Dublin

Corinne and I made it safely to Dublin yesterday morning after a long day of flying. We had a layover in Philly (the delay from Obama being at the airport caused us to have to run to the next plane) and then another in Birmingham, UK. At the airport, we were the first people to the gate (even before the crew) in a near empty terminal with ten minutes until departure time so we were a little scared the flight didnt even exist. Low and behold as the crowd and crew come waltzing in and we were led down to the tarmac and up the rickety stairs onto our one hour flight over to Dublin, Ireland.
We took the bus into town and after some confusion (street signs are rare here), we made it to our hostel. Our room was being cleaned so we left our bags and went to wander the streets of Temple Bar. After a while, our jet lag overpowered any excitement we had as we returned back to the hostel for a rest. A late dinner of traditional Irish food was interesting. I don't think Ireland is especially known for its meals, or at least I hope not.
Today we woke up early and had a complimentary breakfast before heading out to town again. We wandered up to Trinity College campus, taking lots of photos along the way. From there we went to a few churches (both big and small) and got a history lesson on a free tour where we got to touch "the lucky stone" for good health. Finally, we ended our afternoon at the Guinness Storehouse (factory) with a tour of the entire stout making process complete with a pint of the foamy beer at the top of the panoramic building. Aside from the fabulous views, both Corinne and I were pooped. We made our way home, picked up some cheap sandwiches and laid down for a rest.
Tomorrow we leave on our 3 day tour of Southern Ireland. We'll be staying in Killarny and Doolin with stops along the way at the Cliffs of Moher, Blarney castle and others too. You can see the tour info here.
That's all for now- Cheers!