Belfast

On Easter weekend, Reuben and I took a trip up to Belfast, Northern Ireland. Our main intent was just to go up and hit the IKEA (the only one on the island), but we ended up on one of the best city bus tours. The tour guide was treating the sensitive subjects of Belfast's history with great humor... there is obviously an attempt here by the city to be viewed as progressive and peaceful. The reality is that there still seems to be a bit of tension in Belfast. The "peace wall" still exists between the Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods (a 40ft tall wall topped with barbed wire), and my co-workers tell me that kids will still throw rocks at your car if they see you have Dublin tags on your car. All of that said, there's a beautiful new mall right in the middle of downtown with high end shops, Ireland's only IKEA and Apple Store, and they're planning an enormous Titanic museum (the Titanic was built in Belfast).

The highlight of the day must have been the amazing display of political murals up and down the Shankill Road.
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One of the murals - this one not so political

St. Patrick's Day in Dublin

After 3 months of business travel, Reuben and I finally moved to Dublin. The beauty of it all was this: as much as we struggled to expedite the process of moving, in the end, our final move in date fell on St. Patrick's Day weekend. After a couple of days getting settled, we headed down to O'Connell Street and the Liffey to catch the big parade. It was blustery and cold, but we managed to hold out for most of the parade before we retired to the pub. An Irish bonus: On St. Patty's Day, it is traditional for the men to wear real live shamrock in their front coat pocket... most older men observe this. Charming! Click here for more parade photos

Reuben and Allison on Dame Street waiting in the cold for the parade to begin

Moving Day

You know how when you move, there are those little things you find that make you wonder ..........why, why, why did you ever think you'd use THAT again??

Don't worry, we got rid of these (3D glasses)

The Clever Irish

Reuben and I caught sight of this truck in traffic one day. It's hard to make out in our photo, but what it says is: "Court Welding Ltd. Structural Steel Erectors. Small Company, Big Erections" Very Clever.

Sticker Shock

After 1 month in Dublin, we're still in awe of the prices. We're still converting Euro to Dollars in our heads, which is a very dangerous practice, and getting worse by the day! One of the best illustrations of this is the 17.50 euro burrito in Howth. That's a $25.00 burrito, friends. Ugly.

Now, on a positive note, Howth could be one of the greatest places I've seen. It's like the Ireland Sausalito... gorgeous. Great farmers market, lovely cliffs and the sea.
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Reuben in Howth