Irish Castles, Cathedrals, and Cool Leprechauns

A quick flight to Dublin and then we jumped right into life in Ireland. A welcoming dinner reception by the EMC Insurance Company started off a great week. We had beautiful weather for visiting Trinity College, the charming beach town of Howth, several amazing cathedrals, shopping on Grafton Street and even a round of golf for Tom. Our wonderful time culminated with an exclusive party at the Guinness Storehouse! Check out the pics but watch out for the Leprechaun!

                     An evening walk along the River Liffey that runs through the center of Dublin

                                                               

                                                                  Malihide Castle

                                      The lovely harbor in the seaside town of Howth

                                                               Who is that little guy?

                                              Trinity College and Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin

Tom is up to shenanigans while Lorraine tries out for the choir at Saint Patrick's Cathedral 

Amazing architecture and lovely detail in the cathedral'stile flooring.

    Tom enjoyed a round of golf on the links even though it was wet and rainy. The clubhouse in the far background was built by an English Lord in the 1600's. The cart barn was originally a horse stable made of stone.  

      Now that is an interesting presentation of a Caesar salad. A strip of pureed lettuce???? Weird!!

Off to a super fun night at the Guinness Brewery. 

Food, Irish dancers, good beer and a view of Dublin at night from the 7th floor. Awesome!

                                             We had a great time and that's no blarney!

Our lovely room, comfy bed and luxurious robes. Ireland and EMC, you've been good to us! 

Hello, London!

In April we had the opportunity to go to Ireland (courtesy of EMC Insurance) and added on 4 days in London, too. How great is that? Here are a few photos of the fun time we had in London, my favorite city in the world! Super clean, safe, historic and they speak English! Tom even got to be in the driver seat of a British cab and help make Paella in Covent Gardens.

                                                     Heading to our Hotel from Paddington Station

                     The hub of downtown London with the Tower of Big Ben.             

      We took a tour of London on the double decker bus. Nice place to view the city from the top deck                                                   

                                                                       The London Eye

                                            The historic Parliament Buildings along the Thames River

       Two nice chaps, a Tommy and a Bobby                  Lorraine's favorite...shopping on Regent Street

Just in time for 5:00 pm Evening Song at the historic Westminster Abbey. This beautiful reverent service acknowledging God Almighty, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit has taken place for over 1000 years. Many of the Monarchy have been married and buried there.

                          Fish and chips for Lorraine, Shepherds Pie for Tom at The Swan Pub.
                                      Lorraine and her sister Bonnie ate here 7 years prior.

                                                               











                                                   
 The next day we checked out Covent Gardens and Tom adds his culinary touch to this huge Paella

This building is the first London Coffee House where Insurance was born in 1652. Currently it is a popular pub that fills at lunch time with executives who have a pint or two with their sandwich. Lloyds of London is just around the corner.

A walk through Hyde Park to the Royal Albert Hall. Everything was blooming' in the Park

 Spamalot, Monty Python at it's BEST! What a hilarious play!!                                                      

                      Our hotel was on Leinster Terrace which looks similar to many of the streets in London.        I just love the classic architecture of these buildings 

Goodbye London, we will miss you! Now off to Ireland.