Walking about Limerick City Centre

[kybearfuzz]

Visiting King John's Castle, Limerick, Ireland

I finally got out of the hotel, well rested and ready to go. I had heard that the Limerick City Centre was about a 1/2 hour walk (if you've got good legs, as one older man told me). So I started hoofing it, it's not like I don't need the exercise. Along the way, I spied a McDonald's, they must literally be everywhere. Like any bad American tourist, I stopped there for lunch. Well, there are very few restaurants around the hotel. There is also a large mall next to MickeyD's. I made note of that for later.

It felt like longer than 30 minutes of walking, but I was taking pictures along the way. I knew I was getting closer to the City Centre when there were more and more people around. Not a bad downtown area, loaded with pubs, no surprise. There was a charity drive for cancer going on, lots of guys on motorcycles for a race going on too. I wanted to snap pictures of some of the more burly ones, but they were a rough looking crowd. I decided to err on the side of caution and just admire them from afar.

The only real tourist attraction open today was King John's Castle. King John was quite the scoundrel, the brother of Richard I, and known villian in most Robin Hood movies (Yes! That King John!) the castle was impressive, a large courtyard, surrounded by turrets and some beautiful views of the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland. There was some decent eye candy there too, but it was hard to snap good pictures of them from a distance. I did get one of a daddy bear with a great beard. It was fun roaming about the castle, checking out some of the excavation they've been doing. There were some creepy parts where they have manikins (sp?) in rooms, re-enacting historical events.. *shiver*.

I had seen enough after a couple of hours, so I stopped off in the gift shop for family stuff and postcards. I hope I can get the mugs home without breaking them.


"AOA Biker Bar"
On the way back, I noticed several of the motorcycles parked outside a shady bar "AOA." I wondered if it was a straight bar or not. Like a scene from Will & Grace when Will and Jack wonder if the bar is gay, I heard Gloria Gaynor belting out "I Will Survive" booming through the bar walls. I laughed out loud at the implication. I'm sure it's probably not a gay bar, as I saw many men and women entering and leaving, but it struck me funny.

More of the day's pictures taken are located here.

I was exhausted when I got back to the hotel, covered in sweat, I decided to lift weights in the gym for a bit and then showered. I ran into Tim the Dubliner again, had a pint with him and grabbed dinner. Tomorrow.. work... :(