Doors and Floors of Dublin

 

After more than a year of planning and even more years of dreaming, we made it to IRELAND! Lady Hiva has wanted to go to Ireland for her birthday for as long as I have known her. Maybe longer, but for sure since we have known each other. We have gone to all of the countries around Ireland, but for some reason we have never been to Ireland. We decided to make it happen this year for Lady Hiva's bug 4-0 birthday! 

We booked tickets and planned the trip for nearly a year. We were all excited to go, especially Lady Hiva. We had all our flights and hotels booked! Then the week before we were supposed to go, Lady Hiva's mum got sick. We had to cancel our trip so she could go spend time with her mum before she died. I was so glad that we were able to change our flights and all the hotels with only minimal cost. I had to just choose a week to go. But then we realized that it was the week Lucky Dragon had a huge school project and work was busy Lady Hiva wanted to cancel the trip again!!! I pushed to go . It is not every day you turn 40! 

We all worked together. Lucky Dragon finished his project and worked with his team to video his part early. I was proud of him for making it happen. It was an amazing trip. I am so glad that we made it! The next several blogs will record our trip. 

It was cold and beautiful. We spent every moment possible outside. Our first stop on the trip was Dublin. We loved the city. There was so much to see and explore. We loved the history of the city and all of the flowers and trees of Spring. We all found ourselves wanting to take photos with the flora and fauna. 

I was also captured by the floors and doors throughout the city. In taking all these photos the only thing I wish was that photos captured the beauty you see with your eyes. Photos are amazing, it is never quite as captivating as real life. 

These two are amazing travelers. They willingly wake up at odd times and help with bags, carts, and help us find directions (we have them practice reading the signs and flight tables to get us to the correct place). They are pros at going through security and immigration. All of the flight attendants love to talk with them because they are full of respect (thankfully) and kindness. 

The two Muggles were so interested that part of the floor in the cathedrals had crossbones and gravesites. This was the beginning of our fascination of the floors. One of the cathedrals had a scavenger hunt for kids that was finding different objects and shapes in the floors around the vast rooms. 

The doors were just as unique throughout the city. I often found myself stopping to admire a door and wonder what stories laid behind the houses it protected and the people who knocked. 

Below is St Mary's Cathedral in Dublin. It is a vast cavern with a large rotunda. It is set off the main section of old Dublin and is not as old as Christ Church Cathedral or St Patrick's Cathedral, but it is still amazing to see. 

One day it was raining and we were looking for a quick place to stay dry. There is no better place to choose than a quirky doughnut shop! These doughnuts were large and fluffy and more like a whole dessert. The one I ate (yes I did eat a doughnut--something I usually do not do) was apple pie--complete with apple pie filling middle. Each of us got a different version and we all liked them. We had a good laugh when Lucky Dragon, who had tried to get a loose tooth to fall out all week eating apples, had his tooth come out when he ate his first bite! HAHA. 

Each of the cathedrals had a scavenger hunt and events for each of the children to experience. I loved that they had a way to engage them in a place that normally may not be of interest. Lucky Dragon loved the display about the organ pipes in St Patrick's Cathedral. It walked through the history of the organ and the science behind creating all of the sounds. 

St Patrick's Cathedral was big and amazing to see. We spent quite a bit of time outside in the part near by and then exploring all the recesses of the reverent building. 

Below is Christ Church Cathedral. I think for character, I liked this cathedral better than St Patrick's. It also had some amazing floors! Some of the best we have seen. 

As we walked around we happened to find the popular H'enny Penny Bridge! 

Our first breakfast in Dublin was in Lemon Jelly restaurant. It started our love for English/Irish breakfasts for the rest of the trip! Lady Hiva always wanted her baked beans and eggs each day. I liked the sausage and fresh yogurt. 

We were so excited that we found a Lego store and a Disney store in Dublin! Disney stores are closing all over the United States so to go in one, was exciting for all of us. Lucky Dragon bought some Legos and it was fun to see his creations with them as we sat in the hotel room. 

The two Muggles were so fascinated by wool stores that had videos on how wool clothes are made from beginning to end. 

Every park that we passed, we went in and wandered around. One of the parks the two Muggles laid down the the grass and just rolled around. Clearly we all missed being in nature! 

Dublin Castle was so well done. It was not a planned stop, but we happened to walk by. We were some of the last people given tickets at the end of the day, which meant we had the place nearly to ourselves. It was special to walk through the beautifully restored halls and learn about the country's history. 

Again, they had a scavenger hunt for the kids. We all learned something from the experience because both kids wanted to complete the challenge!

Look at those floors!! So beautiful! 

BURGERSS!! Five Guys never lets us down! So happy they are a global company!

One of our favorite stops for all of us was the Trinity Campus and the Old Library to see the Book of Kells. Again, we loved learning about the history of the library and the science behind making the book of Kells. It was so cool to learn what elements of nature they used to create the colorful dyes and ink. 

Nature!!! 

It was so nice to just sit on the grass as a family and enjoy. We were on a trip that was a true holiday. Not cancer or death related, just traveling as a family. 

I told Lady Hiva that I loved seeing the fields of Ireland. Instead of squares and circles that are uniform, each one was unique. Unique in shape, in color, in texture. But it was all beautiful! Much like the diversity of life--we are all different--sizes, shapes, and colors. We are all unique and we love that! 

Dublin was an amazing way to start our trip! We were so glad that we did start there. It set the standard for the rest of the trip! More amazing photos are experiences ahead!