I saw a funny sight outside the hotel while waiting for the airport bus yesterday morning: a paper deliveryman on a small motor bike. Newspapers piled on the handle bar to a height he could just see over and behind him on the pillion seat to way above his head! He alighted very cautiously and determined the balance before moving across to access a trolley. I watched in amazement expecting it to topple with each movement. More amazing... he returned a few minutes later with maybe half a dozen more!

We have a comfortable room in a lovely old semi detached house with a big back yard and beautiful gardens. Also a great hostess and breakfast cook (Joan Timlin). We started the day with a big breakfast.

There are 4 other guests, an American couple and 2 Irish men who were involved in the Gaelic football weekend across the road from the B&B.

The weather was drizzly but we weren't allowed to complain as "it hasn't rained here since Saturday".

We walked into the city (Dublin) for the day. First we visited an Internet café and emailed home, then bought tickets (7.50 pounds each) for the 'jump on and off tourist rover'... a double-decker explorer which does a tour of the city and takes in all the top spots. Each one we 'hopped on' had a great guide with interesting and funny dialogue. One even sang a couple of songs.

We visited Trinity College, which dates back to 1592 and houses 'The Book of Kells' dating back to the 9^th century. Shopping malls in the city centre were incredibly busy... the crowds unbelievable. Only on some very special event in Sydney would so many people be massed. We lunched at a corner pub in Dublin. Excellent chicken soup served by a young lady from Melbourne!

The Irish people are just as friendly as we have been told... just to stand aside studying a map would bring helpful souls to offer advice.

Dinner was at a pub around the corner from our B&B. Wonderful architecture and ambience with more friendly Irish men and women wishing to say hello. Architecture was certainly a feature of Dublin City. 

We invested in 'Heritage Passes'. At 30 Irish pounds each these proved to be excellent value. Not all sites are listed but for those that are we had unlimited entry for 12 months. There are approximately 350 listed sites in Ireland.

Not all places displayed the sign to say Heritage cards were accepted so occasionally we did see the entrance price listed and turned away only to find later we could have shown our cards.