Dublin

I LOVED Dublin. It is such a good mix between a typical big city and a typical Irish town with colorful buildings and charming pubs. I think I will just start in the beginning and walk you through the highlights of the weekend. When we first got to the city we checked into our hostel (let's just say a hostel is quite different than a hotel, but this one was mercifully clean and quiet) and then made our way to the "Viking Splash Tour." I know - so exciting! On our way there we walked past stores already decked out with Christmas decorations, saw an aspiring rock band, and stopped in a cafe for coffee (the majority of the group) and cookies (me). Despite this delightful walk through downtown Dublin, I was excited to start our tour, which reminded me of a Disneyland ride. We sat in a "duck" boat (they were from WWII and can go on both land and water...I'm sure you know what I'm talking about Grandpa) with about 25 thirteen year old girls from Spain. Which was interesting. Our crazy (and cute, I should add) tour guide made up for this though, for as we drove through Dublin on our tour he would have us all yell, Viking-style, at unsuspecting passerby. Although this was probably geared towards the hoard of preteens on our tour, it was nonetheless very entertaining.
After this unorthodox tour we headed to Dublin Castle. It no longer looks much like a castle, besides a stone courtyard and a big tower. It was cool to see inside though, because this is the building the government still uses for a lot of their state events. After this we went to the Guinness factory (you can imagine how interesting this was for me) where I got a free pint that I promptly gave away (I haven't warmed to Guinness yet) and wasn't able to visit the only part that interested me: the gift shop. Luckily for me, there is no shortage of gift shops in Ireland. We ended the night at the Temple Bar, which is apparently a famous Dublin pub. It was the Ireland v. France game, playing to compete in the world cup, so it was absolutely packed. I mentioned to one of the girls that it reminded me of the Quidditch World Cup in Harry Potter, and she looked at me like I was insane. Apparently she's not a big HP fan. Oops!
Today we slept in (fantastic) before we headed off to finish our tour of Dublin. We started out at Kil-----? Jail (I don't remember how to spell it) which is the jail that, along with other things, held the leaders of the Easter Rebellion of 1916. The history geek in me was in heaven. I could rave about it forever on here, but I will spare you all. My group finally peeled me away from the jail, and we headed off to Trinity College. We were given a tour by the most "posh" professor ever, and then went to their library, which is the most famous part of the college. It is absolutely gorgeous. It is everything a library should be, and reminded me of the one in Beauty and the Beast, but even better. I even snapped a forbidden picture, despite the guard lurking in the corner. I know, I am quite the daredevil.
So now I am back in my apartment, cozy and ready for bed. I hope you all had a great weekend as well!