HOPPING ON AND OFF IN DUBLIN

Started our day in Bewley's Café with delicious coffee and a raisin scone with cream and raspberry jam.  It was delicious and such a beautiful setting.  It was the perfect start.  We made our way to the stop for the Hop On Hop Off Bus to have a look at some of the sights that were a little far for our walking sight seeing.  It was great to see the city while leaning a bit along the way. 

 

We got off and had a tour of the Kilmainham Gaol.  Although the historical significance was explained very adroitly, I confess that very little stayed with me.  I remember our guide saying that there were public hangings in the and thousands of people would come from all parts of the country to watch - liquour would be flowing and it was considered a form of entertainment.  In the Irish struggle for independence, many leaders of the Nationalist Party were housed here with several of the being put to death for their efforts.

 

Back on the bus and then we hopped off on Nassau Street - a street of pleasant shops for wandering in and out of.  It was a pleasant outing.  There was some impromptu street music and several flower sellers with the most beautiful and fresh selection of flowers.  The weather cooperated with sunny breaks now and then during the mainly foggy day.  It wasn't raining ... and with an average of 3 inches of rain per month - we were lucky to stay dry for today.

 

There is much richness in the architecture here.  Lovely old buildings that show interesting features.  The windows at the bottom of the buildings are large and then the size decreases as the stories rise.  This serves two purposes:  to give the illusion that the buildings is larger than it actually is; to keep more of the heat in on the upper floors and lastly because of a glass tax in the early 1800's.  Very simply,  the glass tax levied a tax on light and air coming into your dwelling. 

 

Now for the truly amazing thing I saw today....YES Tim Horton's is thriving in Ireland.  The kiosk inside the store was so many more times better than the one that Sandra and I saw in New York - and it was busy in there!  Lots of people enjoying a Timmy's. 

 

Tomorrow we will be traveling to Savona.  We take a plane to Nice, France and then a train to Ventimiglia and another train to Savona.  There we will have a night's sleep, a day to look around and then onto the Costa Mediterranea for our cruise.

AND SO IT BEGINS ...

A perfectly pulled pint of the world's best stout...Guinness in hand and a nap under my belt and now Diana and I are surrounded by all things Irish.  U2 on the music overhead proclaiming that everybody wants to rule the world.  Sitting at the bar on big stools with the Guinness 'stache on - I feel as though it will be me!

 

We had a 2 hour delay leaving Chicago but made up 1 of the hours in the air.  The problem was that one of the hydraulic systems had frozen in the -8 C temps.  So after they found it, then they had to unthaw it and make sure there were no other issues.  Yes it was cold there and we were very glad to leave and get slightly - no make that a lot - warmer at 10 C and some drizzly rain. 

 

We were able to drop bags off at O'Neills and then go out and explore.  My goodness I was so tired - Diana had to wait for me a few times.  Even with all the sitting on the plane though,  we have still managed to get over 7000 steps on the fitbit.  We had a good walk down the shopping area of Grafton Street, and then it was back to our accommodations to get settled in.  It didn't take me long to find the bed!

 

So now we will get our plans ready for tomorrow and try and do some touristy sightseeing.  Maybe a hop on and hop off bus will be in our future.  For now it is good to be settled and enjoying a pint!

Tomorrow will be a better and brighter day

 

 

 

A NEW ADVENTURE COMING SOON....

Diana and I are flying once again!  November 19th, we will begin this adventure in Dublin Ireland and then make our way to Savona, Italy to board the Costa Mediterranea for our cruise across the Atlantic to Miami, Florida.  The itinerary looks pretty neat and includes a few more places I never thought I would travel to.  We have lots of questions that will be answered on this holiday :  What is it like to cross the Atlantic in November....What is it like to be at sea for 5 days in a row.....What is it like trying to pack 1 suitcase with clothes for all types of weather....and WHY AM I DOING THIS?!

The best adventures are when I don't know what will happen next.  There is an excited anticipation and sometimes the frightening discovery!  These also make the best stories.  Please join me again in this new discovery.  Maybe there will be a fascinating fact hidden in the dialogue, but there will be fun and adventure.  Stay tuned....

 

ITINERARY

DAY	DATE		PORT	ARRIVE	DEPART
Sun	Nov	23	Savona, Italy		5:00pm
Mon	Nov	24	Marseille, France	8:00am	5:00pm
Tue	Nov	25	At Sea
Wed	Nov	26	At Sea
Thu	Nov	27	Casablanca, Morocco	8:30am	11:00pm
Fri	Nov	28	At Sea
Sat	Nov	29	Funchal, Madeira, Portugal	8:00am	5:00pm
Sun	Nov	30	Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands	8:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Dec	1	At Sea
Tue	Dec	2	At Sea
Wed	Dec	3	At Sea
Thu	Dec	4	At Sea
Fri	Dec	5	At Sea
Sat	Dec	6	Antigua	8:00am	6:00pm
Sun	Dec	7	Tortola, British Virgin Islands	8:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Dec	8	Catalina Island, Dominican Republic	8:00am	4:00pm
Tue	Dec	9	Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos Islands	Noon	7:00pm
Wed	Dec	10	At Sea
Thu	Dec	11	Miami, FL	6:00am

 

Farewell to Newfoundland

Our last day in Newfoundland and we are on our way to a picnic lunch in Ferryland.  We had a lovely drive up and wouldn’t you know…there was one more thing at the side of the road.  Most times we could never stop in time.  Side of the road stuff can be really neat. 

