10/24/07
Okay, so today I was so hungover from last night that I couldn’t get out of bed for a while. So we just laid in bed all day watching movies. Finally, around 2:30, we were able to get up and go out for lunch. We ate at a place called Elephant and Castle, which is actually American food. It was really good. Then, back to bed :)
We got up again later that night to go out for dinner. Then, back to bed :) What a great day. I actually really enjoyed being lazy and not doing anything. Sorry folks, not much of a fun read for you today. We’ll see if we feel like going out tomorrow to explore at all. I kind of feel like we should walk down Grafton Street just to see it, since we’re here and all, but we’ll see what degree of laziness we are feeling tomorrow. Dublin is just like a big city, so it’s not all that appealing to us, and we are kind of tired of sightseeing. Hopefully we’ll like Galway better.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Dublin Day #2
10/23/07
Today we got up late and decided to be lazy for a while. Then we went to the Guiness Storehouse, but not before asking if we could change rooms, and they said they would switch them for us while we were gone!
On the way to Guiness, we saw the Christ Church Cathedral, which was the State Church of Ireland since its inception in the 12th century. We didn’t go in it, we just took pictures of the outside.
When we entered the Guiness Storehouse, we actually saw 2 of our Australian friends, Dave and Adam! How funny is that?!?! We knew they were going to be in Dublin the same time as us, but we didn’t think we would see them! They were leaving, so we didn’t talk long, but it was still cool to see someone we knew (I’ve been a little homesick lately).
So the tour of the storehouse takes you through the ingredients and then the process of brewing Guiness and why it is so distinct from any other beer. It’s a long process, which is summed up by the following pictures:
The process starts with the barley, some of which is malted in the same way that it is malted when it is used to make whiskey. However, the malted barley is dried using a kiln without peat, so that you don’t have that peat flavor, like you do in the Scotch whiskey. The fact that some of the barley is unmalted, some malted, and some roasted contributes to Guiness’ distinct flavor.
Once the barley is dried, some of it is roasted. Then all the barley is milled.
After milling, the substance is called grist. The grist is then mixed with hot water and mashed.
Once mashed, the substance is called wort. The wort is then boiled and the hops are added, which really adds to the flavor of the beer.
The fresh water source is a very important part of the brewing process. Arthur Guiness had a 9000 year exclusive contract for free access to the fresh water source the came from the north of the city (not from the River Liffey, which was a common misperception).
Now the wort is ready for fermentation, which is what creates the alcohol and ultimately the beer.
There are actually several kinds of Guiness, which I didn’t realize. They let us taste a new kind of Guiness called “Guiness North Star Brew”, which they just began brewing in 2006 and is a little sweeter.
Then, of course, we got our free Guiness. I was very excited to try it because I was hoping I would like it much more than back home because I’m not really a fan of it. Unfortunately, I didn’t really care for it here either, but I did drink my entire free pint (with a little help from Paul), and we got a four leaf clover in it!
The Gravity Bar where you get the free Guiness is pretty cool. Very nice views of the city (it is such a large city!), and you can see some of the Irish hills in one of the pictures.
When we got back to the hotel, we found that we had a new hotel room on the 4th floor (instead of the first floor directly above the club) and it wasn’t facing the street anymore! Also, our beds were much better (my original bed was sagging in the middle and to the right) and the room and bathroom were larger too. I’m so happy! I have a feeling we might still hear some of the bass from the club, but it should be much more tolerable. Thank goodness!
Tonight we had dinner at the hotel bar again (the other bars and restaurants around here were too crowded – that’s what we get for staying in a popular area :) – by the way, our bartender reminds me of the lead singer of Maroon 5; what’s his name? I’ll try to get a picture later) and then we went to the club for a little while, which was pretty hilarious. We decided to be wallflowers and just watch people dance. It reminded me of dancing with my girls back home (I miss you guys!). Guys are so funny to watch try to dance with girls and the girls totally ignore them. It's so great :)
Tomorrow we are just going to do some laundry and get on the internet (I’m going to do some more work to supplement our expenses).
Today we got up late and decided to be lazy for a while. Then we went to the Guiness Storehouse, but not before asking if we could change rooms, and they said they would switch them for us while we were gone!
On the way to Guiness, we saw the Christ Church Cathedral, which was the State Church of Ireland since its inception in the 12th century. We didn’t go in it, we just took pictures of the outside.
When we entered the Guiness Storehouse, we actually saw 2 of our Australian friends, Dave and Adam! How funny is that?!?! We knew they were going to be in Dublin the same time as us, but we didn’t think we would see them! They were leaving, so we didn’t talk long, but it was still cool to see someone we knew (I’ve been a little homesick lately).
