One of our favorite places to go.....Ireland!!

After our trip to Ireland last March we knew we wanted to go back at some point.  Little did we know at that time, we would have the opportunity to do it just a year later.  While having a few pints of Guinness at an Irish pub in downtown Ktown sometime in January or Februrary with Toni and Warren, we decided that a trip to Dublin, Ireland needed to be in our future.  We planned a trip while I was on Spring break and before we knew it we were back in Dublin.

Instead of getting a car and driving around the countryside, this time we decided to stay in Dublin and see many of the sights the city has to offer that we didn't get to see last time we were there.  We went all over the city.  Some of the stops we made were the Guinness Storehouse (again :)), the old Jameson distillery, the old Dublin Jail, Trinity College and the Book of Kells, the Temple Bar area as well as many different restaurants and pubs.

We were selected to do some whiskey tasting!

Along the Liffey

Dennis - We found the perfect fire department for you :)

Learning how to pour the perfect pint of Guinness

We are master pourers and even have the certificate to prove it ;)

Overlooking Dublin at the top of the Guinness Storehouse

The old Dublin jail

The Liffey River

The library at Trinity College

Christs Church Cathedral

Some of the bars in the Temple Bar area

We had a fun time hanging out at this bar one night.  The bartender was really nice and we even walked away with some free stuff!  We got a really cool bar mat and a t-shirt after closing down the bar with him and staying for one last drink after he kicked everyone else out.  

The Porterhouse - This was our favorite pub/microbrewery that we visited numerous times :)

We also took a little side trip to a town outside of Dublin called Dalkey.  We walked around the town and hiked along the coastline.

I think that brings us up to date for now.  We are going on a weekend hiking trip along the Rhine next week and we will post a new blog after that trip.  Brandon is heading home in a few weeks for Ian's graduation and we have a trip to Munich planned for Memorial Day weekend (the day after he gets back :)).  I will be heading home in June as soon as school is done and the day after I get back from that trip Greg and Kristin will be coming to spend about 10 days with us.  We are going to show them around here as well as take a few day trip to Rome, Italy.  Those are the trips we have in the books, but I'm sure many more will happen over the Summer!  We are so excited for warm weather and daylight until after 10:00 at night!