The adventure continues!

Day 2

I think wandering around is the best thing in the world. I love wandering  around through the woods, up hills, around a bouldered shoreline or hidden lake, or following a winding stream. I also love wandering down the bustling streets of cities, through shopping districts, and down side alleys packed full of peculiar wares, old buildings, and good eats. This city is full of life, with stories of its past and present hinted at in the cracks of every old brick building, and every line of the modern glass buildings.

I can understand why Ireland is known as a magical place; you can practically feel it in the air. Especially in Temple Bar. It isn't much more than a wide alley, but there's an air of magic in the air around it. It's full of pubs, with Jameson and Guinness barrels lined up outside more than a few of them, and Irish flags and banners, people, and Craic. It's a wonderful place. Dublin is as a whole. 

I felt history in the air of the Cathedral of Saint Patrick, a beautiful stone church of massive proportions. I felt it, too, in the even bigger Christ Church Cathedral, just down the street from St Patrick's. There I toured the treasures kept down in the crypts, including the Black Magna Carta, a codex containing documents of legal and constitutional significance relevant to Ireland, from the 13th century. 

I felt a sense of peace as I walked across the River Liffey and down the Ormand Way boardwalk along the north side of the river. I crossed back over on the Ha' Penny Bridge, admired the view, then crossed the street and walked under a stone arch into a narrow tunnel that led to Temple Bar like a secret passageway. 

I've seen most of Dublin now, at least the south side. The north side is known as the bad side of town, but it has the business district, with a few more museums and a botanical garden. I'm holding off on touring Trinity, Dublin Castle, and the Guinness Warehouse until Kim and Garret are with me, because they want to go too. For now they're catching up on sleep, so I think I'll go revisit Saint Stephen's Green park and the shopping district nearby.

Dublin comes alive at night. The shopping district that was populated earlier is now packed. Giant chandeliers of Christmas lights centered on strings of lights hang over the streets at even intervals, and groups of strands that drip white light tinkle in the trees. More lights are wrapped up shop pillars and strung over windows, and things that were invisible in the daylight are now alive with cheerful festivity at night. People are milling about everywhere, shopping, eating, talking, listening to the guy playing his guitar by the giant Christmas tree on the corner, decorated in red lights, that I swear wasn't there earlier today. And it's not just the populaton that has increased; the smells of the restaurants and gelateria seem to have amplified, and everything is awash in sweet scents, soft lights, and the sounds of guitar and chatter.

I wandered around for another hour. The lights and cheer radiated out for blocks in all directions. I found a neat restaurant advertising traditional Irish food, down a quieter side street, that looked really good. And we did, in fact, eat dinner there, and it was really good! Then we walked around and finally wandered into some pubs nearby where we're staying. The first was a small, two story building with winding hallways and small, connecting rooms, full of hidden nooks that had tables and chairs tucked into them. The second was a long building with long bar, and only a few tables lined up against the wall. At one table a few people sat with instruments laid out on it, while a few others played Trad, aka traditional Irish music. It was wonderful! I would have stayed there all night but they closed earlier than most, so we went across the street to a bar that was more like a club, where I stayed until I got a headache from the cigarette smoke and then left. Time to sleep! Lots to see tomorrow!