So the tour of the storehouse takes you through the ingredients and then the process of brewing Guiness and why it is so distinct from any other beer. It’s a long process, which is summed up by the following pictures:
The process starts with the barley, some of which is malted in the same way that it is malted when it is used to make whiskey. However, the malted barley is dried using a kiln without peat, so that you don’t have that peat flavor, like you do in the Scotch whiskey. The fact that some of the barley is unmalted, some malted, and some roasted contributes to Guiness’ distinct flavor.
Once the barley is dried, some of it is roasted. Then all the barley is milled.
After milling, the substance is called grist. The grist is then mixed with hot water and mashed.
Once mashed, the substance is called wort. The wort is then boiled and the hops are added, which really adds to the flavor of the beer.
The fresh water source is a very important part of the brewing process. Arthur Guiness had a 9000 year exclusive contract for free access to the fresh water source the came from the north of the city (not from the River Liffey, which was a common misperception).
Now the wort is ready for fermentation, which is what creates the alcohol and ultimately the beer.
There are actually several kinds of Guiness, which I didn’t realize. They let us taste a new kind of Guiness called “Guiness North Star Brew”, which they just began brewing in 2006 and is a little sweeter.
Then, of course, we got our free Guiness. I was very excited to try it because I was hoping I would like it much more than back home because I’m not really a fan of it. Unfortunately, I didn’t really care for it here either, but I did drink my entire free pint (with a little help from Paul), and we got a four leaf clover in it!
The Gravity Bar where you get the free Guiness is pretty cool. Very nice views of the city (it is such a large city!), and you can see some of the Irish hills in one of the pictures.
When we got back to the hotel, we found that we had a new hotel room on the 4th floor (instead of the first floor directly above the club) and it wasn’t facing the street anymore! Also, our beds were much better (my original bed was sagging in the middle and to the right) and the room and bathroom were larger too. I’m so happy! I have a feeling we might still hear some of the bass from the club, but it should be much more tolerable. Thank goodness!
Tonight we had dinner at the hotel bar again (the other bars and restaurants around here were too crowded – that’s what we get for staying in a popular area :) – by the way, our bartender reminds me of the lead singer of Maroon 5; what’s his name? I’ll try to get a picture later) and then we went to the club for a little while, which was pretty hilarious. We decided to be wallflowers and just watch people dance. It reminded me of dancing with my girls back home (I miss you guys!). Guys are so funny to watch try to dance with girls and the girls totally ignore them. It's so great :)
Tomorrow we are just going to do some laundry and get on the internet (I’m going to do some more work to supplement our expenses).
Dublin Day #1
10/22/07
Today we left Edinburgh in the afternoon and flew to Dublin. Thank goodness we finally had a short direct flight! And again, they didn’t charge us for the extra luggage and the overweight luggage (the UK only allows 1 bag per person and we have 2 each), so we are thanking God for that!
When we flew over Scotland, it was so beautiful. It was like a quilt of beautiful green and some beige patches sewn together by dark green tree stitches. We can’t wait to drive across Ireland when we go from Dublin to Galway and from Galway to Belfast.
When we got to Dublin, we walked down the street a bit, but otherwise, we were pretty lazy and didn’t feel like exploring. We are getting pretty tired of sightseeing, so I don’t know how much we’ll be seeing of Dublin (definitely the Guiness Brewery and the castle, but not much else). Dublin is quite a large city with possibly as bad of traffic as DC. We’re glad we are only going to be here three days because we aren’t much of city people. Hopefully Galway is smaller and more intimate.
So we hung out at the hotel bar, which had live music, until it closed around 11. We went up to our hotel room and realized that, not only are we directly above the night club below, but it sounds almost as though we are in the night club. So needless to say, I didn’t get much sleep last night. I guess we’ll have to join them if this continues.
Today we left Edinburgh in the afternoon and flew to Dublin. Thank goodness we finally had a short direct flight! And again, they didn’t charge us for the extra luggage and the overweight luggage (the UK only allows 1 bag per person and we have 2 each), so we are thanking God for that!
When we flew over Scotland, it was so beautiful. It was like a quilt of beautiful green and some beige patches sewn together by dark green tree stitches. We can’t wait to drive across Ireland when we go from Dublin to Galway and from Galway to Belfast.
When we got to Dublin, we walked down the street a bit, but otherwise, we were pretty lazy and didn’t feel like exploring. We are getting pretty tired of sightseeing, so I don’t know how much we’ll be seeing of Dublin (definitely the Guiness Brewery and the castle, but not much else). Dublin is quite a large city with possibly as bad of traffic as DC. We’re glad we are only going to be here three days because we aren’t much of city people. Hopefully Galway is smaller and more intimate.
