DUBLIN ROCKS PART III: HOWTH IS MAGIC!

Our last and final destination during our visit to Ireland, was a small coastal town of Howth.  Howth is located on a peninsula about 10 miles north of Dublin City Center and just a quick 30 minute train from where were staying. As you can imagine, the aftermath of our awesome Pub crawl was lurking upon us as set out to explore this township all the locals had been raving about. We didn’t get more than 100 yards from our hostel before we stopped for a Guinness...The Hair of the Dog that Bit You…Whatever that means.

Next stop was a quick walking tour through Trinity College (400 years old) and the Book of Kells (transcript of the 4 Gospels dated back to 800AD). The weather in Dublin is refreshingly clear and crisp so walking through this historical campus was truly a breath of fresh air. We were so thankful that it hadn’t rained for us yet, as we were told it had rained for 3 weeks straight prior to our visit!

After touring the college we stumbled upon an exhibit in their Science Gallery called BIO RHYTHM. It was swamped with families and kids, so we didn’t stay long, but it was a very interesting exhibit relating sound with the body.

Up next was a short, but painful, train ride to Howth. Neither of us knew what to expect from this place, we were just told we had to go. Once we reached our destination it was time for lunch, so we walked the coast looking for a place to eat. First impression, I would relate this area to Seaport Village in the San Diego Harbor. Fresh fish were literally being caught and served on the spot, but the fruits of my labor from the night before weren’t feeling it…if you know what I mean. We settle in a restaurant called the Oar House and dined for over 2 hours, Tim having Fish N chips, and I had a simple pasta dish. Truthfully, neither of us wanted to get up and luckily Europeans don’t mind you taking your time. Atlas, we were feeling up to par and decided to take another lap around and explore a little more.

Kids and families were buying fish to feed the cute fat sea lions, and locals were fishing for their daily catch over the pier. It was such a cool atmosphere to soak in. Feeling 110% better than before, I saw someone with ice cream, and began the hunt. To our surprise this ice cream cone led us to an adventure we would have never expected! Long story short(er) we followed a few teenagers up a hill that we saw people coming down as we ate our dessert. We figured it was just a local road with better views of this amazing coast line.

We took a few pics, but kept walking to see what was next. Finally we arrived at the Cliff trail. Collectively we decided to up the ante and go for this hike that was quoted to be shy of 2 hours. To our TOTAL surprise, this was by far one of the coolest experiences, phenomenal views, and breathtaking pictures that our camera can barely give justice. Every time we turned a corner we yelped with excitement because it was beyond words what we were looking at. Crashing waves, soaring sea birds, lavish green hillsides, and cliffs that dropped off into a blue sea of mist. It was truly beautiful. Tim and I fell in love with Ireland on this hike and couldn’t wait to explore further. The sun was starting to set so we decided to head back to catch a train back to City Center. We took a charming path through the actual town of Howth and got to see the beautiful houses and adorable neighborhoods. BTW-Irish people are the nicest people on the planet! We stumbled upon the Summit Inn-a local landmark and stopped in for yet another Guinness. From here were continued our walk through town and fell in love with it that much more. Everything about this place was truly magical! (Howth is Magic is their slogan and website) We passed about 10 restaurants and 6 bars before we stopped in for, you guessed it, another Guinness! Turns out the bar we chose was a local fisherman’s bar. It didn’t even have a women’s restroom! Luckily, women were allowed (I asked) and they had one next store. We missed our initial train, and the one after that, before we decided to take the last train out for the night and grab dinner. All the restaurants were full with reservations, but we found 2 seats at the bar at a place next store to where we ate lunch. We dined on yummy fresh seafood and wine while having the best time reflecting on the adventures of the day.

After our bottle of wine, we were convinced we wanted to pick up and move there. So was the bartender ;) It was sad to say goodbye, but we trained it back to Dublin City Center on cloud nine. On our way back to the hostel we stopped in (for a Guinness) at The Bank, which was an actual bank made into a bar. It was very cool, but we were slightly under dressed in our workout attire and Nike’s. To our demise, our second wind kicked in, and we found ourselves changed and hittin’ the streets looking for a good time. Two nightclubs and a bar later, we were well versed in Ciders, Irish stouts, and astoundingly MOJITOS! Two words will say it all….DONER KEBOB!!!!