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2022 US Trip – Day 1 (Dublin’s Keavan’s Port Pub)

I think I got a bit over-excited on the last post and published it early, that’s just my slight sleepiness….

Liam and I tried to visit this pub when we were in Dublin a few months ago, but it was just too busy. These were the days when Dublin was still enforcing table service only and despite the cavernous size of the building, its popularity was just too high for the number of seats available. I won’t get political, but it seems strange that the biggest investments that JD Wetherspoon are currently making are in the European Union. Indeed this pub is the most expensive they’ve ever done in their history, it cost them €27.4 million for the renovation and €6 on buying the building.

This is the history of the pub which JD Wetherspoon provide:

“The pub, named Keavan’s Port, has an adjoining 89-bedroom hotel. The pub takes its name from the history of the local area, where Camden Street Upper and Camden Street Lower form part of an ancient highway into the city of Dublin. The two streets were previously known as St Kevin’s Port. In a series of old maps and records, the name is listed as Keavans Port (1673), St Kevan’s Port (1714), Keavan’s Port (1728), St Kevan’s Port (1756) and then St Kevin’s Port (1778) – renamed after the first Earl of Camden.

The name Keavan’s Port/St Kevin’s Port was derived from the church of St Kevin, in nearby Camden Row, said to have been founded by a follower of the sixth-century hermit. St Kevin also features in the poem ‘St Kevin and the Blackbird’ (1996) by the Nobel prize-winner Seamus Heaney, in which he describes how the Irish saint held out a ‘turned-up palm’ for a blackbird to nest. Until the 1940s, the property had been the convent of the Little Sisters of the Assumption, established in the 1890s. The sisters nursed the ‘sick poor’ in their own homes, and their former chapel has been preserved and forms part of the new pub and hotel.”

It is a stunning conversation, there’s a glass walkway above the bar and this whole area is filled with light. Actually, I think it makes the bar area too hot, but there are plenty of other areas which are much cooler for customers.

Looking back the other way, all rather modern.

The entrance to the former chapel which is located within the pub.

A modern artwork within the historic former chapel.

I perched myself in the side aisle of the former chapel.

I can’t quite imagine that the builders of this chapel quite imagined that it would be repurposed into a pub.

Down to another large seating area and a separate bar, with what I assume (but don’t know) are reclaimed windows from the site. The bulk of the former site is taken up with the 89 room hotel, converted from a row of eight Georgian properties, which must be a profitable exercise as it seems to often be full.

The selection of real ales, priced much lower than other bars in the city, which is proving to be a big selling point for the chain just as it is in the UK. The staff here seemed friendly and helpful, the service was efficient and welcoming.

I went for the Rampart from Conwy Brewery, a very acceptable English brown ale (that’s in terms of the beer style, it’s actually brewed in Wales and being sold in the Republic of Ireland, so it’s not overly English) which was well kept. Real ale isn’t a huge thing in Dublin, but they seem to be shifting a fair amount of it here.

The pub is generally well reviewed and it was relatively busy for a Sunday afternoon. I liked the plentiful power points and wi-fi, all rather handy, and it’s got a relaxed vibe to it which is really quite calm. That feels most appropriate given the building’s history, of which this is a delightful conversion that the chain should be proud of. Well, other than for the leak downstairs which they were mopping up from a dripping ceiling.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 1 (Dublin’s South Strand Pub)

So I went to Dublin and went to two JD Wetherspoon outlets? Well, yes, although there’s another non JDW one to come, but I’d better add here that I’ve been to Dublin many times and visited all of what I consider to be the traditional, interesting and craft beer venues. I’m intrigued to see how JD Wetherspoon are developing and this is an outlet which wasn’t open when Liam and I visited the city a few months ago.

South Strand is another huge investment by JD Wetherspoon in the European Union, I’m impressed, a big vote of confidence from Tim Martin. Although I’m getting political, so I must stop. The pub is located at Hanover Quay and they give the history as:

“The south dock was once a large area of ‘marshland sprinkled with an occasional apple tree’. On one of the earliest maps (1673) of the city of Dublin, by Bernard de Gomme, there are no buildings marked on the south side of the River Liffey. This marshy riverside area is named on Gomme’s map as ‘South Strand’. He noted that it was ‘overflowed by the high tide, with up to five feet of water at neap tide, dry at half tide and dry enough at low tide to walk across the sand’.”

