Ireland: Dublin (Friday, February 29) — Part 1 (afternoon)

Written Friday, February 29 at 2:58 pm, Dublin (at the hotel)

We arrived in Dublin a bit early, I think.  I pulled my suitcase out into the terminal, got a chicken, cheese, and stuffing panini, and then hopped on the Luas tram for a €1.50 ride to Abbey Street, less than two blocks from my hotel.

Makes me look forward to when our light rail in Seattle will be done, next year.  I’ll be able to catch a bus less than a block from the house, switch to the tram after about a 5 minute ride, and then take a 20 minute ride right to the airport.  It will take a bit longer (and take more timing) than just getting in the car, but it will generally be quite convenient.

I’m going to go out for a bit and wander O’Connell Street, and probably down to Forbidden Planet.  I expect to hit both Guinness Storehouse and the National Museum (for the Viking exhibit) tomorrow.

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Updated on January 11, 2010

Seattle light rail is open now, and I’ve taken it to and from the airport a few times.  I’ve found that catching the bus a block from the house isn’t much fun at 6:00 am in the rain.  And I’ve found that the last bus past the light rail station on the way home is sometimes before my flight gets in, so I have to hoof it home.  (Which is about a 15 minute walk, not bad unless I’m lugging heavy luggage.)

Until recently, I’ve had to catch a shuttle bus from the last train station to the airport.  I’ll be heading to Washington DC this coming weekend for Mid-Atlantic Leather, and they just opened the final leg all the way to the airport a month ago — well, with a few blocks walk at the end, through the parking garage apparently — so we’ll see how that changes things.  Of course, I’ll also probably be schlepping the 50 pound portable sling…