9/11/10- Scotchy, scotch, scotch. Here it goes down. Down into my belly.

 I live two blocks from the old Jameson Whiskey Distillery.  Despite being a whiskey fan on rare occasions, I opted to give the tour of the place a whirl.  

Distillery entrance- taken at night due to camera problems

The guy selling the tickets asked me where I'm from, to which I replied the US.  He gave me a look as though I was an idiot, saying "I figured as much, but where in the US."  From there we had a nice conversation about NFL football (my kind), in particular Matt Ryan and Aaron Rogers.  He recommended two pubs for watching NFL games and the tour began shortly thereafter.  The tour began with a ten minute movie (which was functionally a Jameson promo).  Afterwards, the guide asked for eight volunteers (of the group of 30-40) for a sampling at the end.  My law school reflex naturally kicked in as my hand shot up and I was chosen for membership into the Elite 8.  The tour itself was enjoyable and educational.  The end brought us to a bar where each person could select a Jameson drink (one shot, some with mixers like coke, cranberry juice, ice tea).  I chose the Coke and Jameson and then began the sampling.  We were asked to smell and taste the difference between Johnny Walker Black Label Scotch, Jameson Irish Whiskey, and Jack Daniels American Whiskey.  Discovered I am not a scotch fan (too smokey), and preferred the Jameson out of the three.  Overall, a great experience and a must-visit for anyone coming to Dublin.

My certificate for being awesome

After some shopping for bed sheets and a power adapter, I spent the rainy afternoon in my tiny house.  

                                       

After dark, I decided to go for a walk.  I wanted to take some pics of a Red Bull-sponsored photography exhibit shown on Trinity's campus at night.  The photographs are amazing shots of extreme sports athletes illuminated on a stand.  Unfortunately the front gates were closed, so I settled for taking a few pics from my walk.

My humble abode- on the left

The River Liffey- divides the northern & southern halves of the city

Arts Center- Temple Bar Area

Gellato Shop- review coming soon

Street Performers in Temple Bar

Sidenote 1: Despite the deepest wishes of my good friend Emily Jane Bogenschutz, Ireland is not like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2PM0om2El8

Sidenote 2: Ellie Goulding will be performing in Dublin Nov 30.  She's a UK artist whose CD is tragically unavailable in the US (in stores or on iTunes).  She's my fave and I could not be more excited for a concert!

Looooooooooove Ellie!!!!

My fave song here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRkVNs_fJoo