We spent our first couple of days in Dun Laoghaire exploring the area, including a visit to the nearby National Maritime Museum of Ireland and a late-afternoon walk around downtown Dublin. We strolled along statue-filled O’Connell Street, Dublin’s main thoroughfare, and along the River Liffey that runs through town, where the many bridges are beautifully lit up at night. And, of course, we found a pub or two to visit.

Below are trip highlights from November 12th through 14th in Dublin, Ireland. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at http://mvdirona.com/maps

11/12/2017

Mark & Carol McGillivray Position: -6 8.34, 53 17.97 New Zealand residents Mark and Carol McGillivray, owners of Nordhavn 50 Panacea, were in the area and stopped by to visit. We had an excellent evening with them, first on Dirona and later over dinner at Toscano Italian restaurant on the waterfront.

11/13/2017

Sunrise Position: -6 8.34, 53 17.97 An 7:46am sunrise at Dun Laoghaire Marina. The days sure are short in the winter here, even shorter than Seattle. The shortest day in the year, December 21st, has 8:25 of daylight in Seattle and an hour less at 7:29 in Dublin. Both still beat Tromso in northern Norway, where the sun never rises at all during the entire month of December.

Berth Position: -6 8.35, 53 17.97 Looking past the two Dun Laoghaire Marina inner breakwaters to the East pier and its lighthouse, just visible in the distance. These all combine to make for calm conditions at our berth, even in strong winds.

Lunch Position: -6 8.01, 53 17.64 Lunch at the Forty Foot pub overlooking Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

Maritime Museum Position: -6 7.90, 53 17.53 The National Maritime Museum of Ireland is housed in a former church in downtown Dun Laoghaire and is packed with displays covering the history of the area and its many maritime tragedies.

Lens Position: -6 7.91, 53 17.54 First-order Fresnel lens at the National Maritime Museum of Ireland. The lens was in use between 1901 and 1972 at the Baily Lighthouse, on Howth Head peninsula along the north side of Dublin Bay.

11/14/2017

Custom House Position: -6 15.17, 53 20.85 A convenient 20-minute train trip brought us from the Dun Laoghaire marina to downtown Dublin in the late afernoon. This is the magnificent Custom House building was built in the late 1700s on the banks of the River Liffey that runs through Dublin.

J.W. Sweetman Position: -6 15.53, 53 20.84 We had an excellent meal at J.W. Sweetman along the River Liffey.

O’Connell Monument Position: -6 15.54, 53 20.85 O’Connell Street is Dublin’s main thoroughfare and contains several statues that memorialize Irish heroes. This is of Daniel O’Connell, ‘the Great Liberator’, who in the early 19th century fought for Catholic emancipation and the repeal of the Acts of Union that joined Great Britan and Ireland.

O’Brien Monument Position: -6 15.58, 53 20.89 William Smith O’Brien was an Irish MP who was sentenced to deportation to Van Dieman’s Land (now Tasmania) for his part in the failed 1848 Young Irelander Rebellion, a nationalist uprising.

John Gray Monument Position: -6 15.58, 53 20.91 John Gray was an Irish politician and supporter of Daniel O’Connell who also advocated for the repeal of the Acts of Union and was instrumental in introducing a freshwater supply to Dublin while chairman of the Dublin Corporation Water Works Committee between 1863 and 1875.

Spire Position: -6 15.59, 53 20.93 The 393ft (120m) Spire of Dublin on O’Connnel street. When installed in 2001 it was the highest statue in the world until being eclipsed in 2008 by the 420ft (128m) Spring Temple Buddha in China. Given the simplicity of this statue it’s not entirely fair to include in the worlds largest statue list, but it is a great landmark in Dublin.

James Larkin Statue Position: -6 15.60, 53 20.94 James “Big Jim” Larkin was an Irish trade-union leader most known for organizing the six-month Dublin lockout in 1913-1914 that aimed to introduce trade unions to improve the terrible living conditions of Irish workers.

Post Office Position: -6 15.63, 53 20.96 At Dublin’s General Post Office to mail a package. The grand building was the command headquarter’s for rebels in the 1916 Easter Uprising during Ireland’s struggle for independence from Great Britain.

Parnell Monument Position: -6 15.69, 53 21.15 Statue of Charles Parnell, an Irish nationalist politicion and British MP who controlled the balance of power between the Liberals and the Conservatives in 1885 and successfully pushed for Irish self-government.

Henry Street Position: -6 15.73, 53 20.97 Henry Street is one of Dublin’s two main shopping streets, along with Grafton. The mostly pedestrian road attracts 33 million shoppers per year.

Guinness Truck Position: -6 16.19, 53 20.75 Trucks pulling stainless steel tanks of Guinness passed by constantly while we were walking about Dublin. The many-block Guinness brewery is nearby along the River Liffey.

Four Courts Position: -6 16.42, 53 20.73 The imposing Four Courts building was built in the late 1700s and is home to the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit Court. The building was destroyed in 1922 during the Irish fight for independence and was rebuilt in 1932.

Rory O’More Bridge Position: -6 16.97, 53 20.80 The many bridges that cross the River Liffey in downtown Dublin are lit up beautifully at night. The Rory O’More bridge was opened in 1861 with an inaugural crossing by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

Guiness Position: -6 17.11, 53 20.82 Looking across the River Liffey to the 50-acre Guinness Brewery, founded in 1759, that covers blocks and blocks in downtown Dublin.

Temple Bar Position: -6 15.70, 53 20.74 The cobblestone streets of Dublin’s popular Temple Bar district on the south side of the River Liffey are full of restaurants, quirky shops, pubs and people.

Molly Malone Position: -6 15.66, 53 20.63 Statue of Molly Malone in the Temple Bar district. She was a fictional fishmonger described in the song of the same name that has become Dublin’s unofficial anthem.

O’Neill’s Position: -6 15.66, 53 20.63 We finished the day with a great evening at O’Neill’s pub, a quicky multi-floor building with small balconies and tables tucked away all over the place. And amazingly, we ran into Mark & Carol McGillivray who were visiting from New Zealand.

Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map, with the complete log of our cruise. On the map page, clicking on a camera or text icon will display a picture and/or log entry for that location, and clicking on the smaller icons along the route will display latitude, longitude and other navigation data for that location. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at http://mvdirona.com/maps.