Dublin

The Plan

We had accomodation booked at "The Hilton" hotel in Dublin. There was something of a long comedy of errors as we tried to pick a hotel, and eventually ended up here. In exchange for Yvonne booking the hotel, I reserverd a rental car from Dublin City to be returned to Dublin Airport the day of departure.

When we arrived and made it through Dublin Airport, we got in a cab and asked for the Hilton. "Which one?" Turns out there are two. Somehow, after a description from my vague recollection of the picture of the hotel on their web page, the driver picked the correct one.

Even better was the next morning, when we discovered the pickup point for the car was just 4 blocks away from the hotel! Sometimes luck does work out. Leaving our luggage at the hotel, we walked down, in beautiful sunshine, to the rental car outlet and then collected the car and returned to the hotel to collect our belongings, and head off to circumnavigate Ireland.

Grand Canal

The hotel is located on the Grand Canal, linking Dublin Bay with the River Shannon, which flows west into the Atlantic Ocean. There are 52 locks to handle the changes in elevation. Construction began in 1756; by 1777 it had reached the River Mortell. One purpose of this section was to improve Dublin's water supply. Two years later, this section was opened to commercial traffic. The canal was completed by 1804, when barges began to ply between Dublin and Shannon Harbour. The canal was expanded with branches to towns along the way until the middle of the 19th century. The arrival of the railways started a decline in commercial traffic, which finally stopped by about 1960.

Along the Grand Canal, Dublin

Yvonne and Peter on the Grand Canal in Dublin

Along the Grand Canal, Dublin

These ducks need no longer worry too much about boat traffic.

Along the Grand Canal, Dublin

This vessel is available for hire, for use as a party venue, for instance. Not sure if it actually travels along the canal. Even with its low height, it could be a challenge passing under some of the bridges.

Along the Grand Canal, Dublin

The ducks are certainly "people friendly". My camera had trouble focusing for these photographs - not sure what was distracting it.

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