Day 29

November 1, 2021:

I got a solid two hours of sleep on the plane, plus maybe an additional two hours of drifting in and out trying to get to sleep. Meal service was great, and I’m continuously surprised by how much better it is than airlines in the US. Okay, maybe not surprised, but disappointed that US airlines aren’t better. There weren’t any options on food, but the meals were filling and tasty. Dinner was chicken tarragon over noodles and steamed vegetables. It was served with a roll & butter, a salad, a beverage (I got orange juice), and a chocolate mouse. Water bottles were provided, making my ridiculously expensive Newark water bottle purchase worthless. I stayed hydrated. When I checked in, the attendants offered to switch my seat such that I got a full row to myself. That’s both pairs of window seats and a solid four adjacent seats in the center. To sleep, I put the armrests up in the middle, stacked a ton of pillows on one end, and buckled in my legs and waist so I wouldn’t be bothered by crew members in flight. If I can’t sleep in those conditions, I’ll never otherwise be able to sleep on planes. I think I did pretty well. I’m not fully rested, but I did catch enough rest to make it through to Dublin without feeling like it’s 4:30 am right now. (I’m writing this from Oslo, Norway, having landed.) With about an hour left in the flight, the lights came on and breakfast was served. I decided to turn down both coffee and tea. Breakfast consisted of sliced fruit, a ham sandwich (which I assembled myself), orange juice, and a blueberry yogurt with granola. Fancy! I love how this standard would have been considered business class just a few years ago. The inflight entertainment was also pretty neat, but I mostly just kept it on the map. I love maps.

When the sun rose, I switched to a window seat, watching the clouds over the North Atlantic. I saw the west coast of Norway through breaks in the clouds. The view was majestic. As the plane started to descend into Oslo, I took pictures, trying my best to capture this ephemeral beauty. The inflight entertainment system also has a front-facing camera, so I was able to watch the ILS approach to the runway through the rain. It was cool to see the PAPI lights to know we were perfectly on glide path.

After landing, I had to pass through customs, despite Norway not being my destination. With my German passport, I was through in thirty seconds. I just pressed the passport to a scanner, showed my face, and boom, done. No need to talk to customs agents. Sweet. Going through security again, I let a whole bunch of other passengers go in front of me, since they needed to get on flights that were already boarding. My flight would leave in about two hours, so I had plenty of time. After another round of ‘customs,’ I found my gate and took a seat to work on my blog. Got a lot of catch-up to do. Oddly, it’s whenever I’m in a big city with amenities like Warmshowers and wifi that I fall behind… probably because there’s more to do.

The flight to Dublin was substantially less comfortable. I had a window seat, but the plane was full of people, so I had someone right next to me. I spent the majority of the time looking out, though large portions of the flight we were above sheets of white, flat clouds that blanketed the region. I was able to see rural Norwegian towns, white-topped waves on the North Sea, the east coast of Scotland, the Irish Sea, and the east coast of Ireland. Drinks were served, but soda was not free, so I took tea with sugar and milk. The milk came in a small oddly-shaped carton that I spent maybe ten minutes trying to figure out how to open in a way that wouldn’t make it spray everywhere. Wearing the mask was getting tiring, and I was eager to be on the ground so I could take it off.

Upon landing, I left not via a jet bridge, but via the steps that allow you to walk on the ramp next to the terminal. I love doing this. It makes me feel like I’m in an old photograph or a Tintin comic. Passing through passport control and customs was like a controlled dash to see who could walk fastest. I did well, but it turns out I didn’t need to. I never had to speak to anyone, never had to answer questions about my crazy bike trip or show my covid vaccination and negative PCR test…. So weird. Instead, I just scanned my German passport and got my face scanned by an automated machine, and thirty seconds later, boom, I was through. I picked up baggage, and my boxes were some of the first out. Carts were free here, so I took one and walked to currency exchange. I already have a LOT of Euros and Pounds which I’ve carried with me since Cincinnati. I just changed any remaining USD I had in my wallet over to Pounds, since I wasn’t sure I’d actually gotten enough of them for the UK.

