Day 1 - Dublin

Before diving into the pictures, I should explain that this trip to Ireland was very spontaneous. About a week and a half ago I received an email from my good friend and fellow motorcycling enthusiast Aladin Abughazaleh. Aladin had reason to be in Dublin for business and wanted to take a few days off, rent motorcycles, and do some riding on the Emerald Isle. Would I be able to join him, the email inquired. After checking my calendar and rearranging a few business obligations, I booked a flight and lined-up a motorcycle from the same outfit Aladin was using.

It turns out that Motorcycle Rental Ireland is the only firm authorized by rent motorcycles in Ireland and they have been in business less than a year. But the owner Paul Rawlins and his manager Grace have built a nice stable of motorcycles of various makes and sizes. They arranged a BMW R1150GS for Aladin and a Ducati ST3 for me. And luckily for me, my schedule allowed me to arrive a few days before Aladin to get in even more motorcycling.

I decided to try and share a little bit of my travel journal along with a few pictures on this blog. Assuming I can get reliable Internet access in the evenings, I'll try to post a quick entry every day or two. You can click on any of the pictures below to get an enlarged view.

I arrived jet-lagged early Monday morning to a beautiful day in Dublin. It was sunny and warm and the city was very peaceful as it was a bank holiday. I arranged to go sightseeing in Dublin for the day in order to have some time to rest from the flight before mounting a motorcycle. I was staying in the hip (and touristy) "Temple Bar" neighborhood near Trinity College. The first thing I saw after stepping off the bus from the airport was a Starbucks. I suppose it shouldn't surprise me to see Starbucks everywhere, but somehow it still amazes me that this American invention has taken hold in Europe (and Ireland), where cafe society was invented, to such a great extent. Even stranger is that the Starbucks look exactly the same overseas. Identical menu, identical decor, and for the most part, identical baristas and patrons. If you were blindfolded and dropped into a Dublin Starbucks, you would never know you were not in the U.S....until someone began to speak.

Looking down the River Liffey in downtown Dublin. Check out that blue sky!!!

After dropping my bags at the hotel, I hit the town and crammed as many sights as possible into a single day of sightseeing. I spent a bunch of time just wandering the downtown area.

These guys were working very hard against a windy Dublin day.

After a nice long walk, I saw Trinity College, Dublin Castle, the Custom House, and Christ Church Cathedral. I even took in a bit of Cricket on the pitch at Trinity College.


The big highlight of the day for me (other than dinner) was seeing the Book of Kells at Temple College. The book is considered by many to be Ireland's greatest national treasure. It dates from the early 9th century and I found the entire exhibit about the making of the book amazing. They don't allow photos in the Book of Kells exhibit, but you can learn more about it here.

Architectural Detail of Christ Church Cathedral.

Finally it was time to check-in to my room and take a shower. A quick change of clothes and I was off to the nearest pub for some Irish Stew and a pint of Guinness. As expected, everyone in the pub was friendly, even the sober ones, and I had a great time watching the crowd and talking to the people around me. Then I walked back to my room and collapsed. It had been a long day.