St. Patrick's Day (T.F.I.P.)*

Here’s to a long life and a merry one. A quick death and an easy one. A pretty girl and an honest one. A cold pint and another one!

For St. Patrick's Day, I thought that I'd share, or maybe re-share some of my pictures from Ireland, December, 2014. I was just there for a few days, in and near Dublin, and I can tell you more about the Irish health care system than anything else, but I did get out and about to see some sights. 

Grafton Street (main downtown shopping district)
with Christmas lights. This was mid-afternoon and
it was already getting dark. 

Also downtown Dublin, a dog rescue group
soliciting funds and adoptors. I gave them some
money but did not adopt a dog.

Not much different from here at home.

Jesus or some saint under plexiglass in the middle
of a town square. The was one of several reminders
that Ireland is still gripped in the clutches of the
Roman Catholic Cult to a surprising extent. The
country is having a national referendum on same sex
marriage this May. Polls show that a majority support
it, but of course it depends on who turns out to vote.

Feeding swans in a park in Dublin.

My sister Kate (right) and two Irish friends enjoying a
a pint of Guinness in a pub in Dublin.  One hates to
stereotype the Irish, but it is safe to say that they
won't let the truth stand in the way of a good story.

This is Newgrange, not far from Dublin, a World Heritage site. It is a passage tomb, but more so, it's a neolithic astronomical monument, not unlike Stonehenge. Fascinating, incredible place.
More info here.

This is the entrance to Newgrange. The lower opening is where you enter. It's a very narrow shaft.
The upper opening is the light shaft. The shaft is aligned such that the rising run on Winter Solstice
will illuminate the shaft all the way to the center. It had various ritual and burial uses that are not
well understood. There are carves stones like the one above encircling the monument.

Also near Dublin are some rural churchyards
and cemeteries with high crosses. 

The crosses are probably 15-20 feet tall and
carved from a single stone. There is no writing
because most people couldn't read, but they
are carved to tell stories. 

Possibly the holiest site in Dublin, if not all of Ireland,
is the Guinness Brewery.

A wooden sculpture in the shape of a pint
glass of Guinness in the brewery.

View from the top floor of the Guinness visitors' center. It's not really a tour of the brewery,
but they have a lot of displays about brewing and about the history of Guinness.
One of  the optional parts of the tour, which we took, was learning to pour a proper pint
of Guinness. I've been sorely tempted to instruct many American bartenders who hurry through the
process since I've been back home. 

* T.F.I.P is an inside joke, don't ask.