11.3.06

Our Dublin days have come to a close. In the last 3 hours before the bus ride to the airport, Jeff and I chose to pass the time by making food, drinking coffee at a cafe and watching passers-by, and spending an hour in an internet shop.

Things were good here. My impression of Dublin is a gritty city in the middle of a lush land, a place that's trying hard to bloom but can't quite break through the surface. There were lots of young people at our hostel that had moved to Dublin in hopes of finding employment, but are stuck staying long-term at the hostel because apartments are very hard to attain. Jeff and I ate some good fish and chips, drank some good Guiness stout (missed touring the factory, but that's expensive!), and managed to fit in some culture at two different Irish museums, one history and one art. The trip to Howth last Thursday was a jaunt to the countryside that happened to be included on the 5-day bus passes we bought when we got here. And then last night, we stayed standing for hours in a crowded pub, listening to live Irish music and watching people dance around. Tonight is a big rugby game between Scotland and Ireland, so Dublin is teeming with Scots. They're easy to spot, since many of them are wearing kilts. Needless to say, last night in the pub was a ruckus, with kilted men dancing, and one guy even bringing in his bagpipes and playing a few songs, much to the crowd's delight.

Today we fly to England, and hopefully we'll survive the expenses of London. My guide book describes prices in London as "horrendous". Great. But we've stocked up on pasta, and hopefully we'll make it for 4 days. Til the next...

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