(I had one more day to capture ... almost 2 months later isn't bad right?)
Sunday morning got started pretty late as Saturday night was a late one. I grabbed a quick breakfast at a bagel shop (bagels aren't as good as NY ... LOL) and then a coffee ... and then it was off to shopping. I spent the morning shuffling to and fro looking for gifts for family members. It was a bit of overload since it's hard to get stuff for people who don't "need" stuff.
Before I had done much actual purchasing, I figured it was time to have some lunch. Now admittedly, I'm not the biggest fish and chips fan, but Leo Burdock's was recommended as one of the oldest and best "chippers" in Dublin. I took that under advisement and decided to give it a try. When I walked in I almost bumped into myself. This store is VERY small ... it's what is commonly referred to in Ireland as a "take away". Just enough space for someone to order and look at the menu, pay, and leave. There were two people ahead of me ... one had just finished ordering about 20 fish and chip combo's ... WHOA! The next person ordered cod and chips ... and that sounded great to me ... they wrapped it up in paper and I was off to sit at the Christchurch Cathedral to eat. It was WAY too much food for one person. A HUGE piece of fish with a deliciously crispy shell doused with just enough malt vinegar to enhance the flavor. The fish was sitting on a bed of fried potatoes ... nach ... chips and I also had the nice helper to kick in a little of the "crispy bits" which are the fried floaties left over from the cooking of the fish.
After lunch it was a bit more shopping -- to actually make some final purchases -- and after that I met Brian at the Intel building to drop off my car, which by then was loaded with plenty of junk.
After the drop off we drove into "town" and decided to have Indian food for dinner. No ... not fry bread ... curries and dahls ... the spicy stuff from Asia. We tried a nice little place called Taste of India. The food was fantasic, and an incredible deal to boot. The proprietor was very accommodating allowing us to eat from the early bird menu even though we traipsed in a few minutes late.
After dinner it was back to the hotel for a night of packing and getting some rest for the LOOOOONG flight home.
I woke up Monday morning ... Brian picked me up ... and we were off for a day of crapping around in the Dublin and Chicago O'Hare airports. Ugh ... long flights and longer lay overs are just not part and parcel for a happy Greg. Luckily I made it home with no ill effects other than a slight case of jet lag.
10.02.2005
Ireland - 10/1 - visit, country drive, pub crawl
Saturday morning got off to a bit of a slow start ... I walked over to Brian's hotel - the Conrad Dublin - for a free breakfast (Brian is the wheeler and dealer and found a way to get free brekkie -- very nice -- and thanks for sharing!). It was a buffet style with all of the full Irish breakfast trimmings as well as yogurt, juice, cheese, breads, pastries ... too much food ... but good fuel for the rest of the day. While having breakfast I got a text message (which is like THE way to contact folks in Ireland) that one of our cohorts was coming into town with his little boy.
With impeccable timing, Andrew and his little boy Alex arrived at the hotel just as we finished breakfast. Little Alex is a handsome devil although I'm not sure where he gets his dashing good looks (sorry Andrew!). We all decided to walk over to a farmer's market that gathers in the Temple Bar area of Dublin ... and on the way we traveled through the gorgeous St. Stephen's Green. There wasn't much to the market, but what was there was great ... there was a bakery, a cheese peddler, a few butchers, some wines ... just a fun little experience. From there we walked over to Christ Church - a beautiful old cathedral in the middle of Dublin. After this it was back to my hotel and a lovely drive south of Dublin, into the country side of Ireland, on my way to Kilkenny.
Getting out of Dublin is always a chore ... however once I was out of the city center ... it was on the road to Kilkenny. The drive was very scenic and passed right through the heart of at least 2 towns on the way to Kilkenny. Brian joined me on this adventure into the countryside and actually did an excellent job as the navigator (printed/copied tons of maps, etc) where as if it was just me heading out ... I probably would have just started driving ... and would probably still be driving. HA HA! I was told that THE place to eat in town was called Langton's ... so the first order of business was to find lunch/dinner.
Kilkenny City is not a very large place with only really one or two main streets running through it ... however those streets are NARROW and WINDING ... so it's always an adventure. On the way through town I saw Langton's and made a mental note how to get back. About 30 minutes later ... after a narrow close call running a red light ... a U-turn through a petrol station ... and a 5 minute wait for a space in the local car park ... I was at the restaurant with Brian, ready to chow down. I ordered the roasted lamb with a leek soup starter ... very good eats. With the fuel in the belly, it was time to see Kilkenny ...
One of the main attractions to this city is the castle that sits up on one of the hills. It's a funny thing about traveling in Ireland ... you should really plan to do things early ... because by the time we ate lunch ... walked down the wrong street ... then found the right street ... the castle was closed! Ugh ... so it was onto the main shopping street. While Brian was finding deals I was scouting some of the cathedrals ... the first one I came to was St. Mary's (Catholic) and it had amazing stained glass inside and tall spires on the outside. After collecting Brian ... I walked over to another cathedral, St. Canice's (belonging to the Church of Ireland), this one built in the 1200's!! It was time to say farewell to Kilkenny and journey back into Dublin.
