Dublin, Game of Thrones, horses (of course) & a day @ SEA
Oct 26, 2016, 11:39 pm
#16
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Day 4: Game of Thrones bus tour - Part 6 - Cushendun Caves
Time for the final GoT locale: The Cushendun Caves aka shadow baby birthplace
Like a storybook, it even has a sailboat!
Can you see Scotland out there? It's about 15 miles away, but it was not a very clear day, so probably not. Still pretty cool one could if it was.
We hit a bit of traffic in and out of Belfast where we dropped off those who joined from there. Our stop was shortened as there was a some Protestant parade about to start. Our driver said they can last anywhere from an hour to 4+ hours! Mainly from the drunks vs riots like the bad days. It was about 6pm so we were outta there fast!
All in all, it was a great little tour - got to see the the 8th Wonder of the World (Giant's Causeway), a bit of city (Belfast), and a bit of country (all the villages/towns) with some pop and cultural history tossed in.
Like a storybook, it even has a sailboat!
Can you see Scotland out there? It's about 15 miles away, but it was not a very clear day, so probably not. Still pretty cool one could if it was.
We hit a bit of traffic in and out of Belfast where we dropped off those who joined from there. Our stop was shortened as there was a some Protestant parade about to start. Our driver said they can last anywhere from an hour to 4+ hours! Mainly from the drunks vs riots like the bad days. It was about 6pm so we were outta there fast!
All in all, it was a great little tour - got to see the the 8th Wonder of the World (Giant's Causeway), a bit of city (Belfast), and a bit of country (all the villages/towns) with some pop and cultural history tossed in.
Last edited by lmwong1977; Oct 26, 2016 at 11:44 pm
Oct 28, 2016, 9:51 am
#18
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Day 5: Irish National Stud Farm - Kildare
Surprisingly after that very long 12+ hour bus tour the other day, I wasn't exhausted or tired of buses. But then again, we're talking about seeing horses.
First some breakfast:
The closest I've been to an Irish stud farm before this was Coolmore Kentucky - many years ago when I was in college. Their main farm in Ireland is in the southern part of the country. Lucky for me, The Irish National Stud near Kildare is accessible via a bus that'll drop one off right in front.
The Bus Éireann to Kildare was outside the Conolly bus station and takes about an hour. The stud farm isn't a regular stop, so only certain times it stops there. The driver was very nice and let us (there was a lady with her daughter) know when the bus going back to Dublin would arrive. The bus had an outlet to charge your phone or laptop and I think wi-fi - handy for those long bus rides like this one.
The stud farm had free guided tours that take about 20 minutes or you can go around on your own.
The stud was owned by a Scottish guy (his family created Johnnie Walker scotch whiskey) who believed in astrology, loved horse racing and Japanese gardens so he put them all together. It was eventually given to the crown and now owned by Ireland. The stables have skylights so the horses can see the stars. The sculpture is a foal looking up. The round parts had constellations on it.
August is a bit of slow time for a stud farm as there no breeding and all the foals have been born. So the stallions are out in their paddocks.
Currently one of the top stallions in Europe, Invincible Spirit has a stud fee of €120,000. I Managed to film him for a few seconds before he turned his rump at us.
Some of the other stallions were more open to people's attention including the low one on the totem pole - Elusive Pimpernel, his stud fee was just €1,000. He was a pretty good runner but so far his babies haven't been burning up the track. [The farm also has his half-brother who is by Giant's Causeway]
Dragon Pulse and Gale Force Ten - both go for €5,000
Of course a stud farm is somewhat incomplete without mares and foals.
This foal was especially curious, he tried to nibble my camera afterwards.
This one is only half-thoroughbred. His mother was probably a test/teaser mare (makes sure the stallion can do the deed). The half-bred foals are later sold as riding horses.
The farm also has a family of Falabellas - the smallest breed of miniature horses (it's not a pony) for school tour purposes. They're named after The Simpsons. Homer + Marge & Maggie - mom and baby - they were getting too fat on the rich grass so were in a stall to control their eating.
The other animals there included a couple of cattle who were basically used as weed mowers as they'll eat anything. [Weird fact: one of my professors had to take out a 20lb ball of metal out of a cow's gut as it had been eating a rusting car left in its pen. It was smooth almost like a bowling ball.]
