Boys trip to Ireland

(photos to come - havent had time to sort through them yet)

L and I spent last weekend in Dublin, Ireland. It was a father/son weekend. This was our first trip to the land of leprechauns and it did not disappoint. We had a great weekend, saw some beautiful countryside, and had time to talk about all the things that 13 year old boys are interested in - girls, video games, and basketball.
We flew out Thursday night so we could spend all day Friday exploring the Irish bogs, mountains, hills, glens and dews. I realized when we arrived that my maps, travel book, driving route and paperwork was NOT in my bag. I had been tight on time leaving work, so I had to unexpectedly meet Bridget and L at the airport right after work, which meant she had to finish packing my bag. She "accidentally" left out some very important stuff and then she was off for a girls outing with B and was NOT answering her mobile phone. It made for some interesting times until she got home later that night and was able to scan and email me all my paperwork.

L and I finally made it to our destination just south of Dublin in the Wicklow Mountains. The mountains are not very tall but still had a nice snow covering on top. The roads in Ireland make the English roads look like wide; if you have read many of Bridget's previous blogs you will understand this means they are made for only one car going one way. It was actually nice because it made you feel like you were a long ways from civilization.

We saw the tallest waterfall in Ireland - spectacular; we visited an incredible medieval town/monastery, drove over the top of one of the mountains, and visited one of the few remaining weaving factories. We bought Bridget and B a few things just so they would know we thought of them at least once on the trip.
The main thing that I learned that day was that L is over his bout of Mono. I know this because his appetite was fully restored. I have always told L that I will buy him food as long as he eats it. He not only orders off of the adult menu, but he eats a starter, a main and expects desert. By the time we got to the next town we would have to stop for a snack and hot chocolate. The trip costs me about twice what I had budgeted because of all the food L ate. I’m guessing his food alone cost 200 Euro!!!!
On Saturday we drove into Dublin where we spent the rest of the day and Sunday touring the city. The interactive Viking museum was good, St. Patrick Cathedral was very impressive, and the Library (the Long Hall) at Trinity College was a site to see. The town has a great vibe, and everyone was very nice and seemed to be enjoying themselves.
We stayed in the Temple Bar area at a totally cheap hotel (one we would never take the Bridget and B to), but the location was perfect. Temple Bar is the main drag for pubs and restaurants. There are lots of pubs. In Dublin there are 600 churches and 1000 pubs. Guinness Beer is brewed in Dublin and is really what the whole city is built around. There are 4 million people living in Ireland. Guinness brews 8 millions pints of beer a day. Of that 8 million pints - they export 6 million. Doing the math that means the 4 million Ireland residents consume 2 millions pints of beer a day. Needless to say, your visions of Ireland on St. Patrick's Day are not that different than any day of the year in Ireland.
It was a great weekend. L hasn't reached the point where hanging with Dad isn't cool, so I am trying to get as much in while I can.


Postscript: By the end of day Tuesday L and I were grounded because L didn't get his homework completed over the weekend. Gifts from the weavers didn't count as bonus points toward the homework snafu, oops.

- DA