They say you can see the green of Ireland from the air. I don't know as our flight was at night and we didn't have window seats. Our ferry from Wales was also at night so our entry into the country was lit by moon and starlight, with the occasional street lights along the dock.
Our one A.M. entry into Dublin was met not with emerald green alone but with every other color sparkling and flashing from the very active nightlife. It had Saturday night energy but it was only Thursday. Welcome to Dublin.
After some driving confusion,( one way streets becoming two way, driving streets turning into pedestrian only, all without warning) we found our flat was in a perfect location. We were walking distance to almost everything we wanted to see. This allowed us to put the car in a covered lot and put more miles on the pedometer. Sorry, I meant kilometers. In the Republic of Ireland we were back in the metric system and monetary system of the European Union. We had to put away our pounds and pence and get Euros right away.
After a few hours sleep we began our morning at St Patrick's cathedral. Although it is a Church of Ireland, they allow all denominations to hold events and even services there.
Among the many treasures there is the stone from the well of St Patrick, where he is said to have baptised the Irish chieftains. They have areas to honor military service and sacrifice as well as those who have been civilian victims of war. The door of reconciliation and it's story have a lesson that is very relevant in today's world.https://www.stpatrickscathedral.ie/the-door-of-reconciliation/
Dublin Castle is now the seat of government. Most of the buildings are for use as offices for officials although there are some parts restored for people to visit. We passed on this one and instead went to the Chester Beatty library to see an amazing collection of books and writings from around the world including some ancient Egyptian papyrus.
Lunchtime took us to the Temple Bar section of town and a traditional lunch of Irish stew and cottage pie at the Quay.http://www.quaysrestaurant.com/
We continued our exploration of the city with a walk to ha penny bridge http://www.bridgesofdublin.ie/bridges/hapenny-bridge/history before heading back home for the night.
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