Travelling Around Dublin and Guildford

I have written up this blog post for you so I can continue sharing with you my favourite parts of my travels in Europe. In the previous Blog post I outlined my three favourite places in London (copy this link to check it out http://thepenandinkpot.blogspot.com.au/2017/12/the-beginning-of-my-trip-in-europe.html). In this post I will share with you my adventures in Guildford in the English countryside and things to do in Dublin, Ireland.

After spending 6 days in the heart of London, we took the train out to a town called Guildford which was around 45 minutes from the city. There we spend a few days at a small hotel called the Premier Inn. (It was a little cramped in there!) During our stay, we visited friends who used to live near us in Melbourne and we thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful countryside. We went on little walks in and out the the town, did some shopping then escaped for a day to a even smaller village called Shere. It was a tedious drive to get there through several dirt roads, but the village itself looked like it was out of a movie. In fact the Christmas movie, “The Holiday” was shot in some places there! Along the main road were gorgeous little English cottages, some of which were converted restaurants and shops. We also visited the thousand year old church with its old graveyard filled with worn down gravestones jutting out of the ground at all sorts of angles. I would definitely recommend visiting Shere for a taste of the old fashioned British countryside.

Then we flew out of England to Dublin, the capital of Ireland. I found it surprisingly similar to my home in Melbourne with its houses and apartments lining the streets about a twenty minute drive from the centre of the city where we stayed with friends for several days. In the city, I would recommend taking the time to just wander around and discover the little gems hidden around. Of course wandering down Grafton Street (the famous strip of shops) was an iconic experience which left me with the first line of “Galway Girl” by Ed Sheeran stuck in my head. Also in the city, I would recommend visiting Trinity College. It is free to enter and wander the grounds, but when we went we decided to go into the library. Inside there were several old bibles including the Book of Kells which is a 1218 year old  manuscript of the four gospels of the bible. It was extremely impressive since such an old book was on display. The monks had created these old bibles mainly for show, so the artwork and lettering used was incredible. The main Library, the Long Room was a bookworm’s dream. High, curved ceilings and two storey’s worth of walls lined with old books, even the lighting was the dim sort that made you want to curl up and read. 

Something different for you to do if you are staying near Dublin, is a place in the hills not far from the city. Newgrange and Knowth are two of the attractions there. These are mounds of earth that were made before the pyramids. They are a real mystery with underground pathways and a chamber that had remnants of human remains inside it. It is said to have been a sacred place for worshiping the gods. They even have gaps near the roof through which the sun shines through on a certain day in Summer and Winter. We experienced this through an example with electrical light and it would have been amazing to see it for real. We went on tours around the area and there were other buildings and mounds that we didn’t get to, but I would have loved to see them. Going to see this is a great way to learn about the ancient history in Ireland and if you don’t have time to see both Newgrange and Knowth, I felt that Newgrange was more worthwhile since Knowth had no access to the chamber under it and most of the mound had been ruined by other settlements.

Lastly, if you want a quick history of Dublin and what the city has been through, I would highly recommend going to the Little Museum of Dublin which is conveniently in the centre of the city and runs sessions that go for 30 minutes and cover almost all their is to know. There were two rooms we were taken through which were covered in photos and writing, most of which we explained to us in a way that was easy to understand and entertaining. So if you are spending time in Dublin, I would recommend going here for a brief but important run down on the history of the amazing city.

Sorry about the long post, but I wanted to cover a lot on these places I have been. I hope that you enjoyed reading this post and find my opinion helpful if you are planning a trip around Europe! 

Thanks, 

~Inkpot Blogger