Unlike their conversion of Keavan’s Port, this building was already in use as a restaurant, having been known as the HQ Bar and Restaurant.

There’s my Beamish resting on the counter, a drink I consider to be better than Guinness. But, best not start a dispute about that, they’re both lovely drinks. It’s a large building, with plenty of external seating and another large seating area downstairs, with a map and compass being recommended to find the toilets.

I got a seat near the bar and was I felt very productive despite feeling slightly sleepy. There were plenty of power points dotted around and two kids storming about the place that the staff did well not to trip over. I’ve been a slight idiot (again) as I forgot that Ireland has the same power point holes (or whatever the technical term is) as the UK, and so I’ll be traipsing around with an EU adapter for a month now. Incidentally, someone came over to me and left his phone charging saying that he wanted to go drinking outside and needed it charged. So, not for the first time, I became a guardian of someone else’s phone.

Anyway, I liked this pub, although a few people in reviews have complained that there’s no music. All I can note is thank goodness for that, a little bastion of peace and quiet. It is of course also cheap and whether or not that’s what is attracting the locals, it was very busy.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 1 (Train from Dublin to Howth)

Nice pub name at Tara Street railway station.

The railway station opened in 1891 and it’s served by Dublin Area Rapid Transit, or DART, which is the service that I was getting to Howth. I was travelling on a Sunday and there seemed to be trains to Howth around every thirty minutes.

It’s not the most modern and sleek design for a train that I’ve seen, but it’s functional and that’ll do me. The majority of the fleet was built between 1983 and 1984, although they have a few more recent engines, although nothing later than 2004. It’s cheap though, but more later on the public transport card that I had.

This is a very good idea and I didn’t notice anyone on the train put their feet on the seats. It’s a very British problem though, it happens frequently on British trains and very rarely in Poland, where I’ve only seen it happen once. And when it did, the elderly Polish ladies nearby looked as angry as a Brit when someone has barged into a queue. I remember once on a service hearing the announcement say something along the lines of ‘if you see anyone with their feet on the seats, please call British Transport Police’ which seemed a bit excessive. I suspect it was said by an angry guard trying to scare some of the unruly passengers that he had.

It’s also not the most stylish inside the carriages either, but for a rapid transit system, I’ve seen worse. It was a relatively busy service until near Howth, which is the end of the line.

Wooo, safely into the delights of Howth, where I’ve been meaning to go for some years. Howth is a former village which has now become effectively a suburb of Dublin, but it retains that rural feel to it. However, more on that in the next post…..

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 1 (Little Walk Around Howth)

Apologies to the blog readers (or reader, I don’t want to set my ambitions too high) but these posts aren’t going to be epics, more just reminders of what I’ve done on this trip. I’ll make them as interesting as possible, but I might set the bar quite low. Anyway, this is Howth, something of a local tourist destination. It’s known for its fish restaurants and there’s plenty of good walking in the area. I got there just before it was getting dark, so I limited myself to a walk of around two miles (we’re not all Dave Morgan who would have likely been excited by the big hill visible and gone running up it).

Howth is around seven miles from the centre of Dublin and I think it’s now one of the more upmarket suburbs. The train journey takes around thirty minutes and Howth is literally the end of the line. In the background is Howth Harbour Lighthouse, built in 1817 and in use until 1982, with lighthouse keepers here until 1955 when they put electricity in to control the lights.

I had to scrabble up some rocks to get this photo. Very brave.

There were some people fishing there, that’s not my fishing rod in the photo. It did mar the photo a little, but I didn’t feel it appropriate to tell the fisherman to move it.

As a fun fact (or sort of fun, I’m not sure invasions are ever really pretty), the Normans took control of this area in 1177. It’s an interesting part of history the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland, but I’ll let Wikipedia pick up that story at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Norman_invasion_of_Ireland.

It’s still a busy commercial fishing area.

I took this photo as I was impressed at the group on the right merrily eating their fish and chips, whilst a herd of seagulls sat behind them. I wouldn’t have been that brave.

