When I stated that I was taking a break in my last blog post a few weeks ago I said I was going to "take time to watch the leaves fall." What I did not mention then was that I was going to experience autumn in Ireland and Scotland! My husband and I and my sister-in-law and brother-in-law took a two-week Cosmos bus tour called "Highlights of Ireland and Scotland," at the end of October. We all had a wonderful time and met the nicest people. I've been fortunate to have visited Ireland many times in the past. One of my sister-in-laws was born and raised in County Cork and my husband and I have met her family over the years on trips to Ireland. plus my husband had a few business trips in Belfast Northern Ireland. If interested you can read the total of 37 posts I wrote about those visits under this blog tag: Ireland. This was the first time I visited Scotland, however, and I was very excited to finally see it!
We arrived a day earlier than our scheduled tour and had a fun day walking around Dublin and taking the "Hop On and Hop Off" bus. A landmark we were excited to see was the statue of Molly Malone. My husband and I were confused that she was no longer located on Grafton Street, where we had seen her in the past, but she had to be moved to a new location when Dublin installed a light rail system on Grafton. Dublin was certainly busier and had more commuters than we last saw years ago. She is a very modern bustling city! I guess it is pretty evident looking at the statue what part of Molly is considered "good luck" to rub! "Molly Malone" (also known as "Cockles and Mussels" or "In Dublin's Fair City") is a popular song set in Dublin, Ireland, which has become its unofficial anthem.
Another Dublin icon is the Guinness Brewery!
The day we arrived in Dublin the aftereffects of Storm Babet were still being felt as it rained heavily almost all day. I braved sitting on the top of the Hop On Hop Off bus wearing a rain poncho to take photos. You can see the gloomy rainy skies in my photos. Sadly, areas in County Cork and the east coast of Scotland suffered flooding from the storm.
Views of the famous Ha'penny Bridge in Dublin.
Dublin's Phoenix Park was aglow in autumn beauty!
The home of the President of Ireland is located in Phonix Park. The house was built in 1751, and it is nicknamed "The Irish White House" due to its resemblance to the US White House in Washington DC.
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