The Tour Begins!

Saturday August 26, 2023

We drove to Dublin and Jim was really glad to turn in the car!  Driving on the left side of the skinny roads and shifting gears with the left hand about did him in!  We drove 858 km over the past 9 days, but it sure seemed like a lot more.  The traffic was heavy, likely due to the big football game tonight.   We took a taxi to the Hyatt Centric hotel where there is a large contingent of Notre Dame fans.  Apparently they aren't televising the game here--kinda like the blackout of the Indy 500??

We met up with our tour group at the hotel.  We felt luckier than many, who arrived from the airport just one hour before our first outing.  Boy are they going to be tired!  Our group of 23 people is considered a small tour group.  There are people from Canada, Wisconsin, Montana, northern California, DC., Pennsylvania, Queens, and New Jersey. 

Our tour director (and bus driver) is Patrick Joseph (PJ) O'Brien!  We have a big bus with 58 seats, so we will be able to spread out a bit.  Our first experience on the bus was really good.  It was clean and comfy, with nice large windows.  There is even a fold-down tray table, nice footrests, and a USB charging port near each seat. 

We took a brief tour around the area, which was very congested due to the football fans milling around.  I think there are twice as many Notre Dame fans as Navy, however our tour guide said a US Navy ship had docked and brought in more sailors than the entire Irish navy has!

We drove through Phoenix Park, a huge park area. The Irish President lives in the park (a blue flag with a harp flies when he is in).  The US ambassador also lives in the park--the only two houses in the park.

We stopped at the Pearse Lyons distillery for a tour and tasting of real Irish whiskey.  One of the bottles we tasted was aged 12 years.  The distillery is in the former St. James Church. 

The founder (Pearse Lyons and his wife) bought the deteriorating church and refurbished it to house the distillery, and preserved the adjacent cemetery, where 13 relatives are buried.  It's a neat story.  The founder actually spent time in Lexington Kentucky, learning the trade, and obtains ex-Bourbon barrels from Kentucky for the Irish Whiskey! 

A group of six of us had dinner at Ireland's oldest pub-- the Brazen Head.  We had a delightful time getting to know each other.  I think it's going to be a fun group!