Our last night in Ireland was spent in Dublin at the Clontarf Castle Hotel. While all of our hotels were pretty nice, this one took the cake. I mean, we were staying in a castle. How cool is that? It was amazing when we walked into the lobby, but when we got to our room, we were blown away. First, there was air conditioning. While Ireland was never that hot, it was warm at night and we always slept with a window open to cool off. The AC definitely was a treat. Second, there was a king size bed. Hallelujah! After sleeping in a double bed for almost two weeks, I wanted to sing. Third, there was an HD TV with some American channels. Not that we spent a lot of time watching said TV, but it was nice to have it on while we were getting ready. And yes, I realize this makes me sound incredible spoiled. That's ok. Of course, I didn't take any pictures of our room, but it was incredible. Trust me.
This is the entrance to the hotel, which was tucked away in a suburb of Dublin. I wish there was a castle tucked away in a suburb of Denver. Sigh.
The front of the hotel.
This is the view from our room.
This lovely piece of chocolate cake was delivered to our room right after we arrived, as arranged by our awesome travel agent. I was excited to take a picture of food again! The beautiful quenelle that looks like ice cream? It's not. It's straight up unsweetened whipped cream. That I took a large bite of because I didn't want it to melt. And then my eyes watered and I spit it out. That was not so pleasant but the rest of it was quite delicious.
The concierge delivered this to us, and I joked that it would put a damper on my run. He asked if I knew where to run, and I said no. He replied with I have a great easy 12k route that I'll show you down by the water. I laughed and whimpered and said he had greatly overestimated my running skills. I have never, nor do I ever plan to, run a 12k. This girl can barely do a 5k. He gave me a shortened route, and I couldn't even do that. And...he was in his 60s! I'm weak. So I ate cake because I can't run that far.
The concierge delivered this to us, and I joked that it would put a damper on my run. He asked if I knew where to run, and I said no. He replied with I have a great easy 12k route that I'll show you down by the water. I laughed and whimpered and said he had greatly overestimated my running skills. I have never, nor do I ever plan to, run a 12k. This girl can barely do a 5k. He gave me a shortened route, and I couldn't even do that. And...he was in his 60s! I'm weak. So I ate cake because I can't run that far.
This guy greets you when you walk in....well, not literally. It's non-speaking armor. Wouldn't that freak you out??
The lobby.
This was taken in a little room that was tucked away with a fireplace. It looked like a great place to smoke cigars. Although I'm sure you weren't allowed, and I don't smoke.
Some (hopefully) fake dead ducks on the lobby wall.
The final pint of the trip. Tear.
We absolutely loved Ireland and are planning to go back at some point to explore the rest of the country (more of the West side and the North). If you ever have a chance to go or are considering it, I highly recommend it. The country is beautiful, and the people are wonderful. We had a wonderful time!
We absolutely loved Ireland and are planning to go back at some point to explore the rest of the country (more of the West side and the North). If you ever have a chance to go or are considering it, I highly recommend it. The country is beautiful, and the people are wonderful. We had a wonderful time!