So we hung out at the hotel bar, which had live music, until it closed around 11. We went up to our hotel room and realized that, not only are we directly above the night club below, but it sounds almost as though we are in the night club. So needless to say, I didn’t get much sleep last night. I guess we’ll have to join them if this continues.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Edinburgh Day #7
10/21/07
Today we were going to go for another bike ride, but we woke up with sore throats again (we had sore throats yesterday too), so we decided to take it easy. And good thing too, because when we got on the bikes to return them, our butts were SO sore, we could barely make it to the bike rental company! :) When we buy our own bikes (which we plan to do in Raleigh), we are making sure they have nice cushiony seats!
So we returned the bikes and then walked down the Royal Mile to do a little (and I stress little) shopping. We are the funniest tourists. Our idea of walking around the city and doing a little shopping consists of going in two stores (where we bought three things total) and then heading to a pub where we know we like the food and beer :) So that's what we did. I believe we spent about 30 minutes shopping and then we walked to the pub (and on the way saw a bagpipe player playing for money - sort of like you'd see in a Boston T station, where a guy plays a recorder for money - and we didn't think the bagpipe player was very good, but it was still kind of cool) and had a late lunch. It was great. Then we went back to the hotel and slept for an hour and a half :) We're so lazy.
So the rest of the night we just took it easy and packed. Tomorrow we leave for Dublin. I can't believe the trip to Edinburgh is over already! But it was the perfect amount of time. See you in Dublin!
Today we were going to go for another bike ride, but we woke up with sore throats again (we had sore throats yesterday too), so we decided to take it easy. And good thing too, because when we got on the bikes to return them, our butts were SO sore, we could barely make it to the bike rental company! :) When we buy our own bikes (which we plan to do in Raleigh), we are making sure they have nice cushiony seats!
So we returned the bikes and then walked down the Royal Mile to do a little (and I stress little) shopping. We are the funniest tourists. Our idea of walking around the city and doing a little shopping consists of going in two stores (where we bought three things total) and then heading to a pub where we know we like the food and beer :) So that's what we did. I believe we spent about 30 minutes shopping and then we walked to the pub (and on the way saw a bagpipe player playing for money - sort of like you'd see in a Boston T station, where a guy plays a recorder for money - and we didn't think the bagpipe player was very good, but it was still kind of cool) and had a late lunch. It was great. Then we went back to the hotel and slept for an hour and a half :) We're so lazy.
So the rest of the night we just took it easy and packed. Tomorrow we leave for Dublin. I can't believe the trip to Edinburgh is over already! But it was the perfect amount of time. See you in Dublin!
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Edinburgh Day #6
10/20/07
Today we decided to go for a bike ride to see some of the suburbs of Edinburgh, but not after going to a restaurant called Monster Mash, which specializes in sausage and mash (you can choose what type of sausage, mash, and gravy you want!). It was so good! We lovea sausage!
I was a little timid about getting on the bike. I was afraid I was going to fall over since I haven’t been on one in years, well, at least not a non-stationary bike :) but I did fine. We biked around and outside of the city to the shore where the North Sea meets Scotland. It was really beautiful and really nice out. Here are some pictures we took along the way.
Arthur’s Seat:
Random fields:
At the Shore. Notice anything wrong in this picture?
There’s no water under those boats. Must be low tide - real low.
Shoreline:
Leith Links (a really nice big park in Leith, a suburb of Edinburgh):
Port O’ Leith bar (had to stop for a beer after 3 hours of riding):
After riding, we were worn out, but we wanted to watch the rugby finals between England (underdogs) and South Africa. So we showered and went down to our hotel bar to eat and watch the game there. Too bad we have barely understand any of the rules for rugby, but it was entertaining, and England didn't get completely demolished (South Africa won 15-6). What a strange game.
Now we are exhausted and going to bed early. We're going to bike a little more tomorrow morning, and maybe, just maybe, climb to the top of Arthur's Seat. We'll see... Scotland has gone by way too fast.
Today we decided to go for a bike ride to see some of the suburbs of Edinburgh, but not after going to a restaurant called Monster Mash, which specializes in sausage and mash (you can choose what type of sausage, mash, and gravy you want!). It was so good! We lovea sausage!
I was a little timid about getting on the bike. I was afraid I was going to fall over since I haven’t been on one in years, well, at least not a non-stationary bike :) but I did fine. We biked around and outside of the city to the shore where the North Sea meets Scotland. It was really beautiful and really nice out. Here are some pictures we took along the way.