I had hoped to see something of the ruins of St. Mary’s Abbey, but unfortunately they’re firmly closed off in the evening. This is the external wall and it was the Vikings who first built a church here in around 1042, although much of the current building is from the fourteenth century.

The external walls didn’t disappoint though and there’s a seating area installed here.

I had a little meander down to the sea as that felt appropriate.

Very peaceful and I can see why this is a popular walking area. It was still quite warm as well which was pleasant, although I accept that my “quite warm” is ‘freezing cold’ to some people.

You can walk all the way to the lighthouse, but it was getting dark and I thought I’d better not traipse off along here in case I fell in or something. The phone is also being generous to the amount of light available here, it felt much darker.

Evening setting over the fishing village. So what more was there to do here before I went back to Dublin? I thought I’d go to a pub, but more on that in the next post. Sorry for those who subscribe to this blog and get every post, you might get a fair few notifications this month unless you change the frequency to a daily or weekly summary.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 2 (Aer Lingus Flight from Dublin Terminal 2 to London Heathrow Terminal 2)

As is just about visible for anyone zooming into the image to look at the screen, I arrived at the gate at 05:29 for my 06:30 flight. I left the lounge at 05:28 thinking it might take twenty minutes to get to the gate. It didn’t. I refuse to ever be realistic in case the one time that I’m not, I’ll be delayed somehow en route and miss my flight.

Here’s the Aer Lingus flight having landed into Heathrow T2, as I couldn’t get a photo in Dublin. The aircraft was at capacity and I boarded towards the end (no status with Aer Lingus) which didn’t much matter as I had an aisle seat. Nothing is provided free of charge on Aer Lingus in terms of refreshments, but there is a trolley going around selling food and drink. I can’t add much detail to the flight since I was asleep for the entirety of it, but I’m sure it was lovely.

For reference (more mine than anyone else), this was an A320, registration EI-DVE, which Aer Lingus have operated since they acquired in new in 2007.

It felt appropriate to land at Heathrow T2 on the day of the Queen’s funeral, as this is the Queen’s Terminal. Despite dire warnings from Aer Lingus about delays on the day of the funeral, including trying to get me to change my flight, everything went to clockwork in terms of the flights. Although to be fair to Aer Lingus, they did have to cancel some of their flights later on during the day, so the situation probably felt quite fluid last week.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 1 (O’Connells Pub in Howth)

I should add that I only spent one day in Dublin for those wondering why this US trip is currently stuck at a suburb of the Irish capital, there will be more American content than you can shake a stick at soon enough though.

One challenging element with Howth is that there are a fair number of restaurants and pubs here, which is lovely, but it’s clear that the pubs are in general really looking for customers who want to have a meal. I noticed though that O’Connells had a large sign outside saying they were open, but their kitchen was closed, so this seemed fortuitous and so I went for that.

As another one of my irrelevant asides, I still can’t look at a Harp logo and not think of the memorable (well I remembered it) advertising slogan of “time for a cool, sharp Harp”. Who says children aren’t swayed by marketing messages for alcohol? Not that I ordered it, so it didn’t actually work here.

I’ve had plenty of Guinness in Dublin, including at the storehouse on a few occasions, but I hadn’t had chance yet on this trip and so I thought that was appropriate. I went for a nice meal with it, of salt and vinegar crisps, a flavour I picked as the entire range available was salt and vinegar. A beautiful combination of food and drink, some great flavour combinations were going on there. I won’t claim that it’s only possible to get great Guinness in Dublin, but it does seem to be served just a little creamier here.

This felt very Irish in terms of the atmosphere, plenty of character in the pub and it felt welcoming and comfortable. I had a pleasant half an hour or so here, soaking up the ambience whilst starring at my phone, which is something I wouldn’t be doing in a Sam Smiths pub as they’ve outlawed ambience. Not that they’ve got any in Ireland, and they seem to have ever fewer in the UK, but I digress. It wasn’t very busy, but perhaps many of their customers would have normally been looking for a meal as well, but the prices seemed reasonable for drinks and crisps at least.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 1 (Leap Visitor Card)

I hadn’t known about these Leap Visitor cards on my previous visits to Dublin, but it worked out quite handy for my 24 hours in Dublin. Getting the bus to the city centre from the airport is a slight faff using local buses, as Liam and I discovered a few months ago, as it’s cash only and no change is offered. I think the system is being improved over the next couple of years.