The farm also houses several retired horses in the Living Legends section. These two - Moscow Flyer and Kicking King (in back) - are retired steeplechaser/National Hunt racers (2-4 mile races with jumps over fences/hedges).
The Japanese Garden is right by the ticket office and cafe
I had the muchies and had a sandwich at their cafe.
Besides the Japanese garden is the St. Fiachra's Garden - Monastic cells
Wooden sculptures
There is also a small horseracing museum with the skeleton of Arkle (very famous 1960s steplechaser), the halters of Northern Dancer (Ky Derby winner & very famous thoroughbred sire) and Urban Sea (Champion mare and mother of Epsom Derby winners/sires Galileo and Sea the Stars - who was foaled at the National Stud).
I was hoping to get to the Curragh Racecourse (it's set to be fancied up in the next year or two), but spent so much time looking at the horses, it soon was time to go catch the bus to Dublin. FYI, there's a shuttle (comes every hour I think) from the stud farm to the shopping area in the town of Kildare and then connects to the train to Dublin.
On the bus - passing the Curragh Racecourse (way in the background)
First some breakfast:
The closest I've been to an Irish stud farm before this was Coolmore Kentucky - many years ago when I was in college. Their main farm in Ireland is in the southern part of the country. Lucky for me, The Irish National Stud near Kildare is accessible via a bus that'll drop one off right in front.
The Bus Éireann to Kildare was outside the Conolly bus station and takes about an hour. The stud farm isn't a regular stop, so only certain times it stops there. The driver was very nice and let us (there was a lady with her daughter) know when the bus going back to Dublin would arrive. The bus had an outlet to charge your phone or laptop and I think wi-fi - handy for those long bus rides like this one.
The stud farm had free guided tours that take about 20 minutes or you can go around on your own.
The stud was owned by a Scottish guy (his family created Johnnie Walker scotch whiskey) who believed in astrology, loved horse racing and Japanese gardens so he put them all together. It was eventually given to the crown and now owned by Ireland. The stables have skylights so the horses can see the stars. The sculpture is a foal looking up. The round parts had constellations on it.
August is a bit of slow time for a stud farm as there no breeding and all the foals have been born. So the stallions are out in their paddocks.
Currently one of the top stallions in Europe, Invincible Spirit has a stud fee of €120,000. I Managed to film him for a few seconds before he turned his rump at us.
Some of the other stallions were more open to people's attention including the low one on the totem pole - Elusive Pimpernel, his stud fee was just €1,000. He was a pretty good runner but so far his babies haven't been burning up the track. [The farm also has his half-brother who is by Giant's Causeway]
Dragon Pulse and Gale Force Ten - both go for €5,000
Of course a stud farm is somewhat incomplete without mares and foals.
This foal was especially curious, he tried to nibble my camera afterwards.
This one is only half-thoroughbred. His mother was probably a test/teaser mare (makes sure the stallion can do the deed). The half-bred foals are later sold as riding horses.
The farm also has a family of Falabellas - the smallest breed of miniature horses (it's not a pony) for school tour purposes. They're named after The Simpsons. Homer + Marge & Maggie - mom and baby - they were getting too fat on the rich grass so were in a stall to control their eating.
The other animals there included a couple of cattle who were basically used as weed mowers as they'll eat anything. [Weird fact: one of my professors had to take out a 20lb ball of metal out of a cow's gut as it had been eating a rusting car left in its pen. It was smooth almost like a bowling ball.]
The farm also houses several retired horses in the Living Legends section. These two - Moscow Flyer and Kicking King (in back) - are retired steeplechaser/National Hunt racers (2-4 mile races with jumps over fences/hedges).
The Japanese Garden is right by the ticket office and cafe
I had the muchies and had a sandwich at their cafe.
Besides the Japanese garden is the St. Fiachra's Garden - Monastic cells
Wooden sculptures
There is also a small horseracing museum with the skeleton of Arkle (very famous 1960s steplechaser), the halters of Northern Dancer (Ky Derby winner & very famous thoroughbred sire) and Urban Sea (Champion mare and mother of Epsom Derby winners/sires Galileo and Sea the Stars - who was foaled at the National Stud).
I was hoping to get to the Curragh Racecourse (it's set to be fancied up in the next year or two), but spent so much time looking at the horses, it soon was time to go catch the bus to Dublin. FYI, there's a shuttle (comes every hour I think) from the stud farm to the shopping area in the town of Kildare and then connects to the train to Dublin.
