needs reinforcement - we were not allowed in it)

Underground evidence of another turret.  In the base of this was also evidence of a viking settlement).

The chapel by the castle

Stately Hallway in the Castle/Palace

Thrown where Queen Victoria Sat

Room where all of the Irish Presidents are sworn in.  I stood on the spot where it happens.

Dining hall

The Fortitude gate.  A friend of mine might find this interesting.

From there we walked to Christ Church Cathedral and I took a few pictures of the outside of the building.  It was disappointing to see that they were charging to enter the building.  How can someone charge to enter the church?  I walked through some of the most prestigious cathedrals on the planet (St. Peters & St. Paul’s) on this trip and didn’t have to pay to get into them.  Very discouraging.

Christ Church Cathedral

Side entrance door.  I don't know what it is about these old doors - but I like them.

The whole building

We also walked over to St. Patrick’s Cathedral to find the same thing – an entry fee.  So – I just took a few pictures from the outside.

St. Patrick's (the Saint credited for bringing Christianity to Ireland)

The whole building

Crest on the main gate

From there we hopped back on the bus and went down to Temple Street where we found a little place to have some lunch.  A nice seafood chowder hit the spot & Laureen had a baked potato.  We stopped at a gelato place and then found a cab back to the B&B to collect our luggage and walk out to the stop for an airport bus pickup.  We were not exactly sure about the details, but we figured we could always take a taxi if we waited too long.  About 15 minutes into our wait, the bus showed up.  We hopped on board and made our way to the airport.

It took a long while for our gate number to show up on the board – so we just wandered around a little and then found a place to sit down.  This morning, I felt the start of a cold, and sure enough, my throat was now sore.  As I write this, I have Kleenex stuffed in both nostrils so that I can keep writing and not have to go blow my nose time after time.  I can’t stand being sick and it couldn’t happen at a better time (when I’m about to get on an airplane).  Hopefully tomorrow it will be better for the longer flight home.

The flight from Dublin to Gatwick was uneventful, except for the little drop we experienced while taking off.  It was quite windy when we started down the runway; I’m sure that had something to do with it.

For some reason they made us get out on the runway and take a tram over to the baggage area

Arrived at Gatwick and headed to the hotel (which is connected to the north terminal).  We had a little issue with the room as they sent us to one that already had someone in it.  Apparently we got a bit of an upgrade for that – we now have a view of the airport runways.

Tomorrow we make the longer trip home.  I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and seeing the boys.

Speaking of which, I was sent a little note from Nathanial about how they survived without us which I’ve created a second post for.  You might want to check that out.

Curt & Laureen in Gatwick, England.