Well here it is, the last sight seeing day of the holiday, as tomorrow I head back to Essex. What better way to start the day than a trip to the Guinness Storehouse.
This is an 8 storey exhibition which details the history of Guinness, how it’s made and a couple of “sampling” floors. The fourth floor is where you can receive training in how to pour the perfect Guinness. There is an extra cost for this, but you do get a certificate.
At the 7th and highest floor in the building there is a bar with almost a 360 degree panoramic view of Dublin. It is also here where you will get your complimentary pint of Guinness or soft drink which is included in the €16.50 entrance fee.
On the way back from the brewery to the town centre, I spotted this small church which has had a front built in a Greek style. Many buildings in Dublin feature this type of architecture.
There are literally hundreds of churches in Dublin of all different persuasions, this particular one is Saint Audoen’s which is a Polish Roman Catholic church.
Back in the town centre, I had some lunch and noticed that not only had the rain stopped, but the sun was out. There’s a park called Saint Stephen’s Green which is quite a good size considering it’s right in the middle of a large city. I made use of the park to rest my legs for a little while, having covered a few miles by this stage.
I decided to go and visit Maplin on the other side of the river to get some wire and crimps in case I had to do emergency repair work on the van electrics. “Where are you going” said the Garda. I told him Maplins; he told me I couldn’t go through and instructed me to walk to the next block and dog leg back.
The police tape, large numbers of Garda and the flowers laid against the wall did not paint a good picture. Was this one of the drive by shootings I had heard about? Not so – a BMW car had collided with a tram this morning, then collided with a pedestrian, killing her in the process.
My next port of call was nearby O’Connell Street which appears to be the main drag in this town.
I wanted a tour of the GPO building as it’s such a lovely place, but I could only find counters selling stamps and the like.
This building was very badly damaged during the Easter Uprising in 1916, repairs were not completed until 1929. I knew from a colleague in Northern Ireland that many family records were destroyed in the ensuing fire, wiping out a large part of history for families both North and South of the border.
Damage can be seen on the column where the bullet holes have been filled, some more successfully than others. These small snippets of evidence do give a powerful reminder of how turbulent Irish history has been.
Walking back across the Liffey I headed for the parliament building and the next door Irish History Museum. “Not Open on Mondays”. Oh!
While pondering where to visit next, it started to rain quite hard. I visited one of the many Dublin Cafe’s to grab a coffee and get some shelter from the foul weather. It did let up but not by much, it being 3PM I decided to declare the sightseeing over for the day.
I used up a lot of shoe leather and got a free pint of Guinness, so it didn’t turn out to be such a bad day.
Back at the site, I’m listening to the rain beating down on the van, and carrying out the final preparations for the trip back tomorrow.
Lots of boring jobs like making sure everything is secured and perishables are thrown out. It saves me a lot of running around early in the morning.
There’s around 330 miles to cover with my ferry leaving quite early. Hopefully the remainder of the journey will be completed without event, marking the end of a successful tour of Ireland.