Today, it was a fellow who liked to make boats and little scenes.  We were able to turn the car around on the rural road and go around for a better look.  He was a very talented fellow and had lots of things for people to see.

Then we were up at Ferryland for our picnic.  It was quite a walk in from where you could park.  Fortunately the sky was overcast and that saved us some as the weather is promised to be a scorcher today.  The temperatures in Newfoundland have broken – no make that smashed all the records since records have been taken.  I think the average temperature for July was 25 degrees this year and in all other years the average July temperatures was 21 – so that is huge for this part of Canada and today it was 30 and with the consideration of humidex – 40!  It was brutal.

So up at the lighthouse, it was quite foggy and windy.  We were never cold, but it was such a change from the city heat and humidity.  We had a lovely basket of sandwiches, orzo salad, homemade lemonade and a delicious desert.  They provide picnic blankets for sitting and you just grab a space on the grass outside to enjoy your lunch with amazing views all around.  What a great and unique experience.  Barbara Brown and her sister Brenda and Barbara Arnold joined us for lunch and it was so great to be with our Newfoundland cousins one more time.

Soon it was time to go and then we were on our way to Holyrood and A Schooner Inn for our last night before returning home.  It felt like we were coming home when Colette was on the deck.  How lovely to spend the beginning of our trip and the end in such wonderful company.  We had one more walk to dinner along the boardwalk and then home again.  Then a visit on the deck and now to get a good night sleep before we are on our way tomorrow.

Goodnight and goodbye for now.

Puffins At Last

 
 

Fully rested up and ready for the day, we came downstairs to a lovely breakfast of pancakes and ham.  It was very good.  Then we walked down to the nearby beach.  As soon as I saw the beach, I knew it was one where I might find a bit more sea glass to add to my collection.  After about 45 minutes, I only found 2 small pieces, but it is fun to look.  There were so many little shorebirds there.  Some blended in with the rocks so well that it was hard to get a picture.  I enjoyed them just the same.  The fog was really rolling in - it definitely puts such a grey pallor on everything - odd to see fog in the middle of summer.

 

baby Murre

Along the way I finally saw where the capelin came in.  Unfortunately there was no one with a bucket to get the easy pickings…so not the birds and bugs are eating their fill.  This isn’t quite what I wanted to see – one of my favourite sayings is, “be careful what you wish for!” and this was certainly one of those times- I got to see the capelin…but yikes! And the smell…..ewwww.



Murres

So we were on the boat with Captain Wayne to have our puffin and whale adventure.  We set out and the fog was definitely putting a damper on visibility.  Whales were certainly not easily seen and then by the end of our trip – we didn’t see any at all.  But the birds!  We were out at the Witless Bay Ecological Protected Area.  It was on Gull Island.  The cacophony as we approached was amazing.  So many birds.  We saw puffins…so many puffins…murres, 

Razorbills

razorbills, black gulls and kittiwakes.  So many and all living in this amazing habitat.  It had lots of the grassy area that the puffins can burrow in – yes they have their nests underground, the rocky ledges for the murres, gulls and the razorbills.  

Puffin

So on the top, which is the grassy slope are the puffins, then the murres and razorbills and then the gulls after that. 

So If you are a puffin, you would never get pooped on – however the gulls – I imagine they have to dodge and duck.

The area we were observing is ancient - the rock formations told of much harsh weather creating deep erosion.  There were many sea caves that have been carved out and will eventually undermine the rock around sending it cascading down and then the sea will crash and etch and change the land again after the next winter.  There are areas where the boat could manoeuver between different rock stacks that were solid land in previous years.  Interesting area.

It remained foggy for the rest of the day.  We drove into Petty Harbour for dinner and it was a bit of a challenge getting back to the Inn.  With country roads and not much lighting, we had to pick our way a bit here and there, but we made it back safely.

Tomorrow, we are off to Ferryland (pronounced Ferilund) for our lighthouse picnic.  The weather says the day will be very hot and very humid.  Nasty combination.  We have to walk in about 3-4 km and then out again.  I think Tom is going to try to drive up the narrow road to avoid this walk.  We will see – either way I will be prepared with lots of water.