Chapter 24 
Gaelic girls and guys!

Off to Ireland.........
We packed up our belongings, headed to Gatwick and prayed that the airline would allow us to board!  We had 74kg of checked in luggage, another 25kg of cabin baggage, plus laptops, handbags and magazines and books. It's a wonder the plane got off the ground! Pip is still wondering why I am dragging around my little Christmas tree from Singapore. 
Because I can!
We stayed at The Gibson Hotel in the docklands area of Dublin, right on the tram line, until we could find more permanent digs.  
As soon as we arrived, Pip headed to work. I went on the tram with him to familiarize myself with our new home. We jumped off at Heuston, the tram stop near his workplace. Unsure of where to head next, we asked a chap for directions. It became apparent that this man with three teeth and a decided sway (it was after midday), was not the best person to ask. He pointed in three directions, then said to us......"ornly jorking!"  We worked it out for ourselves!  We decided that this sort of quirkiness was to be a common thread in our new life here in Ireland.

Our first weekend we headed 30 minutes south of Dublin on the DART, to a village called Dalkey. (pronounced Dor-key).  The name is a meld of Irish and Old Norse and means "thorn island" after the island that lies just off the coast. A small pretty village that was a premier port of export throughout the middle ages.  A few famous residents include Maeve Binchy, Enya, Bono and Van Morrison.
We ate lunch at a pub called The Club, which has a stimulating history. It was first licensed as the Queenstown Tavern in 1847 as a pub, private dwelling and community morgue! Apparently it was always busy, and we are not sure if it was the drinking alcohol or the embalming alcohol that won out.  It was also once owned by a priest. The interior was just beautiful.

We have found some good restaurants in Dublin including Thai, Italian, Indian and French, as well as the odd pub or two. Some good pre -7pm deals of two courses for €18, we have taken advantage of as we are not ready for the Craic yet. 
On Sunday we thought we would try and find a roast for lunch and we succeeded.  Situated near College Green, the oldest area in Dublin, we found a pub called The Bank on College Green,  housed in what was the old Belfast Bank building.  Built in 1895, it was a stunning example of Victorian architectural splendour, displaying the affluence and power of a financial institution.  Lunch, in what was the main banking hall,  consisted of Roast Rack of Wicklow lamb.  Pip watched Hurling on the TV, and got right into the game between Limerick and Galway!  He has since been learning the quirks of the game.

 

Research into where we head on weekends has a list growing by the day, as we want to take advantage of our short time here. We did do a trip in Ireland 7 years ago from Dublin to Galway then around the Ring of Kerry, so now we want to head north.  One place that took my eye was a place called Bullaunancheathrairaluinn.  I have checked the spelling, and it is correct, not sure of the pronunciation though!   Another is Muckanaghederdauhaulia!  Long envelopes needed to use either of these in the address.  Love to get the guy with three teeth to pronounce it!
North of the river Liffey is decidedly the poorer side and a tad sad.  South of the river is vibrant.  Many restaurants, bars and activity.  On a nice evening, it's lovely to walk and take it all in.

One activity that we did not attend, but sounded interesting was the Irish Redhead Convention in Co Cork. Carrot tossing,  gingerbread bake-off, best red beard, and the largest red-head family were among the highlights!  There was also a film premiere of "Being Ginger". If you didn't have red hair, you were able to dye it for the day!
We did however head about 16 km's north of Dublin to a coastal village called Malahide. The Vikings settled here in 795, but the area is tied to the Talbot family who occupied Malahide Castle, one of Ireland's oldest castles, from 1185-1973.  Set on 260 acres, it was a fascinating tour. A famous resident of the town is Ronan Keating.

Howth which lies on a peninsular of the same name, about 5kms from Malahide and a bit closer to Dublin, was our next stop. A very pretty fishing village full of seafood eateries.  After a leisurely walk around the harbour, we decided on Beschoffs of Howth for lunch.  This place was a combination of fish market,  organic produce and restaurant.  We were delighted to have a  "degustation" of Calamari, crab claws, fish &chips, and an amazing selection of oysters from France and Galway. A crisp white for me and a chilled Guiness for Pip. 

Of all the performances to emerge from Ireland nothing carries the energy of Riverdance, a fusion of Irish and International dance.  Touring the world for 17 years , it was on in Dublin for a short time so we went to a performance.  Not just flicking of legs and eye blurring tapping of feet, it incorporated song and some wonderful Irish instrumental music.  We thoroughly enjoyed the enthusiasm of the audience with their whooping and clapping throughout the performance.  I thought I could emulate the steps and have practiced hard,  but each time I try and do a jig, Pip falls about on the floor laughing.  Might have to hang up my dancing shoes, (called ghillies), and get back in the kitchen.
We enjoyed dinner afterwards at a well patronised pub called The Hairy Lemon!  I had Irish Stew, (I raised my glass of wine to my Dad, who cooked this quite often when I was growing up), and Pip had a Beef and Guiness pie.  Both tasty.

