Dublin - Day 2 1/2-3

There's music everywhere here, and it ranges from the violinist standing outside a touristy breakfast place playing Oh Danny Boy for a few Euros to an endless stream of guys with guitars in the back of crowded pubs, sometimes playing original music, but you're just as likely to get Bob Marley covers or Dylan. Last night, we headed out for a night in Temple Bar, which is something like Vegas and something like Bourbon Street. We were warned that getting to actually hear music in the crowded pubs would be challenging.

After a so-so dinner at an Italian place, we headed down to the bridge so I could take some pictures of the Liffey at night. The famous Ha'Penny bridge is covered in padlocks - the latest fad for couples to show their devotion. Apparently the authorities keep cutting them off, but they reappear.

Jim headed back to the hotel, but Jason, Greg, and I decided to try and find some music. I nixed the first place, where the guy was, indeed, butchering a Marley classic, but we were ushered into the upstairs bar at The Quay, where a guitar and accordion duo were playing. It was definitely designed for tourist appeal, but that doesn't mean they weren't great. Check out the video! Very impressive - a lot of talent. A pint of cider and back to the hotel.

This morning, we met up for breakfast at the hotel restaurant, then started the trek out to the Guinness brewery. The tour was self-guided, and since I'm not a beer drinker, I sampled to be polite,, but ignored the free pint that came with the ticket. The top floor of the glass and metal museum/factory is the Gravity Bar, with a 360 view of the city, which was great. Afterwards, we accepted the offer of a ride from a horse and buggy outside and returned to the center of town - my foot is still killing me, but onward.

Greg was given a recommendation for Leo Burdocks' fish and chips place near Christchurch, so we stopped there for lunch - yum - but too much fish for one human to consume. The plan was to head up to the Dublin Writers' Museum, but the trek proved to be really rough on my poor feet - I may have overdone it yesterday. The museum itself is interesting, housed in the old Jameson family home. Afterwards, we were going to take the DART down to the end of the line and see the coast, but I was feeling totally exhausted, so I took a cab back to the hotel and the guys went on without me. It's just as well - the expedition was a failure between schedules and tickets and such, so we all met up at the hotel about an hour later and decided to just take it easy for the rest of the day - a long journey ahead! Our last night in Dublin was marked by an excellent meal at The Exchequer, finished off with Irish coffee. And now I'm sleepy - must pack up and finish uploading the day's pictures before heading off to bed.