Waking for the last time in Belfast we had to quickly grab breakfast, pack, and get a taxi before racing to the Central Train Terminal to catch a train to Dublin. We arrived at the station with few minutes to spare and after purchasing our tickets, we joined the queue and were soon on the rails. Reflecting on our too brief visit to Northern Ireland, we agreed the scenery was as spectacular as anywhere else in the country we had seen and the people as helpful and friendly as anyone could hope for. We found the dialect in the North was at times as difficult to understand as the dialects in the Scottish Highlands we also found everywhere we went the people were filled with great pride in their country and possessed a boundless optimism for their country's future. After traveling through the rolling countryside in counties Down and Armagh, we were back in the Republic of Ireland. We rejoined the coastline as we made our way to Dublin's Connelly Station. Kate and I have fond memories of traveling to and from this grand old train station and today is no different. We then decided to walk the several blocks to our hotel instead of transferring onto another train and it's next stop. We arrived too early at the hotel to check in so we dropped our bags and immediately were back on the street.
Making our way from the hotel, we stopped next door at the Dublin Fire Brigade's Central Station. One of the firefighters stole a few minutes from his duties to give us a tour of his station, which included a look at their fire pumper, ladder and rescue vehicle. We discussed our two departments and found many more similarities between them than differences. Not wanting to take too much of the firefighters' time, we made our leave and headed toward Temple Bar. Temple Bar is a located block south of the River Liffey and is the bohemian art/music/tourist district and as such many differing people, from quiet upper and middle class to the more eccentric, congregate there. We strolled past the many restaurants, shops and pubs in and around the district before settling on Bad Ass Cafe for lunch. The Cafe prides itself on being the place a not yet famous Sinead O'Conner waitressed before gaining fame and notoriety. We had a filling lunch before journeying beyond Temple Bar to the city. We made our way toward Dublin Castle, then Grafton Street, before arriving at Dublin's Metropolitan Grand Masonic Lodge. Popping in the door we met a Brother and were soon sitting in the Lodge's library chatting with the Lodge's Chief Officer. We discussed Freemasonry in Ireland and Ireland's history at length. Our new found Brother also offered us his opinion that Ireland would be one country in the near future. After asking about attending a meeting while I was in Dublin, I was sadly informed all the Lodges had gone dark and would not meet again until Fall. We wandered Dublin a short while more before eventually returning to our hotel for a brief afternoon nap.
Feeling refreshed we then returned to Temple Bar for a delicious dinner at Mexico to Rome, a restaurant oddly enough serving Mexican and Italian cuisine. We decided the menu was based on most groups of people being torn whether to eat Italian or Mexican, they had apparently chosen both to double their customer base. Making our way back to the street we decided against our plans to attend the Musical Pub Crawl after seeing the long line of attendees, instead throwing fate to the wind we searched out our own entertainment. After investigating several venues that were beyond too crowded we settled into the Quay Bar and listened to an Irish balladeer as we relaxed with a few pints. On our last visit to Dublin we found the Guinness Brewery was brewing and releasing limited runs of Arthur Guinness' older stout recipes, touted as the Brewmaster Series. On our previous visit Guinness Brew 39 was the "new" brew available, this trip we found Guinness North Star offered. Both "new" recipes were fine, drinkable brews with subtle differences from the standard Guinness, but any Guinness in Dublin, the source, is as fine as it gets. We then made our way back through Temple Bars' streets, passing revelers as we went, and hopped a few more pubs before finally following the busy streets back to our hotel for a deep sleep.
Making our way from the hotel, we stopped next door at the Dublin Fire Brigade's Central Station. One of the firefighters stole a few minutes from his duties to give us a tour of his station, which included a look at their fire pumper, ladder and rescue vehicle. We discussed our two departments and found many more similarities between them than differences. Not wanting to take too much of the firefighters' time, we made our leave and headed toward Temple Bar. Temple Bar is a located block south of the River Liffey and is the bohemian art/music/tourist district and as such many differing people, from quiet upper and middle class to the more eccentric, congregate there. We strolled past the many restaurants, shops and pubs in and around the district before settling on Bad Ass Cafe for lunch. The Cafe prides itself on being the place a not yet famous Sinead O'Conner waitressed before gaining fame and notoriety. We had a filling lunch before journeying beyond Temple Bar to the city. We made our way toward Dublin Castle, then Grafton Street, before arriving at Dublin's Metropolitan Grand Masonic Lodge. Popping in the door we met a Brother and were soon sitting in the Lodge's library chatting with the Lodge's Chief Officer. We discussed Freemasonry in Ireland and Ireland's history at length. Our new found Brother also offered us his opinion that Ireland would be one country in the near future. After asking about attending a meeting while I was in Dublin, I was sadly informed all the Lodges had gone dark and would not meet again until Fall. We wandered Dublin a short while more before eventually returning to our hotel for a brief afternoon nap.
Feeling refreshed we then returned to Temple Bar for a delicious dinner at Mexico to Rome, a restaurant oddly enough serving Mexican and Italian cuisine. We decided the menu was based on most groups of people being torn whether to eat Italian or Mexican, they had apparently chosen both to double their customer base. Making our way back to the street we decided against our plans to attend the Musical Pub Crawl after seeing the long line of attendees, instead throwing fate to the wind we searched out our own entertainment. After investigating several venues that were beyond too crowded we settled into the Quay Bar and listened to an Irish balladeer as we relaxed with a few pints. On our last visit to Dublin we found the Guinness Brewery was brewing and releasing limited runs of Arthur Guinness' older stout recipes, touted as the Brewmaster Series. On our previous visit Guinness Brew 39 was the "new" brew available, this trip we found Guinness North Star offered. Both "new" recipes were fine, drinkable brews with subtle differences from the standard Guinness, but any Guinness in Dublin, the source, is as fine as it gets. We then made our way back through Temple Bars' streets, passing revelers as we went, and hopped a few more pubs before finally following the busy streets back to our hotel for a deep sleep.
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