Dublin & Kilmainham Gaol

Once we arrived in Dublin, we hired a taxi to take us to our hotel. He had a very thick accent & was difficult to understand but he was quite entertaining. He gave us some tidbits of great info, dropped us off & then we set out to explore. Keep in mind, we were extremely exhausted having change several time zones & not gotten much sleep but we were ready to go. Our hotel was directly across the street from Kilmainham Gaol, a former prison now museum . Kilmainham Gaol played an important part in Irish History, as many leaders of Irish rebellions were imprisoned and some executed in the prison by the British and latterly in 1923 by the Irish Free State. This prison held men, women, & children. Our tour guide was very interesting and very passionate about his Irish history which made the tour wonderful. Whenever we're together, remind me to tell you the story of Clay in the prison. He was so funny! But much too long to share on here. After touring the prison we walked to a park & sat in the green, green grass & watched the people.

Entrance to the Kilmainham Hospital

Site of executions

Inside the prison

Stairs in the inner courtyard

This was inside the prison. The guide mentioned that this has been used in many movies.
View from our hotel room. We loved the beautiful old buildings.The restaurant where we ate was called the Patriot. As we were eating, I looked out the window & was was flying proudly outside it...but an American Flag. You can see our hotel diagonally across the street & the entrance to the Kilmainham Hospital as well. The goal was across the street to the left. You can see the traffic....on the WRONG side of the road!! Will share about that later.