Cheese Glorious Cheese

It is summertime, and in Cleveland that means festivals. Local church festivals, beer festivals, food festivals and cultural festivals.

This weekend I was at the Irish Festival. Instead of getting some good Irish fare, I decided to have a corn dog. While I was standing in line, I noticed this sign. It immediately reminded me of Tom. His love of cheese is absolutely unparalleled.

As a matter of fact, he had been extolling the virtues of the cheese on a stick he had at a church festival the previous week.

Oh Glory Day!

Nader Rides Edisons' Bike

Some of your might recall an image of someone else riding the bike outside of Edisons' pub.

Apparently, when the folks from Optiem go to 806 in Tremont for happy hour, this activity is a quick follow on. It is like a tradition has started!

O'Neill's Pub In Dublin

Of course we managed to eat lunch in a place that is a pub. You need a good Guinness with your lunch when you are on vacation in Ireland.

This pub is directly across from the Tourist Office. However, the most incredible thing about this pub is that it is HUGE inside. It is a bit deceiving from the outside. It has 5 or 6 rooms, an upstairs and two carvery rooms inside.

Oh, and the Guinness Beef stew was Yummy!

St. Canice Cathedral in Killkenny

There are great churches and cathedrals all over Ireland. St. Canice in Killkenny is especially interesting because you can climb the external spiral tower. It provides an incredible view of the city and lets you imagine that you are on the lookout for invading tribes.

Charles Stewart Parnell

At the top of O'Connell Street, there is a statue in the middle of the intersection. It is a statue of Charles Stewart Parnell . The square directly behind it is named after him.

Having a Pint In Dublin

In Dublin, there is a bar called the Knightsbridge. It is right on the River Liffey. You can sit in the front and look out of the window at the traffic going by on the quays. It is a great spot to have a pint of Guinness.

After a long day of touring the city, my friends and I stopped in there. While we were there, I noticed these two friends sitting there enjoying the view out the window.

I was torn about converting the photo to black and white because there were some lovely, warm brown tones in the other one. However, I think the black and white photo shows the light flooding through the window in a better way.

250 Years of Guinness

This year, Guinness is celebrating their 250th anniversary. To commemorate the event, they have a special display at the Guinness Factory. It is amazing to think that in 1759, Arthur Guinness opened a brewery that has remained opened for 250 years. Ultimately, it was his decision to only brew the now famous porter that was the real difference maker . . . and most likely people drink approximately 5 million pints of the stuff every day.

Guinness Log Book

While on the tour at the Guinness Factory, there is a room where they display all of the master brewers from Guinness through the years. This log book is on display as an example of the detailed notation of the brewery operations that were done.