Woke up to the delightful news that according to my cell phone, it was daylight savings time and I had just gained an hour (in addition to the one I had gained flying to Ireland). Hooray! I stayed in bed and watched the UK version of the Biggest Loser off and on while surfing the three channels the TV actually got. I also took advantage of the jacuzzi tub and soaked the previous day's soreness away.
Striking out again, I walked into town with a list of shops to visit and restaurants to frequent. First stop: breakfast at Queen of Tarts. This time I tried their famous raspberry scone. Yum! The atmosphere was cozy and warm. All the baked goods are served on old china pattern plates that look very similar to the ones we have at home in the china cabinet. Really fun. The scone was AMAZING! Not hard at all, but crunchy on the outside and warm and moist on the inside with bursts of tart raspberry. Mmmmm...
Next was Avoca, THE shop for wool things, but unbeknownst to me also a cutesy shop with loads of irresistible stuff you don't need. I spent way too much time in that shop for not buying anything. By now, I needed to do something constructive so I headed up O'Connor's Street to go to the Dublin Writer's Museum...quick detour though to Chapters Bookstore. Oh Chapters Bookstore, I could write a poem for you if I had the talent! What an amazing store! The entire top floor is filled, bursting with secondhand or overstocked books. The selection, the prices...I was in heaven! I stocked up on my Alexander McCall Smith collection and got a book my aunt Jane recommended. Total damage: 6 BRAND NEW books (overstocked) for a total of 13 euros. Un-be-lievable.
By now I was riding high and headed out towards the museum. I walked through the Garden of Remembrance with its gorgeous memorial statue and then got distracted again. The Hugh Lane Gallery was next door to the writer's museum and the more I thought about it, the less I really wanted to go to the Writer's Musem (Museum: 8 euros; Gallery: free). The Hugh Lane Gallery is famous for having the shock artist Francis Bacon's entire studio which they moved piece by piece from London (even the dust came! They hired archaeologists to move it) and since I knew very little about Bacon, I went for the gallery. I was not disappointed. Bacon was fairly disturbed and looking at the studio was enough to confirm it. The place was absolute chaos. Paint all over the walls, yellowing newspapers on the floor with piles and piles of rags, brushes, photos, books and various other junk strewn about.
The gallery was also just finishing an exhibit on the art of John Lavery. Born in Northern Ireland, he and his wife were very involved in Irish politics and his portrait of his wife was printed on Irish currency for 50 years. The exhibit was a great way to catch up on Irish history as Lavery painted portraits of both sides of the English/Irish political struggle. It was really enjoyable and I'm glad I got to see it before it closed.
Walking back towards the city centre, I stopped on Mary Street for some window shopping and then made my way to Cornucopia, a restaurant highly recommended by my guidebook for its hearty vegetarian fare. Wow. So good. It's a bit cafeteria style, but I knew the food must be good when strangers were sharing tables so they could eat there. The prices were amazing as well. For 10 euros I got a main dish with two salads. However, my cheese, tomato and spring onion quiche wasn't quite ready yet so they served me my salads first...on a separate plate...filling the plate! I had bulgar wheat, pumpkin and red onion salad as well as a garlic potato salad with roasted hazelnuts that was to die for (just like Mom's!). I briefly shared my table with an older man eating apple crumble, but I think he was embarrassed and practically shoved the thing in his mouth before leaving. Full with yummy healthy food, I headed by for my ritual nap.
Later, I went to the lounge to check my facebook on my phone and had a delightful tea time with a cute couple from the east coast of England. They were returning from a wedding in Cork and the wife was so chatty and cute. I spent the rest of the night vegging out, watching Irish TV at its best (in Irish!). Tomorrow, I would pack up and head to Killarney. I was sad to leave Roxford Lodge as I had grown quite fond of it. But I was excited to strike out on something new.
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