Anyone been to Ireland?

[Fountain79]

I am going there in late may/early june for two week and I am curious what I should check out and what I can expect as far as weather. I love guiness so I will definitely be doing a lot of this :beer: but hopefully not a lot of this: :puke:

[SiobhanClancy]

1. About 39 times...

what part of Ireland are you going to?

[Fountain79]

2. I am flying into Dublin...

I will probably spend a couple days there(Dublin), but after that it's up in the air.

[SiobhanClancy]

5. There's a lot to see in Dublin...

with a couple of days to spend you'll want to narrow down what your interests are. Are you interested in historical stuff(Dublin Castle,Kilmainham Gaol,Book of Kells,etc)? Nightlife(Temple Bar area,Bono's Clarence Hotel Kitchen Club)? I expect the weather to be around the 60s at that time..could be a bit warmer or cooler. Any day could be rainy,of course:)I like Cork City,which is about a 3 hour train trip from Heuston Station. It's much less of a tourist place though. Killarney and Galway are lovely areas. If you have an idea of what specifically you'd like to see,perhaps can come up with more specific suggestions:)

[Fountain79]

6. a little bit of both....

during the day I hope to do the historical stuff and in the evening the nightlife. I definitely want to check out the Jameson Distillery and St. James Gate Brewery.

[SiobhanClancy]

8. The Dublin Tourist Authority...

which is near Trinity,has double decker buses that go by many of the historical sights(I think they even stop near St. James Gate).You can just hop off and on all day as you like. Temple Bar area is big for nightlife...and you might want to stop by Davy Byrne's pub,which was a fave place of James Joyce. Porter House was Dublin's first microbrewery and was quite a popular spot when I was last there.
When I was last there in 2003,my friends took me to the Bad Ass Cafe in Temple Bar...lots of fun and good craic,Mexican food of all things!

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

9. Mexican food in Dublin???

I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Last May when Mr. Wonderful and I were in Ireland I actually saw Ortega products (I think) in the Dunne's in Newry while I was grocery shopping.

I only know two bars in Dublin. Quinn's which is across the street from Croke Park and the Cat & Cage on the Drumcondra Road. Great bars for the craic before or after an All-Ireland Football Final.

[mydreamcametrue]

3. Yes...U2

[Fountain79]

4. I thought they were from Scotland....

:rofl:

[Whoa_Nelly]

7. A friend of mine told me about Couch accomodations in people's homes

She read an article recently that if you shop/check around there are locals who will give you space in their home, and clue you in one the fun local places. The author of the article said it saved his wife and him a bunch of money.

[a kennedy]

10. Yup, been there 2x's......

the first time 1991, and the second was in October 2001 exactly 4 weeks after 9/11. Can not even begin to tell you what a time we had. When we got to her, Ireland I mean....... everyone hugged us. They knew we were Americans, and they all just hugged us and said how sad and sorry they felt for us. We went to the Waterford tour...... when you got to the Waterford plant, they tell you to wait until the next tour and watch the video of the Waterford Crystal Story. We sat down, and the film began about the history of the Waterford Crystal. Waterford crystal has been used for all the major sporting trophies, Big Ten Rose Bowl trophy, some golfing, (I can't remember the name) trophy, AND, THE "FALLING CRYSTAL BALL AT TIMES SQUARE" ball. So when my friend and I saw that Waterford Crystal ball coming to the end at Times Square 2001, my friend Irene and me were balling. It was just 4 weeks since 9/11 and it happened. We were crying so loud, that all the other people there just came up to us and hugged us. It was the most moving and humbling experience I ever had. I love Ireland, my ancestor's all come from there...... I AM 100% IRISH. :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

11. At the All-Ireland Football Final in Croke Park in 2001

on Sept 23rd, the Artane Boys Band played the "Star Spangled Banner" along with the "The Soldiers Song" i.e, the Irish national anthem, as a tribute to all the victims of Sept. 11th.

I think this was the first and only time another country's national anthem was played at any All-Ireland Final. When I heard the opening notes of the Star Spangled Banner, I just lost it.

Mind you I was in an Irish bar here in Chicago watching the live broadcast and I wasn't the only one in the bar that had tears in their eyes at that gesture.

Gotta love the Irish people...

[RebelOne]

12. That's what I loved. Guiness on tap.

There is some great shopping, especially for gold jewelry, in Dublin.

[xchrom]

13. i love ireland

and dublin is one of my favorite cities -- there is so much to do there.

i'm not a ''country'' type guy -- so i didn't go see a lot of other things -- but the music scene in dublin is to die for.

i went to the theatre all the time -- you won't believe your eyes.

you have to go to some of the more alternative places -- easy to find in dublin -- to get info on the alternative art scene.

and there's nobody easier to talk to than the iris.
they'll point you in the right direction when you get there.