Dublin and Kildare, Ireland

After flying back from Inishmore, we got in the car to drive back to Dublin. We arrived in Dublin in the early evening, and checked into our bed and breakfast just across the River Liffey from the Temple Bar district. Of course, we took that opportunity to have dinner and drinks by Temple Bar.

The next morning, I returned our rental car, and walked back to the inn. It was a beautiful spring day in Ireland, and the flowers were blooming.



When I got back, we met Beth and Mary and walked down the Liffey to the train station, to go to Kildare to visit the National Irish Stud, home of a prestigious stud farm and beautiful gardens. Scenes from the gardens:





A new foal:



The horses were beautiful, and it was amazing how much money they were paid to reproduce!



We were on a rush against the clock to get back from Kildare to Dublin in time to get to the Guinness plant--one of the key things I wanted to do in Dublin as I had not gone there when I was in Dublin last (March 2000). We had a little drama when Beth left her iPhone in the cab, and we weren't sure where it was. Once the cab driver called back and said he had it, we wondered if he would arrive before the train did. He did, and we were on our way to Dublin, arriving at 4:45, and hauling butt to the Guinness Storehouse, where we arrived just in time for the last entry of the day.







The tour takes you through the brewing process, and as you go through it, you climb up to the top, where there is a tasting room (YUM) and a great view of the city.




Walking back from the brewery, we took some time to take some pictures by the River Liffey.







That night, our last night in Dublin, we celebrated our trip by visiting a few pubs. The coolest was the Stags Head.