Arthur’s Seat:
Random fields:
At the Shore. Notice anything wrong in this picture?
There’s no water under those boats. Must be low tide - real low.
Shoreline:
Leith Links (a really nice big park in Leith, a suburb of Edinburgh):
Port O’ Leith bar (had to stop for a beer after 3 hours of riding):
After riding, we were worn out, but we wanted to watch the rugby finals between England (underdogs) and South Africa. So we showered and went down to our hotel bar to eat and watch the game there. Too bad we have barely understand any of the rules for rugby, but it was entertaining, and England didn't get completely demolished (South Africa won 15-6). What a strange game.
Now we are exhausted and going to bed early. We're going to bike a little more tomorrow morning, and maybe, just maybe, climb to the top of Arthur's Seat. We'll see... Scotland has gone by way too fast.
Edinburgh Day #5
10/19/07
Today we walked down to the end of the Royal Mile to see the Palace of Holyroodhouse, which is the official residence of the Royal Family (remember, they don’t like to stay in the castle’s Royal Palace), and now I know why. This palace is gorgeous and huge with beautiful gardens and views (Arthur’s Seat, an eroded extinct volcano, is to the south of the palace).
Outside the front entrance:
One of the side gates. See Arthur’s Seat?
Here is the inside courtyard after going through the front gate:
We weren’t allowed to take pictures inside the palace, but I snuck a few. It’s amazing to see a place that is still actually being used for real royal functions and living. There is a huge dining room with silver candlesticks and beautiful paintings and tapestries.
Most rooms had huge tapestries on the walls to add color to them. In one room, Queen Elizabeth from London actually came to stay and influenced much of the tapestries and furniture in the room to make it more colorful and warm. Apparently, Scotland was too drab for her and she wanted to spruce it up.
This is a waiting room of some sort. I think people sat here to meet with the King or Queen.
This is some kind of meeting room where people came to meet with the King or Queen. See the tapestry behind the chairs.
This is the King’s bed chamber. We didn’t think the bed was very big at all, but the audio guide told us that often times the king wouldn’t even sleep here and he would sleep in a smaller bed! I guess back in those days, they didn’t have the huge beds we have today.
This is the Queen’s bed chamber. It was restored a few years ago and was permanently placed behind glass in low light to keep it from deteriorating, so it’s not a great picture.
Mary, Queen of Scots’ Bed Chamber was up the stairs in a tower. I never knew the story of her until today. She became queen when she was 6 days old (because King James V died) and was taken to France for safety until she was about 17 years old. In France, she married, but he was killed soon afterwards. Then she married Lord Darnley (her first cousin – EWWW!), which ended in his murder as well, but not until after he had Mary’s Italian secretary (David Rizzio) killed because he felt threatened by him. While married to Darnley, Mary had a son (James), who was crowned king when he was an infant, since Mary proved that she couldn’t handle being queen. Then Mary married her third husband, James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, and this created even more controversy. Mary was eventually put on trial for treason and executed at the age of 44. Craziness.
This is Holyrood Abbey, which was a church built by King David I of Scotland in 1128. The palace was actually built up after the abbey was constructed. It fell under many attacks, so it no longer has a roof and is therefore no longer used.
Behind the palace are the Royal Gardens, which are absolutely gorgeous. You can see Arthur’s Seat from these pictures. It is absolutely huge. We hiked up it after seeing the palace (just kidding, you know us better than that; we’re too lazy :)), but people do hike up it and maybe we will on a different day if we are feeling adventurous.
After the palace, we walked back towards our hotel and went to a bar to play pool. I wish I had taken a picture of the pool table. It’s only about 6 feet by 3 feet (and we are used to 8 foot tables). Because of its small size, the pockets, and therefore the balls, are smaller. Also, the balls are just red and yellow and don’t have numbers on them.
That night, we went to a nice dinner and then went on the Terror Tour, where they take you to underground vaults and tell you about ghosts and stuff. We weren’t scared, but it was interesting. In one of the vaults was a circle of stones that supposedly had bad vibes in it, and whoever steps into the circle feels like they constantly have someone following them. Only one person from the group stepped into the circle. I don’t completely believe in the paranormal, but I figure if it is for real, why piss them off?
The tour ended at the "most haunted bar" in Edinburgh. I don't know about that, but we did get a free drink and got to listen to live music. The guy was sitting on a box with wooden sides and a kind of metal front and was playing it with his hands. The girl was playing guitar. They both sang, but she sang the most. They were really good. We're glad we got to listen to live music, but we headed out early because I was tired. But, of course, we had to get pizza on the way home :) We've eaten a lot of pizza here, but it's SO good!
