After battling the crowds in Dublin for the St. Patrick's Day parade (click here for pictures), we were happy to spend the rest of the beautiful day walking along the Irish Sea in this small Dublin suburb, Dun Laoghaire.
Our hotel, the Royal Marine Hotel, was right by the water. Across the road was a giant harbor. A long walkway surrounded the perimeter of the harbor, and all the locals were out enjoying the beautiful St. Patty's day. So my dad and I decided to join them for a walk along the Irish Sea.
The view at the end of the harbor.
Looking back at Dun Laoghaire.
Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel. Our room had a nice balcony with a view of some of the town.
That night, we had a meal at a local bar that was left than authentic (no decorations for the holiday and no corned beef and cabbage!). Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel to enjoy some live music and a couple more drinks. Dad enjoyed some Jameson, but I stuck with the Guinness - that was Irish enough for me.
The next morning, we got up early to enjoy the gorgeous day. Daytime view from the balcony of the hotel.
We started walking south along the water. The day couldn't have been nicer, and as we walked, the sun made it warmer and warmer.
As we walked, things oddly started to look familiar. As we came upon the James Joyce Museum, I realised that things looked familiar cause I'd already been there - eleven years earlier on my last trip to Ireland. In fact, the hike we were embarking upon ended up being the same exact hike I'd taken back then, only in the reverse direction. This route had solidified early on in the trip my love of Ireland, so I was thrilled to be retracing my steps.
We hiked along the water, through Dalkey and Kilenney, where some of Ireland's rich and famous have their homes. We searched for Bono's house, but sadly couldn't figure it out.
As we kept hiking up and up, I got to see one of my favorite views on the hike.
The yellow wildflowers on the mountainside were in full bloom all along the pathway.
Finally, we reached the final stretch up to the summit of the Killinny Hill. The view from the top of this hill is stunning, and I was very excited to be returning. I love the small bench provided for a rest before the last push.
After a climbing the windy path through the trees, we came out at the top of the hill. The obelisk lets you know you've made it.
The best part of being at the top are the views below.
I could stay up here all day long. Couldn't stop snapping pictures. It was also funny imagining how different things were last time I was here - 18 years old with a bunch of classmates, probably causing a loud scene. Very different atmosphere on this visit.
We decided to head back down the hill and wander back to Dalkey for lunch. We ate next to Dalkey Castle (on the left) at an outdoor cafe. We sat in the sun, drinking beer, eating lunch, and listening to the Irish locals chat around us. It was so beautiful. Dalkey main street on the right.
After lunch, we had to say our goodbyes to Dublin and Ireland and head to the airport. It was a short weekend, but felt like I'd been gone for a week. And as if I couldn't possibly love this country more, it gave us a rainbow before we left to say goodbye.
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