With my jumbo bike box, I wouldn’t be able to take the bus into the city center, so I compared taxi prices and accepted a 30 Euro charge to my hostel. This did feel a bit steep given the distance to downtown, but still within the realm of acceptable. I gave the driver a small tip, then unloaded my stuff. I ported it into the hostel across the street – the Jacobs Inn on Talbot Pl.

I checked in, but my room upstairs wasn’t cleaned yet, so they instructed me to wait about half an hour. The employee there, Stephanie, explained my options on luggage storage and the locker systems. The lockers in the luggage room are paid, so she offered to have me store my things in their office temporarily. I asked to borrow a dolly and directions to the nearest bicycle service shop. They were super nice and gave me a full cart and a tourist map of Dublin and drew directions to various bike shops.

I left with my bike box on foot, wheeling it along Talbot St past The Spire. The Spire is a stainless steel tapered column that sticks up into the sky like a needle. Apparently it is a symbol of Dublin. The sidewalks were wide and smooth, which made going easy. This is the main drag on the north side of the River Liffey, and it was lined with small markets, bakeries, jewelry stores, and restaurants. A streetside mandolin player sang in Gaelic. While walking to one of the bike shops, I happened to pass right by another. I went in.

“How can I help you?” “Do you do bicycle assembly?” “Yes.” “How much do you charge?” “35.” “And when could I expect to have it done by?” “After lunch tomorrow. Give me your phone number. I’ll call you if there’s a problem.” I had him test the number to see if it actually rang on my side – it did. Sweet Google Fi!

I left the bike there and wheeled the dolly back down Henry and Talbot St to the hostel, returning it to the maintenance guy. I bought a bit of hazelnut Turkish Delight on the way back from a bakery, paying with debit. When I got back, my room was clean, so I checked it out. I’m in the cheapest dorm room they have. Weirdly, it’s a pod room. My bed is approximately a 1m x 1m x 2m rectangular box, under which is a safe and a small cubby. I went back down to the office and brought all my stuff upstairs, locking it into the safe, which had an incredibly large internal volume. It fit the full box of my bike equipment inside without the need for me to unpack it. I stored my computer, clothing, and the majority of my money inside the safe before heading out to explore Dublin. I figure the money is far safer in the safe than it is on my person, even when in my secret carrying pouch I have under my shirt.

I left with my raincoat on, but I probably should also have brought my bike gloves. It was pretty cold and windy outside. I walked back to The Spire, then walked south across the River Liffey via the O’Connell Bridge, snapping a picture of the river as I did so.

Fleet St looked particularly interesting, a cobblestone street lined with bars and clubs. I went further to College St though, and found my first Geocache in Ireland outside the Bank of Ireland. It started to rain heavily, the cold drops pelting the street, pushing many tourists into a run for the nearest bus. I held my hood close (it’s designed to go over the top of my bike helmet) with one hand, and tightened the collars around my wrists with the other. I continued to the Trinity Bar, and decided to go in.

The Trinity Bar was furnished in wood, and I was led upstairs to a small round table with a view of the street. The waiters – Irish women – were HOT. I ordered a strip steak with a Guinness. At first I tried to ignore the TVs, but soon was intrigued by cricket. I watched England play Sri Lanka. I do not know anything about cricket. While I waited for the food to come, I messaged Neiman and Palmer about Dublin. What is Brown Sauce? How is cricket played? The food was good, but I think I don’t like Guinness. It in no way tastes or resembles chocolate, but that’s the description I’ve heard to describe this flavor before. I really hate that quality of beers. It did grow on me a little, but I think it’d really be an acquired taste.

I left when the rain stopped, walking back to the hostel with a take-out box with leftovers. I crashed into the small pod, closing the curtain behind me. I was just plain exhausted, and my eyes felt heavy. The pub crawl will have to wait for another night. I passed out, napping for about four hours. When I got up, I felt a bit better and went downstairs with my computer to work. I’ll probably eat some of the leftover dinner before bed.