Travel

Dublin in the Morning (part 1)

In the last few weeks, I’ve enrolled in the complete bartending course at the Dublin Bar Academy. It meant being up early – and into the city most days by 8:00 AM. Because I had to be up so early to catch the bus, I tried to take pictures of the city every morning as it woke up. So, here’s part of the collection from mornings in the city from last 3 weeks. Warning – photo heavy but hopefully you enjoy it.

Dublin Sunrise over wood quay
Dublin Sunrise over wood quay

Good Morning. Sunrise over St. Patrick's Cathedral; Dublin, Ireland. #dublin #ireland #sunrise #morning #streetphotography #landmarks
Good Morning. Sunrise over St. Patrick’s Cathedral; Dublin, Ireland

Good Morning. Freebee Wednesday here in Dublin. Walked through Temple Bar and got free paper, free coffee from Starbucks and free belvita breakfast biscuits. Not bad. This is Christ Church Cathedral from Dame St. This morning. #sunrise #christianity #land
Good Morning. Freebee Wednesday here in Dublin. Walked through Temple Bar and got free paper, free coffee from Starbucks and free belvita breakfast biscuits. Not bad. This is Christ Church Cathedral from Dame St. This morning.

Happy Thursday. So tired and on a packed bus. The view from the front. #dublin #ireland #bus #traffic #morning
Happy Thursday. So tired and on a packed bus. The view from the front.

A sunny afternoon in Dublin. Headed home from school, walking the quays along the Liffey River to the bus. #liffey #dublin #ireland #quays #sunshine #afternoon #instagood #river
A sunny afternoon in Dublin. Headed home from school, walking the quays along the Liffey River to the bus.

Four Courts & the Liffey River at dawn. #landmarks #liffeyriver #fourcourts #morning #sunshine #sunrise #intheblue #dublin #ireland #postcard
Four Courts & the Liffey River at dawn.

St. Patrick's Cathedral spire on the right, red brick flats on the left - much is student housing... Dublin Ireland this morning #dublin #ireland #christianity #landmarks #streetphotography #urban #bluehours
St. Patrick’s Cathedral spire on the right, red brick flats on the left – much is student housing… Dublin Ireland this morning

Rush hour Dublin going toward Christ church cathedral. Busy busy.
Rush hour Dublin going toward Christ church Cathedral.

Moon over Christ Church Cathedral - at Parliament Street. The Blue Hour - as the clouds east just turn pink... #dublin #ireland #bluehours #morning #moon #january #cold #christianity #streetphotography #urbanexploration #citylife #monday #lifeisbeautiful
Moon over Christ Church Cathedral – at Parliament Street. The Blue Hour – as the clouds east just turn pink…

St. AUDEONS CHURCH
Moon over St.Audeon’s church.

Four Courts this morning. #dublin #ireland #landmarks #morning #fourcourts
Golden Sunrise on Four Courts building.

Through the Viking ship spiral at Wood Quay. #dublin #ireland #landmarks #blackandwhite #abstract #january #morning #quays #liffey
Through the Viking ship spiral at Wood Quay.

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Ladies Bicycle Racing hits Ireland

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Here in Ireland, women’s bicycle racing is still in its infancy, but starting to gain popularity. There are a few races,and cycling clubs for both men and women. One of the women (Caroline Martinez) that I know from work is highly involved in bicycle racing. Last week, she mentioned that she was looking for someone to do some photos of of the ladies cycling team sponsored by D.I.D. Electrical and Spin11. So, on Friday, we met up, and the elite ladies team of DID Electrical (it’s a DIY chain shop here in Ireland) were presented with their team car and their self designed uniforms. Only part of the team was able to be there, but we had some fun and got some great pictures to go with the press release and up on the team’s brand new website (Click here).

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DID Electrical is a great sponsor for the group. They are one of the larger cycling sponsors here in Ireland, and are a major promoter of the Cycle for Life Appeal charity event (click here), benefiting the Temple Street Children’s Hospital. The race itself takes place later May 4, 2013, and I’m so pleased to have had the chance to meet the ladies – and Mike, the Cycle for Life mascot – and have the opportunity to get some photos of him with the ladies. (We all love Mike, after all, he’s just a big kid at heart!)

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I think one of the cooler photos of the day is of Caroline Conway.

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Upon seeing this picture,would you want to race against her? If your answer was no, I think we’re in agreement. These ladies are one tough bunch – having melded together from years of bicycle racing into a new team. Their first race was Sunday, over in Drogheda. The race was the National Women’s League,and covered some 56km around Coombes Connor course.

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The great news is that Amy Brice – one of the ladies on the team (not pictured) – took first place. Congratulations to her, and to the entire team on their first win – I look forward to seeing some of your races both here in Ireland – and internationally!

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To see the article on the team launch, check out stickybottle.com’s article .

For more information on Amy’s win yesterday, please see Womenscycling.ie.

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The Bell – Kiera Dignam

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04/12/2013 – This night found me heading into the city center to a pub I’d never been to before, called Arthur’s Pub on Thomas Street, but I wasn’t able to stay. Why? I had an appointment back in Blanchardstown – where I found myself at the local Blanchardstown watering hole – The Bell Pub.

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The Bell is local here in Blanchardstown, and is a good sized pub with a front pub area, a back pub area (nicknamed the old man’s pub) and a side room for events and hosting carvery on the weekends. It’s comfortable, and on the weekends fairly hopping with the local clientele who come here before heading out elsewhere.

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Tonight’s entertainment was a young lady named Kiera Dignam. Kiera is a petite lady, standing maybe to my shoulder, but has a big voice that she uses to get the pub rocking to retro tunes with her partner singing backup. She has a pretty good range – covering everything from Stevie Wonder all the way to modern R&B hits. Most of the evening, she manages to get the pub singing along with her, and having a great time.

For Kiera Dignam’s facebook page, please click here.

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For more photos, please see my flickr site here.

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