Today we walked down to the end of the Royal Mile to see the Palace of Holyroodhouse, which is the official residence of the Royal Family (remember, they don’t like to stay in the castle’s Royal Palace), and now I know why. This palace is gorgeous and huge with beautiful gardens and views (Arthur’s Seat, an eroded extinct volcano, is to the south of the palace).
Outside the front entrance:
One of the side gates. See Arthur’s Seat?
Here is the inside courtyard after going through the front gate:
We weren’t allowed to take pictures inside the palace, but I snuck a few. It’s amazing to see a place that is still actually being used for real royal functions and living. There is a huge dining room with silver candlesticks and beautiful paintings and tapestries.
Most rooms had huge tapestries on the walls to add color to them. In one room, Queen Elizabeth from London actually came to stay and influenced much of the tapestries and furniture in the room to make it more colorful and warm. Apparently, Scotland was too drab for her and she wanted to spruce it up.
This is a waiting room of some sort. I think people sat here to meet with the King or Queen.
This is some kind of meeting room where people came to meet with the King or Queen. See the tapestry behind the chairs.
This is the King’s bed chamber. We didn’t think the bed was very big at all, but the audio guide told us that often times the king wouldn’t even sleep here and he would sleep in a smaller bed! I guess back in those days, they didn’t have the huge beds we have today.
This is the Queen’s bed chamber. It was restored a few years ago and was permanently placed behind glass in low light to keep it from deteriorating, so it’s not a great picture.
Mary, Queen of Scots’ Bed Chamber was up the stairs in a tower. I never knew the story of her until today. She became queen when she was 6 days old (because King James V died) and was taken to France for safety until she was about 17 years old. In France, she married, but he was killed soon afterwards. Then she married Lord Darnley (her first cousin – EWWW!), which ended in his murder as well, but not until after he had Mary’s Italian secretary (David Rizzio) killed because he felt threatened by him. While married to Darnley, Mary had a son (James), who was crowned king when he was an infant, since Mary proved that she couldn’t handle being queen. Then Mary married her third husband, James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, and this created even more controversy. Mary was eventually put on trial for treason and executed at the age of 44. Craziness.
This is Holyrood Abbey, which was a church built by King David I of Scotland in 1128. The palace was actually built up after the abbey was constructed. It fell under many attacks, so it no longer has a roof and is therefore no longer used.
Behind the palace are the Royal Gardens, which are absolutely gorgeous. You can see Arthur’s Seat from these pictures. It is absolutely huge. We hiked up it after seeing the palace (just kidding, you know us better than that; we’re too lazy :)), but people do hike up it and maybe we will on a different day if we are feeling adventurous.
After the palace, we walked back towards our hotel and went to a bar to play pool. I wish I had taken a picture of the pool table. It’s only about 6 feet by 3 feet (and we are used to 8 foot tables). Because of its small size, the pockets, and therefore the balls, are smaller. Also, the balls are just red and yellow and don’t have numbers on them.
That night, we went to a nice dinner and then went on the Terror Tour, where they take you to underground vaults and tell you about ghosts and stuff. We weren’t scared, but it was interesting. In one of the vaults was a circle of stones that supposedly had bad vibes in it, and whoever steps into the circle feels like they constantly have someone following them. Only one person from the group stepped into the circle. I don’t completely believe in the paranormal, but I figure if it is for real, why piss them off?
The tour ended at the "most haunted bar" in Edinburgh. I don't know about that, but we did get a free drink and got to listen to live music. The guy was sitting on a box with wooden sides and a kind of metal front and was playing it with his hands. The girl was playing guitar. They both sang, but she sang the most. They were really good. We're glad we got to listen to live music, but we headed out early because I was tired. But, of course, we had to get pizza on the way home :) We've eaten a lot of pizza here, but it's SO good!
Friday, October 19, 2007
Edinburgh Day #4
10/18/07
Okay, so today we were hungover and just hung out in the hotel room and ate pizza :) Thankfully the pizza made me feel better, but we still didn't go out anywhere. We had been planning to take it easy anyway, so we aren't missing anything. Tomorrow we're going to go down the rest of the Royal Mile.
Okay, so today we were hungover and just hung out in the hotel room and ate pizza :) Thankfully the pizza made me feel better, but we still didn't go out anywhere. We had been planning to take it easy anyway, so we aren't missing anything. Tomorrow we're going to go down the rest of the Royal Mile.
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