On the way back into town I called Andrew to see if he was up to having visitors or even heading into town for a little night out with the boys. After getting completely lost on the way to his house ... I called Andrew and he literally guided me in turn-by-turn ... like a low-tech GPS system if you will. I got to meet Andrew's beautiful wife Liz and had a small tour of their new house ... Alex was sleeping ... so we didn't disturb him by heading upstairs. We visited for a bit ... and listened to Andrew and Liz's fantastic stereo ... then decided to drive into town.
Once the car was parked, it was onto the pubs. The first one we stopped into was called Neary's ... and Andrew filled me in on some little known facts that back in the "day" women were not able to sit in the same area as men at the pub ... and they also couldn't drink a full pint, instead having to drink out of a smaller glass. After a drink it was on to the next pub (can't remember the name right now!!) ... which was PACKED. We chose to go to the upstairs portion of the pub ... and there we encountered some interesting folks ... a few groups of ladies were eyeing our table ... and we all were assuming it was due to the 3 handsome devils that were sitting there. HA! It was fun to have a few drinks ... then the pub closed, so on to the next one. For me it was back to Sheehan's, the first pub I visited ... and another drink, and more people staring ... was I starting to get a complex?! Once again, we were hanging out until the pub closed ... then ... one more pub. The haute and uber-trendy Clarendon's. This reminded me of a Scottsdale-type pub where you had to look pretty and drink pretty beverages to be "cool". Needless to say ... I had a Bulmer's ... then stumbled back out onto the street with Andrew and Brian ... in search of some food to soak all this liquid up. We found a place that did kebab's and shawarma ... just what you need after a pub crawl ... garlicky chicken and pita ... with a few dozen of your closest inebriated friends. I wound up chatting with a few lads from England, and a few gals from Canada at this eatery ... and then it was off to bed after a VERY long day.
With impeccable timing, Andrew and his little boy Alex arrived at the hotel just as we finished breakfast. Little Alex is a handsome devil although I'm not sure where he gets his dashing good looks (sorry Andrew!). We all decided to walk over to a farmer's market that gathers in the Temple Bar area of Dublin ... and on the way we traveled through the gorgeous St. Stephen's Green. There wasn't much to the market, but what was there was great ... there was a bakery, a cheese peddler, a few butchers, some wines ... just a fun little experience. From there we walked over to Christ Church - a beautiful old cathedral in the middle of Dublin. After this it was back to my hotel and a lovely drive south of Dublin, into the country side of Ireland, on my way to Kilkenny.
Getting out of Dublin is always a chore ... however once I was out of the city center ... it was on the road to Kilkenny. The drive was very scenic and passed right through the heart of at least 2 towns on the way to Kilkenny. Brian joined me on this adventure into the countryside and actually did an excellent job as the navigator (printed/copied tons of maps, etc) where as if it was just me heading out ... I probably would have just started driving ... and would probably still be driving. HA HA! I was told that THE place to eat in town was called Langton's ... so the first order of business was to find lunch/dinner.
Kilkenny City is not a very large place with only really one or two main streets running through it ... however those streets are NARROW and WINDING ... so it's always an adventure. On the way through town I saw Langton's and made a mental note how to get back. About 30 minutes later ... after a narrow close call running a red light ... a U-turn through a petrol station ... and a 5 minute wait for a space in the local car park ... I was at the restaurant with Brian, ready to chow down. I ordered the roasted lamb with a leek soup starter ... very good eats. With the fuel in the belly, it was time to see Kilkenny ...
One of the main attractions to this city is the castle that sits up on one of the hills. It's a funny thing about traveling in Ireland ... you should really plan to do things early ... because by the time we ate lunch ... walked down the wrong street ... then found the right street ... the castle was closed! Ugh ... so it was onto the main shopping street. While Brian was finding deals I was scouting some of the cathedrals ... the first one I came to was St. Mary's (Catholic) and it had amazing stained glass inside and tall spires on the outside. After collecting Brian ... I walked over to another cathedral, St. Canice's (belonging to the Church of Ireland), this one built in the 1200's!! It was time to say farewell to Kilkenny and journey back into Dublin.
On the way back into town I called Andrew to see if he was up to having visitors or even heading into town for a little night out with the boys. After getting completely lost on the way to his house ... I called Andrew and he literally guided me in turn-by-turn ... like a low-tech GPS system if you will. I got to meet Andrew's beautiful wife Liz and had a small tour of their new house ... Alex was sleeping ... so we didn't disturb him by heading upstairs. We visited for a bit ... and listened to Andrew and Liz's fantastic stereo ... then decided to drive into town.
