Happy St. Patrick’s Day! // Dublin, Ireland
This past weekend I checked off one of the top items on our European bucket list: to celebrate St. Paddy’s in DUBLIN, Ireland. Our visit was a ton of fun, but honestly, more surprising than anything. Sure, the big parade is taking place today but actually the holiday is mostly celebrated there by tourists, not locals. While we were bewildered to find the buildings and streets not decked out in green and shamrocks, we were delighted by all the things we were able to do because of our unexpected ease in getting around.
It felt like the weekend was a whirl of pubs, sights and potatoes- in a great way. Some of our favorite stops were:
1 | Touring the Guinness Storehouse –
We loved the self-guided tour of the storehouse and were so impressed with the interior design of the building. During our visit we enjoyed beer tastings, learned how to craft the perfect pour, and even learned a traditional Irish dance. I also enjoyed learning about the nostalgic marketing campaign “My Goodness My Guinness” and the Guinness factory’s famous 9,000 year land lease. The view from the Gravity Bar on the top floor was a winner too!
I made this funky little gif with my iPhone and ABM’s ‘Party Party‘ app!
2 | Listening to live music at The Brazen Head
At Dublin’s oldest pub, the food is awesome and the music is even better. Dan fell in LOVE with a phenomenal banjo player named Joshua Laughlin. We’d absolutely love a CD but can’t seem to track him down. If anyone ever meets this guy, please get his contact info for me! 😀
3 | Sipping drinks at the Jameson Distillery
Despite all the guided tours being sold out, we made our way to the Jameson Distillery per the recommendations of Christine (A Keane Sense of Adventure) and Sarah (Sarah Sees The World). Sure enough, the drinks were absolutely delicious and the interior gorgeous. Beautiful exposed wood beams hang from the ceiling while an impressive glass floor reveals the original stone distillery mill in the earth below. If anything, the lack of a tour is just another reason to go back!
4| Joining in on a Literary Pub Crawl
After Julia spotted a great literary pub crawl on TripAdvisor for Sunday night, we immediately jumped for tickets. No, none of us are classic literary experts (come on, who doesn’t love Katniss?) but with ‘pub’ in the title and great reviews we thought it’d be worth a shot. We ended up absolutely loving the 3 hour tour through Dublin and the beautiful Trinity College. The tour was lead by two lively actors, serving as our guides, we listened intently (and laughed) as they quoted the Greats who once roamed Dublin’s streets.
5 | Partied in basement of The Bruxelles
Just off of Grafton Street, hidden down a side corridor of The Bruxelles is the coolest and tiniest little party-room in Dublin. We joined a few Trinity students (who almost immediately asked us “how’d you know about this place?!”) for Guinness’s under the low, subway tiled ceiling.
6 | Danced the night away at Bad Bob’s in Temple Bar
Alllll my favorite songs accompanied by a live saxophonist! We hung out at Bad Bob’s for HOURS – singing, dancing and praising the amazing saxophonist that strolled through the bar as she played. It was definitely an experience unlike any other!
Like our sweet St. Patty’s day gear?
7 | Ran the Dublin 5K!
We joined the locals for a fun-run through the city on Sunday morning. It was a chilly but a much-needed sweaty start to our day! Yep, you bet I rocked my fascinator for the run too! 😉
Sending a virtual pinch your way if you’re not sporting green right now!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day friends! Sláinte!