Day 3 in Dublin: tourist attractions

Today I tried to get a little more done. I was very successful which also extends to updating the blog. Margot and I were out of the hostel by 9 a.m. Starting heading toward Guinness. Unfortunately, the girlie sized t-shirts are NOT made for girls with arms strong from rock climbing! So the super cute shirt I bought yesterday had to be exchanged for something with bigger arm holes. sucks. But the one I ended up with is super cute, too, and I tried it on in the store so I could confirm the fit. I'm smart like that!

Then we headed toward Kilmainham Gaol (pronounced and is a "jail"). http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/Dublin/KilmainhamGaol/
We got a tiny bit lost because no map of downtown Dublin shows the gaol. It was a bit of a walk but we made it. It was super slick and the guide was an amazing wealth of Irish history. We learned about all the different rebellions and wars for independence and all of the key players. It was really a great history lesson.

From there we opted to take a bus back to city centre. Not lazy, just tired and hungry. I wanted to go to Christ Church Cathedral next so just after the bus passed it, we hopped off to hunt up some grub. We stumbled upon the greatest cafe, Queen of Tarts. We each had the brie and spinach tart, foccacia, broccoli salad and green salad. It was all SUPER delicious! After our delicious lunch, we had the strength to check out a big ass church and crypt.

Christ Church Cathedral has a very long and rich history. It was the site of a Viking Church in the 11th Century. On the site is the church of today. One of the founders of the "modern" church was Laurence O'Toole, who was cannonized in 1200 something and whose heart is in a shrine in the back of the church. Neato.

Following that we opted for something a little lighter, like a shopping district! We wandered through the Powerscourt centre. It is a huge Georgian building that has been turned into an upscale/antique/jewelry mall. Then we just walked around Grafton Street, a street closed off to cars for just pedestrian shopping, and stopped for a scone and tea.

I took Margot to the bus to wish her off (and so I'd know where to get the bus tomorrow!), bought some more stamps, and went a tiny bit out of my way to go over the pedestrian bridge, the Ha'Penny Bridge. Then I headed back to the hostel to catch up on my digital committments. Go me!