Dublin Ireland

Our trip on the ferry was uneventful as the water was very calm and the ferry had plenty of room. We had planned on walking to the hotel but luckily as it had been raining and we didn't want the bags to get wet we caught a taxi instead. It was a lot longer journey than we thought but we arrived within 15 minutes to the ... wait for it ... Bram Stoker Hotel as apparently Bram who wrote Dracula came from Dublin. We were a bit worried about what the hotel might look like but were pleasantly surprised to find it a normal old hotel with only a room at the back which was a museum for the writer. 

As we were out a bit from the city centre we brought a 3 day bus pass which we used to travel into the city each day and we also visited Howth a fishing town on the other side of our hotel. 

In fact a lot of intellectuals and writers in particular came from Ireland and Dublin has one of the earliest   universities in the world Trinity University which we visited. The city has a high population of young people which is evident when you visit the Temple Bar district. The pubs there are spilling over with young people with many hosting live Irish music. We had a great time in one of them called The Quays where a band was playing popular Irish songs. 

We were lucky enough to be in Dublin for the gay pride march where we saw many interesting  costumes including a guy in a mankini outside one of the Temple bars trying to talk to the girls walking by. I don't think he was gay but used the parade as an excuse to wear it. But the parade was a lot of fun to watch although nothing like our Mardi Gras. We found out that over 30,000 people marched and the crowds were waving rainbow flags showing their support. 

We visited St Patricks and we were lucky to be there when they were conducting a free tour. We learnt all about Jonathan Swift who was the dean of the cathedral and wrote Gulliver's Travels as well as a political activist and a champion of mental health. He gave a large sum in his will to set up a mental Heath asylum which is still being used today.

Fea market, buskers, statues and lots of Irish music were enjoyed during our stay in Dublin. The 4 days passed very quickly and now we set off for the bus depot to catch our bus to Kilkenny.