CÚIG GHRIANGHRAF-Ireland Day 27

We checked out Phoenix Park today which is also the home of the Dublin Zoo. The park is massive and well kept with beautiful garden beds and trees.

We enjoyed our trip to the zoo. We sometimes go to zoos with mixed feelings as we worry about the enclosures where animals are housed. The Dublin Zoo was a nice exception, as the areas where the elephants, lions and gorillas were kept were quite spacious, and efforts to match habitat were notable. The zoo walk is pleasant, and it's fun to listen to the kids with Irish accents. It reminded us of missing our zoo time with Olive.

After leaving the zoo we walked back toward the city and stopped at the Brazen Head Pub for wings, chips and a pint. The Brazen Head is the oldest pub in Ireland dating back to the late 12th century. This underscores our experience in Europe: In the states we consider something very old if it is over 150 years old. It's been hard to fathom witnessing sites that are thousands of years old as well as staying in neighborhoods from Medieval times.

We had no plans this evening, and we went to a movie, something we haven't done the whole trip. Jim C and I went to see "Everything, Everywhere, and All at Once". He hadn't seen it, and it was the last film that I saw in a movie theater right before we left for our trip. We found the showing at the Irish Film Institute, and it reminded us of the smaller movie theaters back home. It was another good day in Dublin.Read more