I read that it was possible to buy these visitor cards at WH Smiths at the arrivals floor at the terminal. Pleased at how easy it was, I went to buy one, but was told their IT system was broken. However, they said they have placed a set of cards at another shop in the terminal, where I was able to get them from. After only 5 minutes of faffing about I found what I needed and was set to go. The card costs €8 for 24 hours, which is only a little more than a return bus ticket from the airport.

The card can be used on Airline, scheduled buses operated by Dublin Bus, the Luas (the city’s tram service) and DART (the city’s light rail service). It can also be used as commuter rail in the ‘short hop zone’ although I didn’t try that.

The bus from the airport and it’s easy to validate the card on the validators which they’ve put on, or at the entrance to, all forms of public transport. On buses it’s not on the driver’s little panel of stuff, there’s a validator on the pole when entering which saves some time.

The DART back from Howth to Dublin that I mentioned in my previous post.

And for completeness, I went on a tram so that I didn’t feel I was missing out. I’m easily pleased. I’d add that they’re quite shiny new trams and I will repeat once again, there should be more tram systems in the UK….. Particularly in Norwich to replace the bloody awful bus service, but I won’t go down that rabbit hole of discussion again.

And getting off at Connolly Station, named after the Irish republican leader James Connolly.

And the bus back to the airport which departs from O’Connell Street.

There’s more about the card at https://about.leapcard.ie/leap-visitor-card, with the one day card costing €8 as I mentioned, but there are also 3 day cards for €16 and 7 day cards for €32. It’s a shame that London’s public transport isn’t as cheap as that. It’s a handy card to have though to get around the city and it was easy to use and didn’t give me any problems at the public transport gate-lines.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 1 (McDonald’s – Just Shut the Doors)

I popped to McDonald’s on O’Connell Street in Dublin before getting the bus back to the airport, primarily not for the delicious and decadent food (ahem) but because I wanted my phone fully charged. I’d add now that was a good idea, as it was quite hard to charge phones at Dublin airport, but more on that later.

Anyway, I mention this riveting tale here as it’s the first time I’ve been in a McDonald’s and it’s clear that they couldn’t cope with the sheer number of orders. They had over 30 customers in the store and at least 10 pick-up orders still to make, and the screens couldn’t cope with the number of orders so they were getting complaints that orders had gone missing. Who knew how many in Dublin wanted McDonald’s on a Sunday evening?

The manager, who seemed to be incredibly focused, had clearly been here before, and she shouted “just shut the doors” to the security guard who looked quite pleased at this idea. It reminded me of what it must have been like to shut the queue for those wanting to see HM Queen Elizabeth II resting in state at Westminster Hall, there’s always someone cut off who will be disappointed. I could see some very disappointed faces outside, but an air of calmness rode over the store at that point.

€2, a bargain. I was pleased at the store’s decision as I had lovely peace and quiet for about thirty minutes at an upstairs table with power points by it. Just what I wanted, it’s always a relief to have fully charged devices. This is definitely going to be a theme of this trip. As for Dublin, I think they need more McDonald’s, which I’m not sure can be said about Norwich, which seems to have about 60 already and is getting yet another one. Mind you, Dublin could do with more Greggs as well, but I’m digressing here.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 2 (Night at Dublin Airport)

As one of my cost cutting measures for this trip, I didn’t bother getting a hotel in Dublin for the Sunday night as I had such an early flight on the Monday morning. Hotels were over £100 per night, so I wasn’t going to do that when I’d have to get up at about 03:00 anyway. Unsurprisingly, the airport wasn’t very busy when I arrived at midnight, I think others thought that they’d pay for a hotel. Such decadence.

There’s a restaurant upstairs at Terminal 2 landside which doesn’t seem to mind people using their tables overnight, as long as they clear off by the time they open. That’s where the entirety of the Dublin early morning flight brigade went anyway, other for the two people fast asleep in the middle of the floor downstairs. This was handy from a point of getting stuff done, although to be fair I was just a little tired. But, I had two flights to sleep on, so I was content that this was a good idea, even though it clearly bloody wasn’t. Incidentally, Terminal 1 security is open 24 hours which is convenient for those not flying from Terminal 2…..