On the bus - passing the Curragh Racecourse (way in the background)
Oct 29, 2016, 12:37 am
#21
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Day 6: Phoenix Park & Kilmainham Gaol
It's the last full day in Dublin and final breakfast/brunch at the Hilton
I checked out and had them hold my luggage as I had my timed ticket for Kilmainham Gaol so didn't get to see if late check-out was possible.
First stop was Phoenix Park - which was huge. Some huge monuments - this is for Wellington.
TheUS embassy - Oops make that the US Ambassador's residence - thanks to PierDave for the correction.
A mini castle - Ashtown Castle circa 1430s with a mini hedge maze
Behind it was a walled garden
Then it was a quick jump over to Kilmainham Gaol - the tickets are timed so I bought them earlier in the week. There are free parts of the jail but if you want to see the cells you need to pay for a guided tour.
The first image is one of the older jail cell doors, the 2nd are the newer ones, and the image is a recreation of the drawing Grace Gifford Plunkett (cartoonist and member of Sinn Féin) drew on the wall.
The cross marks the execution area of the leaders of the 1916 Rising and the old entrance of the jail - they used to hang people from up near where those balcony's were.
Self-portrait by Constance Markievicz - 1st woman in the House of Commons and yet another copy of the proclamation
A letter from a teenager to his mom from jail before he was executed
It looks like a castle but it's just the entrance to the Irish Modern Art museum across the street from Kilmainham
Passed by the Huguenot Cemetery before catching the airport bus
I checked out and had them hold my luggage as I had my timed ticket for Kilmainham Gaol so didn't get to see if late check-out was possible.
First stop was Phoenix Park - which was huge. Some huge monuments - this is for Wellington.
The
A mini castle - Ashtown Castle circa 1430s with a mini hedge maze
Behind it was a walled garden
Then it was a quick jump over to Kilmainham Gaol - the tickets are timed so I bought them earlier in the week. There are free parts of the jail but if you want to see the cells you need to pay for a guided tour.
The first image is one of the older jail cell doors, the 2nd are the newer ones, and the image is a recreation of the drawing Grace Gifford Plunkett (cartoonist and member of Sinn Féin) drew on the wall.
The cross marks the execution area of the leaders of the 1916 Rising and the old entrance of the jail - they used to hang people from up near where those balcony's were.
Self-portrait by Constance Markievicz - 1st woman in the House of Commons and yet another copy of the proclamation
A letter from a teenager to his mom from jail before he was executed
It looks like a castle but it's just the entrance to the Irish Modern Art museum across the street from Kilmainham
Passed by the Huguenot Cemetery before catching the airport bus
Last edited by lmwong1977; Oct 30, 2016 at 2:39 pm
Oct 30, 2016, 10:19 am
#22
Join Date: Sep 2015
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Great trip report and photos - I live in Dublin and love seeing it from other perspectives in trip reports such as this.
(And just for your info, that is the US Ambassador's residence in your photo as opposed to the US Embassy, which is located in the Ballsbridge area of the city.)
(And just for your info, that is the US Ambassador's residence in your photo as opposed to the US Embassy, which is located in the Ballsbridge area of the city.)
Oct 30, 2016, 3:58 pm
#24
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HIE - Dublin Airport and DUB-ORD-SEA
Oh forgot I stopped at a pub off Grafton for dinner. Had beef stew the night before so went seafood and had a salmon plate and a warm brownie for desert.
Oh yeah saw this amusing sign about picking up one's dog's poop.
Bye Dublin
Once at the airport, walked over to where the shuttle bus comes. It takes you to the Crown Plaza but the HIE is right next it. It was the usual Holiday Inn express hotel with the blue lights restroom. Internet worked, and bed was firm (which I prefer).
They were just setting up breakfast when I left the hotel and I was still half asleep so forgot ask for a go box.
Grabbed some food at the airport and bought some chocolates (Butlers + baileys truffles) & cookies for presents. Global entry lines were short but took a lot of time as a lot of people had no idea how to work the machines and they only had a 2 workers to help with I think 6 machines.
Flight was OK. But the front bathroom went out of service like 20 minutes into the flight.
Option was chicken or pasta. Should of picked pasta, there's some weird sauce on the rice.
