Friday morning we had an early flight to Dublin, with a very friendly uber driver to Heathrow and great views during the flight. We approached Dublin over Wicklow, which we didn’t expect would be the flight path!
Summery but not a stifling weather was in Dublin too and we had a really nice walk through paddy’s hill and over to the beach.
Tide was out in the afternoon
Then back in after dinner for a swim! Swim report: 10/10! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Saturday we went for a coffee and the fabulously remodeled Grand Hotel in Malahide. The coffee was excellent and we were lucky to have these two former employees to show us around!
The decorating touches are so well done. Here’s a piece of wallpaper framed out, it reminded us of the wallpaper in the white lotus tv series!
After a selfie outside, we walked up to the malahide DART station for us to take a train into town. (I answered the follow up email about how I enjoyed the DART service very favorably!) in town we walked down the quays, visited the Winding Stair bookshop, crossed the Liffey on the hapenny bridge, walked through Trinity, and arrived at Davy Byrne’s for lunch. The back room was both pleasingly air conditioned (yay contemporary conveniences!) and, named Molly’s Room, dedicated to Ulysses lore (yay literature and history!) When we told the staff we were very into Ulysses they gave us a few items for our own home shrine and were very knowledgeable about the role of Davy Byrnes in the book and in Dublin’s history. So interesting!
They have a first edition on display, with the blue color that Joyce insisted on and that was hard to achieve. He wanted the blue of the Greek flag but the flag he sent in as an example was somewhat faded.
I’d had the more famous lunch last year when Phyllis and I visited so this year I had a salad. Guinness zero on tap so I could get a glass!
John had the Gorgonzola sandwich and a glass of burgundy, just like our friend Leopold Bloom.
“Nice quiet bar. Nice piece of wood in that counter. Nicely planed. Like the way it curves there.”. (Thinks Leopold bloom while eating)
Stumble stone marker outside DB’s gives a nice quote.
Then we took the DART back to Malahide in time for a very lively gathering of Kennys in the summery backyard at portmarnock! So nice if everyone to come over, it was really great to catch up, and we’re so grateful most folks could make it on such little notice! We had lovely Italian food from Lali’s at the beach courtesy Paddy and James who did the food run. Although Barry’s shirt gets more visibility here, noting that Paul also had on a very festive shirt from the cruise wear section of the wardrobe!
We left Sunday morning and headed back to Chicago – uneventful (which is good!) flight other than I sat by a very nice young man who was a vet and going to Lexington, Kentucky to do some observing on practices with large and small animals. Great and very unexpected trip, thanks everyone!