Security opened at 03:30 which was earlier than I had expected, so I thought I might as well as go through for a change of scenery. I was trying to take as long as possible, but this plan was spoiled by a helpful member of staff who pointed me towards the front of a newly opened queue, which meant I was through security in about two minutes. The photo above is of the group of people who stood there waiting for the duty free shop to open as security had managed to get there first in terms of their efficiency. Usually, the duty free shops are open when security is (so they can sell, sell, sell to quote Del Boy), but instead the airport staff were calling passengers through another door to stop them backing up and getting in the way of the security process. But I then discovered news that the airport lounge opened earlier that I expected, so all was well, I only had a few minutes to wait before I could hopefully get a coffee.

September 20, 2022
2022 US Trip – Day 2 (Aer Lingus Lounge – Terminal 2 Dublin Airport)

I had thought that the Aer Lingus lounge opened at 05:30, but it actually now opens at 04:15 which I thought was something of a result for my needs. The entry system here is a bit complex as Aer Lingus isn’t part of Oneworld, despite being owned by IAG who own British Airways, but they do allow entry to silver and gold BA card holders going to Heathrow and Gatwick when flying Aer Lingus. Although I had read this on Flyertalk, it’s noted on the door as is visible on this sign.

I arrived two minutes before the lounge opened and patiently waited outside, with the lounge opening dead on time. The member of staff seemed quite hostile though, which was unusual and I can’t recall that at an airport lounge before. Her welcome was “yes?” which seemed odd, I thought the little queue that had formed, and which I was heading as the earliest to arrive, were all likely to want to come into the lounge. Perhaps they get some sight-seers though and she was just checking.

I mentioned I had a BA flight to Heathrow, flying with Aer Lingus and had my Oneworld card. She then replied that this didn’t allow entry into the lounge as Aer Lingus weren’t part of Oneworld. My digital card has Oneworld on it, not BA, so I mentioned again that I was flying to Heathrow with Aer Lingus and had my BA card in case that made things better. She told me again that Aer Lingus weren’t part of Oneworld, before I apologised (as I’m British and assumed it was my fault) and then said as politely as I could said that I just wanted to gain access in accordance with what was on the door. She then let me in, but then started on the next person saying that his lounge card wasn’t valid. Whatever happened, he too arrived in the lounge about fifteen seconds later. I imagine it would be quite entertaining watching this, I might move a chair into the reception area if I visit again.

I have a slight suspicion that the lounge management have told the staff to try and minimise the number of entrants, as by the time I left an hour later it was very busy. It’s probably not a great strategy though. But, that matter to one side, I was in.

It was spacious, comfortable and there were plenty of different seating types. I like high seating so I can use my laptop and that was available by the food, so that was my seating arrangements decided. Also, it was the second time in two days that I was first into an airport lounge, I think I must be a bit desperate for airport entertainment at the moment.

The lounge was also clean and tidy, although perhaps that was inevitable given that I was the first person in, but everything was well maintained as well.

The food area, where there were yoghurts, biscuits, cereals, fruit and the like. It was all self-service and although relatively basic, it was handy to get coffee and biscuits to start the day with. I say “start”, although I’m not sure that I had finished the day before at that point.

Very pleasant and there were views onto the runway as well for those who wanted to spot aircraft.

That was a perfectly nice way to start the day and I was delighted that Aer Lingus had opened their lounge early as it meant time seemed to progress much quicker before my 06:30 flight to Heathrow. It’s not a hugely impressive lounge in terms of the food offering, but it was more than sufficient for me and I understand things get a bit more substantial later on during the day in that regard. It felt a modern and well designed lounge, better than I had expected.

As a repeat of the rules, BA silver and gold card holders can use the lounge if flying with Aer Lingus to Heathrow or Gatwick. The rules are though complex, but I did think the staff members could perhaps be slightly less confrontational, as someone who wasn’t sure of the rules would have likely just left without going in. But, I left happy, so all was well with the world.

September 20, 2022