I had 3.5 hour layover in ORD so grabbed a pizza at Wolfgang Puck (plus a sandwich from another place for the flight to Seattle)
Lucky I had nobody in the middle seat for the flight to Seattle. The outlet was loose so kinda annoying to push my charger back in every few minutes. It was an easy ride from the airport to Westlake to the Hyatt.
Oh yeah saw this amusing sign about picking up one's dog's poop.
Bye Dublin
Once at the airport, walked over to where the shuttle bus comes. It takes you to the Crown Plaza but the HIE is right next it. It was the usual Holiday Inn express hotel with the blue lights restroom. Internet worked, and bed was firm (which I prefer).
They were just setting up breakfast when I left the hotel and I was still half asleep so forgot ask for a go box.
Grabbed some food at the airport and bought some chocolates (Butlers + baileys truffles) & cookies for presents. Global entry lines were short but took a lot of time as a lot of people had no idea how to work the machines and they only had a 2 workers to help with I think 6 machines.
Flight was OK. But the front bathroom went out of service like 20 minutes into the flight.
Option was chicken or pasta. Should of picked pasta, there's some weird sauce on the rice.
I had 3.5 hour layover in ORD so grabbed a pizza at Wolfgang Puck (plus a sandwich from another place for the flight to Seattle)
Lucky I had nobody in the middle seat for the flight to Seattle. The outlet was loose so kinda annoying to push my charger back in every few minutes. It was an easy ride from the airport to Westlake to the Hyatt.
Oct 30, 2016, 4:45 pm
#25
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Seattle: Grand Hyatt
I used my yearly free certificate for the Grand Hyatt Seattle for my one day stay
Breakfast at Biscuit B*tch (the name amused me so took a chance on some cheesy goodness). Slight line when I got there, not much seating if you're not the first 10 people in line.
On the way to the fish market was the first Starbucks and ordered an overpriced latte (technically it was free since I used Kellogg points for Starbucks credit). There were 4 Japanese tourists who bought over $100 each of bags of coffee and cups.
Too late for fish tossing but lots of frozen fish
Some Pigs On Parade art
Big Foot sighting!
Then it was onto a ferry to see Bainbridge Island and managed to catch a view of the space needle before it started to rain
Found a horse! OK so it's wooden, but hey connection to the Emerald Isle on an island near the Emerald City. It was outside the little museum they have. I grabbed some pastries at the Blackbird Bakery which was super crowded due to the rain before heading back to the ferry terminal.
It was still raining in Seattle proper, checked email and soon checked out of the Hyatt at 2pm and took the train back to the airport. Airport was super uncrowded so really didn't need to get there 2 hours like they warn. Spotted some Pearl Jam posters. Flight was nothing special and so ends my travels.
Breakfast at Biscuit B*tch (the name amused me so took a chance on some cheesy goodness). Slight line when I got there, not much seating if you're not the first 10 people in line.
On the way to the fish market was the first Starbucks and ordered an overpriced latte (technically it was free since I used Kellogg points for Starbucks credit). There were 4 Japanese tourists who bought over $100 each of bags of coffee and cups.
Too late for fish tossing but lots of frozen fish
Some Pigs On Parade art
Big Foot sighting!
Then it was onto a ferry to see Bainbridge Island and managed to catch a view of the space needle before it started to rain
Found a horse! OK so it's wooden, but hey connection to the Emerald Isle on an island near the Emerald City. It was outside the little museum they have. I grabbed some pastries at the Blackbird Bakery which was super crowded due to the rain before heading back to the ferry terminal.
It was still raining in Seattle proper, checked email and soon checked out of the Hyatt at 2pm and took the train back to the airport. Airport was super uncrowded so really didn't need to get there 2 hours like they warn. Spotted some Pearl Jam posters. Flight was nothing special and so ends my travels.
Oct 30, 2016, 10:48 pm
#26
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Black pudding - is made out of oatmeal and congealed pigs blood. No meat involved.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/fo...dding-51145600
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/fo...dding-51145600
Oct 30, 2016, 11:06 pm
#27
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I have to laugh at your "found a horse" statement. I suspect you are like me, marveling over the snaffles in the museums that are 2000 years old because look just like they do today; spending LOTS of time looking the harnesses; spotting horses in distant fields no matter where you are; seeing an arena full of jumps or some such thing and looking looking looking for the riders...
