Saturday Mark and I had a grand old time traipsing around town. I had been inside sick for a week, so when I woke up and I wasn't feeling quite so bad, getting out was my priority. We went to "The Hill" on North Cumberland Street, which is a block that is filled with people selling a bunch of junk, mostly piles of clothes on the ground. But it's still fun to pick through if you're in the mood. We actually ran into Mark's mother there, so we had a nice chat with her and walked her over to O'Connell Street, where she headed to the grocery store and home. It was new to see her outside of her own house and the pub!I bought a novel from the 60's called "The Group," which promises to be a "runaway best-selling story of eight eager, innocent girl graduates starting life in 1933 - pioneering their way from sex and interior decor to cooking and contraception..." Apparently it was made into a movie with Candace Bergen. The book looks like it will be a fun read!

Then we headed over to visit the Civic Museum, where Mark was keen to see Nelson's head from the statue that was knocked down, but as it turns out they closed that museum some time ago! So we hopped on the Luas (a sleek train that goes from one end of town to another), and jeez it was crowded, but we didn't get off until Blackhorse because I wanted to visit The Blackhorse Market, which I'd been reading about for weeks. I had no idea what to expect (of if I'd find it once we got off the Luas), but I was pleased to discover that it is a proper flea market. It's a big warehouse space with tables of vendors inside selling everything but (or maybe including) the kitchen sink. Clothes, jewelry, furniture, books, knick knacks, wall hangings, kitchen gadgets, and all other manner of do-dads. In fact, there's even a Reiki stall! I bought a vintage necklace, an H&M dress, and the cutest vintage top I've ever seen, and managed to spend only 8 euro. So I was feeling rather pleased with myself.

The ride back on the Luas was even more annoying than the ride there, but we happily got off and checked out the Belgian beer festival going on at the Porterhouse. After one pint, we couldn't really hang with the crowd (Dublin has been infected with U2 mania this week), so we took off in search of something a little more low-key. Mark took me into Kennedy's pub, which I absolutely *loved.* It's a little time warp that smells a bit musty when you walk in -- the sensory signal that you are walking into a place unchanged. Even the knick knacks and yellowed posters on the wall have probably been there since the 70s. There was a game on, and it was nice and quiet. A true old man bar, which is always my favorite kind.

We walked home in no particular rush, and paid a quick visit to St. Agatha's Church, which is pretty gigantic inside but there wasn't much of note except the cherry red ceiling. As we got closer to the house, we saw the droves of concert goers headed to the Stadium, and the Garda posted everywhere to keep them in line.

All in all, a fun-filled day with not a drop of rain, topped off by a very pleasant evening at Seomra Spraoi and late night snacks (of course). It did actually pour rain on us during our walk home, at about 2am, but what's 24 hours in Dublin without a bit of rain?