Once the car was parked, it was onto the pubs. The first one we stopped into was called Neary's ... and Andrew filled me in on some little known facts that back in the "day" women were not able to sit in the same area as men at the pub ... and they also couldn't drink a full pint, instead having to drink out of a smaller glass. After a drink it was on to the next pub (can't remember the name right now!!) ... which was PACKED. We chose to go to the upstairs portion of the pub ... and there we encountered some interesting folks ... a few groups of ladies were eyeing our table ... and we all were assuming it was due to the 3 handsome devils that were sitting there. HA! It was fun to have a few drinks ... then the pub closed, so on to the next one. For me it was back to Sheehan's, the first pub I visited ... and another drink, and more people staring ... was I starting to get a complex?! Once again, we were hanging out until the pub closed ... then ... one more pub. The haute and uber-trendy Clarendon's. This reminded me of a Scottsdale-type pub where you had to look pretty and drink pretty beverages to be "cool". Needless to say ... I had a Bulmer's ... then stumbled back out onto the street with Andrew and Brian ... in search of some food to soak all this liquid up. We found a place that did kebab's and shawarma ... just what you need after a pub crawl ... garlicky chicken and pita ... with a few dozen of your closest inebriated friends. I wound up chatting with a few lads from England, and a few gals from Canada at this eatery ... and then it was off to bed after a VERY long day.
10.01.2005
Ireland - 9/30 - late start and a nice visit
Since I had been working so late this whole week in Ireland ... there was an understanding that Friday would be a day to "rest up" ... and that means you can come in a bit late. Since my night ended so "early" I didn't make it into the office until around 11am ... and even that was pushing it as my head was pounding. I did a little bit of work and then it was off to lunch around 12:30.
As a celebration for completing the project Deirdre - the manager of my counterparts in Ireland - took the group (including Brian, Caoimhe, Karen, and me) out to lunch at a lovely restaurant in Leixlip (can't remember the name!). They were serving all kinds of meat ... and I chose to sample the Salmon, which was an outstanding choice ... very fresh. The meal included 2 types of potatoes (mashed and roasted) as well as stir-fried veggies ... it was a feast for a hang-over to be sure. As a gesture of thanks, the group that I worked with in Ireland purchased 2 books for both Brian and myself as well as thank you cards. This was a very thoughtful way to say thanks, and to give me a little piece of Ireland to take home.
After lunch it was back to the office to get in a few hours of work ... catching up on email ... talking to the family back home ... planning the weekend's activities ... all the important stuffs.
When the work day was done, I was invited to visit with the only person that was missing from our original "team of 4" from Oregon ... Michael. He provided directions to get from Intel to his house ... and of course ... it being Ireland ... there really wasn't any street names ... just a lot of turn here, then turn at this town, etc. Needless to say ... it only took me 2 U-turns and 30 minutes to find his house. It was wonderful to see Michael and his family again ... they were just blessed with an addition to the family (about 3 months old). After a few hours of visiting ... it was decision time.
Do I go "out" ... or go back to the hotel and get some sleep. Stupid question ... when is the next time I'll be in Dublin on a Friday night? I dropped the car off at the hotel and proceeded to walk to the pub where there was another going away party for another person that works at Intel (don't ask me ... seems like a good place to work?!). The pub was called O'Reilly's and is located underneath an elevated train station in Dublin. The place was very busy, and VERY loud ... and apparently for me ... very difficult to find. I wandered around Dublin looking for this pub for about 30 minutes more than I should have ... but eventually found it ... and then it took me two times thru the place (no, it's not that big) to find my party. It was a low key evening with a few pints, some great conversation, and a relatively early knock off time of midnight. I was in bed by 1:00am for some much needed rest.
As a celebration for completing the project Deirdre - the manager of my counterparts in Ireland - took the group (including Brian, Caoimhe, Karen, and me) out to lunch at a lovely restaurant in Leixlip (can't remember the name!). They were serving all kinds of meat ... and I chose to sample the Salmon, which was an outstanding choice ... very fresh. The meal included 2 types of potatoes (mashed and roasted) as well as stir-fried veggies ... it was a feast for a hang-over to be sure. As a gesture of thanks, the group that I worked with in Ireland purchased 2 books for both Brian and myself as well as thank you cards. This was a very thoughtful way to say thanks, and to give me a little piece of Ireland to take home.
After lunch it was back to the office to get in a few hours of work ... catching up on email ... talking to the family back home ... planning the weekend's activities ... all the important stuffs.
When the work day was done, I was invited to visit with the only person that was missing from our original "team of 4" from Oregon ... Michael. He provided directions to get from Intel to his house ... and of course ... it being Ireland ... there really wasn't any street names ... just a lot of turn here, then turn at this town, etc. Needless to say ... it only took me 2 U-turns and 30 minutes to find his house. It was wonderful to see Michael and his family again ... they were just blessed with an addition to the family (about 3 months old). After a few hours of visiting ... it was decision time.
Do I go "out" ... or go back to the hotel and get some sleep. Stupid question ... when is the next time I'll be in Dublin on a Friday night? I dropped the car off at the hotel and proceeded to walk to the pub where there was another going away party for another person that works at Intel (don't ask me ... seems like a good place to work?!). The pub was called O'Reilly's and is located underneath an elevated train station in Dublin. The place was very busy, and VERY loud ... and apparently for me ... very difficult to find. I wandered around Dublin looking for this pub for about 30 minutes more than I should have ... but eventually found it ... and then it took me two times thru the place (no, it's not that big) to find my party. It was a low key evening with a few pints, some great conversation, and a relatively early knock off time of midnight. I was in bed by 1:00am for some much needed rest.
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