I was doing a weekend in Dublin (flying in from Philadelphia when I was working in New Jersey). I flew in on a red-eye, met up with some friends and we went out touring Dublin and drinking.

Around 10:30 PM, after a red-eye flight and a day of drinking, I was ready for bed. Back when I had booked my flight, I also booked a hostel online. I felt pretty lucky to get something, especially something for 28 Euros a night. The weekend I was in town, just outside of Dublin, the Ryder’s Cup golf tournament was being played, and most of the hotel rooms were booked. Those that weren’t booked were charging three to four hundred Euros a night! As I walked back from the pub, I was happy to know that I had a place to sleep in a town that was almost fully booked.

The staff at the hostel had no idea who I was. “Sorry, but I don’t have the reservation and all the beds are booked for both tonight and tomorrow,” he said.

Like Joseph and Mary, there was no room for me at the Inn. The company that I had booked the hostel with had, apparently, not passed on my reservation to the hostel. It wasn’t the first time this had occurred, apparently, the hostel staff said.

The staff was sympathetic, and made an offer. “I can, however, grab some blankets and pillows, and you can sleep on the couch for free.”

The bible is silent on what it was like to try and sleep in a manger full of animals, but I do know that trying to sleep in the common room of a hostel on a Friday night, on a couch that is located beside a pool table is not easy. Drunken revelers were coming from a night out in Dublin, and taking the opportunity for a game of pool. This continued until around 5 in the morning, and I slept fitfully. From five until seven, I got some sleep, but then the hostel staff started setting up for breakfast, and the crashing dishes kept me from getting any more sleep. I grabbed a quick shower and, feeling very tired, headed out to see Dublin.

The first thing I did was go to an internet cafe, go online and book a hotel room for €180.