The 'actual' hairy lemon (at the bar)

We have now secured an apartment, 12 km's south of Dublin city centre in a place called Dun Laoghaire, (pronounced Dun-Leary).  A seaside village and port with the car ferry to Great Britain, marina, yacht clubs and a stop for many cruise liners.  The airport bus also stops right outside our door!  We are hoping lots of visitors take advantage of our two bedroom bolt hole. 

Left view from apartment

Right view from apartment

I hope to walk where Liam Neeson walked along the seafront,  in the movie Michael Collins, and see where Bob Geldof was born and raised. 
So, as of today, we have a nest to rattle around in and call home for a couple of months. 
Till the next blog,
Love Annie
Xxxx

Chapter 23

Random roaming and relocation.

Pip has now started work full time, which has been a jolt to the otherwise relaxed lifestyle we were getting accustomed to!
But, this was our plan, and we are happy we now have an income. We would not be as settled as we are without amazing family and friends to support us, so here we want to say Thankyou! Thankyou!
It's weekend roaming now, so our first weekend we did a day trip to Whitstable, a seaside town on the north coast of Kent.  Originally called Witenstape in Saxon times, meaning "white post" (a land or sea mark), then Whitstaple and now  Whitstable, the area is famous for it's oysters which have been collected in the area since Roman times.  Today though we enjoyed a Fish and Chip lunch in the local thatched pub. (add that to the list Pip)

 

We are now settled into the work life/home life routine, and I am back to research and planning so we see as much as we can on the weekends. The new term for re-entering the workforce after taking a break is called "on-ramping".  Where do they find these analogies?
We were both hankering to see a musical, so caught the train into London and headed to a half price ticket place in Leicester Square.  We chose the Saturday matinee of Billy Elliot, as we had not seen this for over 5 years.  We are still wondering why it's called half price tickets, as we got £18 off the original price of £68.  The show was great, or "brill" as they say here, and we both had a couple of very emotional moments, needing a tissue - we both reached for our communal tissue which I always have padding out my left side.
We decided to stay in London the night, and chose a hotel near Covent Garden.  Dinner was at a tiny, new Vietnamese place in Kingsway called Viet Eat.  Good value at £40 for dinner and wine for two. 
The next day we caught the train, then a bus, to Chartwell, located near Westerham.  This was the principal Churchill family home from 1924 to Winston's death in 1965 aged 90. The name derives from a well north of the house called Chart Well (Chart being Old English for rough ground).  The home on 80 acres sits quite high on a hill with views over the Kent countryside. The rooms remain as they were when Churchill and Clementine and their four children lived there.  We walked around the kitchen gardens, rose walks, lakes  and grassed terraces. Winston was quoted as saying....."A day away from Chartwell is a day wasted", he adored the place.  The 2nd picture below shows where Winston frequently sat.

 

The English are very good at puns, so here are a few pertaining to Fish and Chip shops that we have heard of.......

The Codmothers, Chip Ahoy, Chip n Dales, Goodbuy Mr Chips, Good Frydays, The Cod Almighty, Hippie Chippie, Manchipster Plaice, The Cod Father, and The Frying Scotsmen!  Ha Ha......
The weather continues to be warm and enjoyable. We have eaten many meals in the garden, including some great BBQ's. Feels like home!
Another show we wanted to see was The Lion King, so we trotted up to London the next weekend to see it. We did enjoy it, although we would have to say it wasn't top of our list. Afterwards we went near London Bridge to the Shard for a farewell drink - from us to London!  What an amazing piece of architecture. The glass-clad pyramidal tower is 87 storeys high (310m) , and is home to an hotel, restaurants, bars, offices, residences and retail. There is also an open air observation deck. We sat by the window in the bar and soaked up the views, including the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, along the Thames.  At £8.00 for a glass of wine, not bad value.

View back towards Tate Modern and St Pauls

Speaking of prices, for those that are interested, here are a few more for comparison.
Takeaway coffee.....£1.30
Petrol, 1 litre.......£1.40
Sirloin Steak £28 per KG
Mid loin lamb chops £18 per KG
Milk 89p litre
Big Mac and medium fries £1.99

We had to say a very special Thankyou to Valerie and Derek where we spent the bulk of our time while in London. We gave them a choice of two venues for a farewell dinner - either The Savoy (which we'd all been to) or The Shard (which none of us had eaten at).  So we went to the Oblix restaurant at The Shard.  It turned out to be a memorable night.  Whilst the view is the obvious reason for being there, we were really impressed with the quality of the service and food.  So much so, that we left the restaurant and walked around to the adjacent bar and had a post-dinner drink!  The 4 of us floated back to earth and took the train home.

So now, of to the Emerald Isle........ some of us are beside ourselves....

Till the next blog.  

Love Annie xx