To make the most of our one full-day in Dublin, I had reserved tickets for the Hop On, Hop Off Dublin Tour, so we walked through St. Stephen’s Green, up Grafton Street, and up O’Connell to join the tour at its first stop, near the Dublin Bus Headquarters. We stayed on the bus until Kilmainham Gaol, which played an important role in much of Irish history from the 1780s until it was closed in 1924. For instance, several leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising were executed at Kilmainham Gaol, and their deaths swayed support towards the rebels.
After the guided tour of the gaol, we walked to the Guinness Storehouse for lunch (at Gilroy’s). After taking the self-guided tour through the Storehouse, we enjoyed our included pints of Guinness at the Gravity Bar and took in the 360-degree view. The Storehouse is much more crowded in May than it ever was in January…
From the Storehouse, we hopped back on the Hop On, Hop Off bus and took it to the Bachelor’s Walk stop. We walked from there to Nassau Street for some quick shopping and then back to the hotel for a break.
For dinner, we headed back to the North side of St. Stephen’s Green for an eloquent meal at Il Posto. Although a little loud, the restaurant features delicious Italian meals and a nice wine menu. The calamari appetizer was tasty, but the real treat was the main course risotto. My mom tried a mushroom risotto, while I enjoyed Risotto di Mare (risotto with mussels, prawns, and squid). The risottos seemed to use same base, which was a delightful surprise for not being too salty. The flavors were rich and complex, with a hint of salt, but not an overwhelming dose. My dad tried the linguine with lemon sauteed mussels, white wine, chili and garlic, which also was tasty. Overall, a lovely way to end our time in Dublin!
(P.S. Getting to the airport on Saturday was a bit of an adventure, and we won’t be recommending our Dublin hotel, but we made our flight in the nick of time thanks to the hospitality of an off-duty taxi driver. Advice for anyone flying out of Dublin: If your flight includes pre-flight clearance for customs, arrive extra early. The perk is that you don’t have to clear customs when you land in the United States, but the downside is that you have extra security check points and customs requirements in Ireland.)