Gone already

This week with my parents flew by, I can't believe they are already headed to the airport. They swung by my campus to pick up a suitcase for me to take home, and it was so strange saying goodbye, but knowing that I would see them in a week. A week and I will be back home! I can't even wrap my head around it.

So here's what they have been up to the past few days.

After I got out of work on Wednesday, we walked to the Old Jameson Distillery. I'm not really a fan of whiskey, but even I recognized that the tour was pretty good. This tour had a guide, as opposed to Guinness where there are signs to give you the information. We learned about the whole process of Irish whiskey making, and what makes it different from the Scottish or American whiskey makers.

At the end of the tour, Mom and Dad were two of eight whiskey taste testers. They had to smell, taste and compare three different whiskeys, the point of which is to prove that Jameson is the best.

While Dad may prefer Jack Daniels, both he and Mom passed with a diplomas to show for it.

Then we headed out to the Glasnevin Cemetery in Glasnevin, the area of Dublin in which I live. We went for drinks and dinner at John Kavanagh's Gravediggers Pub. Established in 1883, it's one of the oldest pubs in Dublin. It's still family owned--our waiter was 8th generation Kavanagh. His uncle, the chef, came out and talked to us for a while. He explained that the pub has been home to many an Irish beer commercial, and several movies. It has that rustic, old feel because well, it is old. There were even snugs, areas walled in, with a small window to be served through, where the women used to have to drink their small glasses of beer.

Of course we signed the guest book.

Thursday, Mom and Dad met me for lunch at the Queen of Tarts, where we ate like kings. This is the one place I am sincerely going to miss when I go home. The waitress knows me, I'm in there so much.

I got the tart with roasted chicken, red peppers and zucchini. It came with bread, salad, potato salad and some cous cous. Delicious! It's my favorite lunchtime meal. And of course, we had tea and scones to top it off.

I went back to work, but when I was done, we headed over to Phoenix Park. It was quite a hike, but it was worth the sore feet. We just walked around and enjoyed the uncharacteristically beautiful weather.

We opted for a bus on the way back to save our feet. We sat in my favorite spot, front seat of the top floor. Here they are with a license plate that Dad bought earlier in the day.

Once we got into the city, we walked down O'Connell Street and Grafton Street, stopping to get some Ladurée macaroons at Brown Thomas. They were scrumptious, of course.

Then, unfortunately, I had to head home to study for my mass media final, which is at noon today. Yes, this blog post is serving as a procrastination tool.

I'm just so thankful that their trip was not interrupted by the ash cloud (as I knock on wood for their return flight). It was great being able to show them around the city and show off all that I've learned in the past three months!