That's what I heard everytime I walked into a pub in Dublin and sat down. I loved interaction with people in Dublin and the Guinness was outstanding. Right when I arrived, it was about 11 in the morning and I only slept about 2 hours on the plane but I knew I had to keep going. I got off a bus and was met but my wonderful friend, Steph who put my bags in her office so I could go out and travel.
My first stop was the Jameson distillery which was quite nice. It was pretty interesting to learn the whole process and at the end, we got to taste Jameson against the once-distilled taste of Jack Daniels and the twice-distilled Johnny Walker Black Label. Jameson is distilled three times which is why it's so smooth they said. I also tried a special 12 year distillery reserve they had and it wasn't bad.
I actually lied up above, my first stop was actually the first pub i saw for a pint of Guinness. I just walked in and had to get one! I hit a huge wall around 4 or so and went to a pub to wait for my buddy, Tommy. He got to the pub and I was almost drifting off with a Guinness in my hand. We walked to his place which was an awesome little house his sister owns. It was absolutely perfect: Living room, two bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen and nice little garden area to hang clothes. Absolutely beautiful and everything one needs. I hopped in the shower then caught a second wind so Tommy took me to the park to show me Hurling. Basically, lacrosse is for sissies compared to hurling, look it up. No protective gear minus a helmut, they use wooden axe-like sticks and hit hard; I learned first-hand.
The next day, I went to the Guinness Storehouse and poured a pint which was cool. I went to sky bar which has a 360° view of Dublin which was beautiful. I asked one of the bartenders where the best place for a pint of Guinness was and went there to drink and write a bit before meeting up with Tommy.
After work, we went to some horse races which was great! The basics go like this: get a pint, go check out the horses, look at the odds, think about a bet and how to bet it, place the bet, hit the stands and watch the horses run the race, curse or cheer depending on your bet, then do it all over again every half hour. Needless to say, it was awesome even though I never won a bet. Tommy is the one in the back center.
I had met a bunch of Tommy's work friends at the races and the next night we all went out again and I met several more. What great people they all are. We all got along so well and I met Adam DeVine's doppelganger which was hilarious. Looked exactly like him and he and I had a ball. We got home late Friday night and then around half eleven on Saturday (11:30), Tommy and I went out for a last pint before he headed off to his home town and I headed to the airport. It was short and sweet and unforgettable.
I could definitely see myself living in Dublin and I hear that musicians do well there. It's a simple life and that is the best life in my opinion. Another city may call my name while I'm out here, but there's something about Dublin that calls to me... must be the water they put in the Guinness.
I'm in Edinburgh now and I'll be checking in during the week. Enjoy that beautiful weather my friends.
Tony G
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