Dublin, Ireland- June 10

Flag of Ireland-Green for Catholic
and Orange for Protestant
with White for Peace

Last evening we went to hear the Holyhead Male Chorus sing. It was a wonderful concert given by about 24 elderly men. Man behind us said quietly he hoped there would be a cardiologist present in the audience. As the assembled on stage a The Director looked to be about 85-90 years old, and he had such a funny dry sense of humor. As he announced the first two songs he said, “If you are tempted to clap or sing along just don’t. It messes them up.”  They did a beautiful rendition of  something to the tune of “All Through the Night” and also a Welsh march. After the applause ended the Director said that we were nice to clap- much nicer than the audience the night before. He also said this was such a lovely ship he’d just like to stay. Their voices blended  perfectly as they sang “Let The Lower Lights Keep Burning.”

They did a funny take on the VERY long names of towns in Wales using cue cards for about a dozen names of towns just around Holyhead. Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch is the longest town name in the world.. The song "Red Cave" by Brooklyn-based indie rock band Yeasayer references the English translation of the village name with these lyrics: "Mary's house in the hollow of the white hazel rapid whirlpool at the church of the red cave." How's that for an address. The Director said people who lived there had to buy extra long envelops to get the name of the town on it.  They concluded with a medley of American songs. The Director said we could sing along "as long as you do it quietly so as not to disturb the men." Delightful performance.

We headed out to dinner and shared a table with a couple from Kerrville, Texas. In the category of the world is small, the woman, Kathryn Loeffler, knows the only person I have ever known from Kerrville- Judy Ferguson. Judy is a friend from years serving together in leadership in The Association of Presbyterian Church Educators. Amazing! As you might expect- once again politics was not a topic of discussion.

This morning we awoke to cloudy and drippy skies in the busy port

of Dublin, Ireland. For the first time buses were right outside the ship but the 54 degree weather is still too cold for us. This is a much colder trip that the cruise way up above the Artic Circle we took several years ago. Sure called this one wrong- weather-wise.

Looks like the only blue sky we’ll be seeing on

this cruise is the lovely glass ceiling in the Compass Rose Dining Room. But then again there is always tomorrow.

Dublin means “town of the hurdled ford” and is the capital and most populous city of Ireland. The English name for the city is derived from the Irish name Dubhlinn, meaning “black pool.” Dublin is situated near the mid-point of the eastern coast of Ireland at the mouth of the River Liffey.

Last time we were here we had a great cruise on the Liffey seeing statues of people escaping to America from Ireland because of the potato famine. Never forget the look on the faces!

We also walked down the street and saw the statue of Molly Malone with her cockles and muscles- alive alive OH!

 Another time we were here we went to the Guinness Brewery at about 9:30 AM and tasted Guinness Ale. My favorite visit was years ago to Trinity College to see the school and especially The Book of Kells.

Charming city full of really friendly people- inspite of the rainy weather.