Oct 31, 2016, 5:18 am
#28
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Great report. Thanks for the info. The GOT trip looks good. Its great for the area a friend of mine is spending 6 weeks in Spain at the moment working for them then back to Ireland for the Winter is coming shots when it is actual winter. Going to base ourselves in Northern Ireland for a trip next year and by the looks of it we could do it all in a day or two.
Oct 31, 2016, 10:31 am
#29
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: BWI
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Nice trip report. Thanks for taking the time to do it!
Loved the pictures of the wooden horse sculptures.
Local sidenote here...Northern Dancer was a grandchild of the great Native Dancer. The horse Native Dancer is local to me here in Baltimore, Maryland. The farm where he stood was Sagamore Farm and it was owned by Albert Vanderbilt III and is now owned by Kevin Plank (Under Armour founder)
It was interesting how you said that one of the places was turned over to the government. We were on a cruise and saw another place that was like that. I don't remember if it was England, Ireland or Northern Ireland. Anyway, the guide said that when they turn over the place to the government, they also have to provide funds for the upkeep. Otherwise, every family that had a downturn would just dump the estate on the government.
Loved the pictures of the wooden horse sculptures.
Local sidenote here...Northern Dancer was a grandchild of the great Native Dancer. The horse Native Dancer is local to me here in Baltimore, Maryland. The farm where he stood was Sagamore Farm and it was owned by Albert Vanderbilt III and is now owned by Kevin Plank (Under Armour founder)
It was interesting how you said that one of the places was turned over to the government. We were on a cruise and saw another place that was like that. I don't remember if it was England, Ireland or Northern Ireland. Anyway, the guide said that when they turn over the place to the government, they also have to provide funds for the upkeep. Otherwise, every family that had a downturn would just dump the estate on the government.
Last edited by farbster; Oct 31, 2016 at 10:36 am Reason: add stuff
Nov 1, 2016, 10:26 am
#30
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Black pudding - is made out of oatmeal and congealed pigs blood. No meat involved.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/fo...dding-51145600
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/fo...dding-51145600
I have to laugh at your "found a horse" statement. I suspect you are like me, marveling over the snaffles in the museums that are 2000 years old because look just like they do today; spending LOTS of time looking the harnesses; spotting horses in distant fields no matter where you are; seeing an arena full of jumps or some such thing and looking looking looking for the riders...
Great report. Thanks for the info. The GOT trip looks good. Its great for the area a friend of mine is spending 6 weeks in Spain at the moment working for them then back to Ireland for the Winter is coming shots when it is actual winter. Going to base ourselves in Northern Ireland for a trip next year and by the looks of it we could do it all in a day or two.
Nice trip report. Thanks for taking the time to do it!
Loved the pictures of the wooden horse sculptures.
Local sidenote here...Northern Dancer was a grandchild of the great Native Dancer. The horse Native Dancer is local to me here in Baltimore, Maryland. The farm where he stood was Sagamore Farm and it was owned by Albert Vanderbilt III and is now owned by Kevin Plank (Under Armour founder)
It was interesting how you said that one of the places was turned over to the government. We were on a cruise and saw another place that was like that. I don't remember if it was England, Ireland or Northern Ireland. Anyway, the guide said that when they turn over the place to the government, they also have to provide funds for the upkeep. Otherwise, every family that had a downturn would just dump the estate on the government.
Loved the pictures of the wooden horse sculptures.
Local sidenote here...Northern Dancer was a grandchild of the great Native Dancer. The horse Native Dancer is local to me here in Baltimore, Maryland. The farm where he stood was Sagamore Farm and it was owned by Albert Vanderbilt III and is now owned by Kevin Plank (Under Armour founder)
It was interesting how you said that one of the places was turned over to the government. We were on a cruise and saw another place that was like that. I don't remember if it was England, Ireland or Northern Ireland. Anyway, the guide said that when they turn over the place to the government, they also have to provide funds for the upkeep. Otherwise, every family that had a downturn would just dump the estate on the government.
Gotta love Native Dancer - I always bet on greys. Maryland has a long history in horse racing - including the only Triple Crown winners who were father and son -- Gallant Fox (1930) and Omaha (1935) were owned by Belair Stud near Bowie, MD. And more recently two-time Horse of the Year Cigar was born in Bel Air, MD.
That was quite smart to make sure they don't end up with tons of expensive estates. I remember on PBS there was an adaptation of Edith Wharton's unfinished novel The Buchaneers, where young titled estate holders married young American heiresses to help pay for their mansions.