I can get used to days like this - work half a day, drop the dog off at the kennel and hop a flight to Dublin.
The whole Ryanair thing worked out OK. The lineup was tolerable, although I'm not a big fan of the free for all for seats. I'd prefer to take my time getting to a seat that I know is mine. The seats were a little cramped and the bright yellow they use to decorate everything kind of gets to you after a while. We did have a good chuckle at the safety card which insisted that you remove your false teeth before exiting on the emergency slide. Is this a veiled attempt to prevent cannibalism should the plane have to ditch on a remote desert island?
We carefully negotiated through our standard one screw-up per vacation - we forgot to check the time of our car reservation, which had been cancelled for several hours before we arrived. The kind lady at Europcar fixed it all and we were soon rolling to our hotel - the Croke Park. Situated conveniently across from (guess where?) Croke Park, it is one of the better hotels we've ever stayed in. And at one of the better prices too.
The Croke Park stadium is across the street. It's quiet now, but should be rocking on Sunday for Tipperary vs Limerick. I'm not making that up. Tipperary vs Limerick. Playing hurley. It could not get more Irish without moving into leprechaun water polo in a pool of Guinness.
We're looking forward to going into Lucan tomorrow, where Ethna grew up. Should be fun. She's been quickly reverting back into her old Irish ways. The accent is growing stronger and the colloquialisms are returning: "full of beans", "he has the sun shining out of his arse", "go suck a lemon" and "pog mo hone". (Of these only a couple would be uttered by the proper lady that is my mother-in-law, the others I just find amusing...)
Interesting note: I'm typing away while watching the PGA Championship. By some strange coincidence, the last three major golf championships have all happened during our tour of European capitals: US Open - Paris, British Open - London and now PGA - Dublin. I think the Masters happened while we were on the Isle of Skye, but that hardly counts as a major European capital. I guess it has helped as I haven't been able to see the guys I picked to win it all fail to make the cut.
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