Enniskerry

So today I got up and ate some breakfast before heading out. I mailed out some post cards so I hope that you all get them soon. Chances are you'll get them while I am already back. This is most likely always the case. I got the bus 44 to Enniskerry. I ran into a bit of a problem though. I had 5 Euro but needed 2,20 Euro exact change. I had everything but that. So the bus driver helped me out and some of the people came up with change for me. Thank goodness because I would have just gotten off the bus and been another hour late. Then came my other problem. The bus driver doesn't tell you the stops. So I had to be on the lookout and then ring the bell to get off. I don't really use the bus system at home so this was all quite new to me. I usually take the trains and such. Trains/trams, I have no problem with. It is the buses that I seem to have an issue with.

So the ride there was nice. Once I got there it was about a 2 mile hike up a hill and through a driveway to get to Powerscourt. Now the only reason I came to this area is to see Ireland's highest waterfall. No where on the websites that I researched said that I needed to use a car to get from the estate to the waterfall. However, I purchased my ticket and figured that the waterfall was in the estate gardens. The ticket was only for the estate house and garden. The waterfall was separate. So I went to the ticket lady and asked her where I pay for the waterfall. She said, “The waterfall is separate. You have to drive there.” I said, “Oh…I don’t have a car. Alright then, thanks.” So off I went to look at the gardens.

Oh my gosh. For an old time estate this place was huge. The gardens were all over the place. I am so glad that the gardens at home are small over a small area. I have trouble keeping up with my one side lot garden than with all whatever acres this one was. Amazing. It was very pretty though. I saw some birds from the area which was nice. This one bird would not let me take its picture. It kept flying around. Just as I was about to shoot it, it would move to another spot. The spot was not far from his last one. Almost like a tease. So for about 20 minutes this one bird was teasing me until I said heck with it. Then it landed on a stump covered in moss and stood there while I took several photos of it. Good bird.

Like I said, the gardens were massive. The went all over the place. And when you got to the back of the estate, you could see Ireland’s countryside. It was really awesome. For those of you who know me, I tend to have a bathroom problem. Not one that requires me to find a bathroom quickly but one that I accidentally go into the wrong bathroom. So at this Powerscourt Estate, I used the bathroom. Upon exiting I saw the urinals. “Oh Lord, please tell me I didn’t do this again.” I prayed as shooted out of the bathroom. As I, hurriedly walked out of the estate, I shot a look around to see if anyone had seen me. Then I realized what had happened. The man on the wall outside the bathroom had an ivy leave in front of it so at first glance it looked like a girl and not a guy. I just can’t escape it. Luckily no one saw me. After that stint, I caught the 44 Bus back to Dublin.

This bus ride was like riding a bull. No kidding. Even someone from Ireland thought it was. It wasn’t just me being foreign. This time I rode on the top of the bus. I thought, I might only be able to do this once so up I went. I thought that maybe it was because I was on the second floor that things were crazy but things were crazy even on the first floor.

I got back to the hotel and I got a little nap in before I went out to eat and drink. I ate at Quay’s Restaurant which was a traditional Irish Restaurant above the bar. What I really found impressive about this place was the team work that went into the serving. It wasn’t 1 waiter/waitress for a table, it was the whole place that served. It was really neat to see. After that I went to the bar attached and had a pint of Cider and talked with some of the people from the area. The people I talked to were from the Irish army so that was pretty interesting.

Then I went back to the hotel to get some sleep. Fun times,
Meg