Dublin

So now I've been here a couple of days I think I have a better idea of what Dublin is like. It's busy and crowded and really expensive. The only thing that is cheap is Guinness. It's cheaper to buy than milk. Jack and I went on another of those really touristy bus tours to get an idea of what to see and where to go.
Our apartment is in a very good spot (well done S) south of the Liffey and near Temple bar which has a lot of shops and restaurants. On our first day here we walked down Grafton street which was like Pitt Street in Sydney at Christmas or Oxford Street in London during the June sales. And because there are so many tourists here it doesn't matter what side of the footpath you walk on, it's always the wrong side. I've been trying to work that out for the whole trip. I think someone had said to me once that the side you walk on is the corresponds to what side of the street people drive on but in London, Paris and Dublin it seems it's everyman (or woman) for themselves. And if you have a buggy, well tough.
Jack and I met some right wags while we waited for the bus and then did our tour (or part thereof). We saw the Guinness breweries, all 64 acres of it, as well as some of the major sights of Dublin. We drove past a statue of Molly Malone (you know the one from the song) who is normally draped in tourists and who is called the 'tart with the cart', the 'dish with the fish' or the 'trollop with the scallops'. You get the idea. Apparently cockles and mussels weren't the only things she sold. She's quite a busty wench I must say.
Our bus driver, Eamon who was having a birthday, sang the whole song with other people on the bus joining in, much to Jack's delight as he grooved along. S and I are becoming concerned about his taste in music. First bagpipes, then he was grooving to the sound of a french ambulance in Paris, and on the way here from the airport he was getting down to some Irish fiddling. Hmmm....hope he doesn't become a folk musician.We got off the bus at Phoenix Park which is a huge green space and probably a very good place for Jack to run around but we went to the zoo instead. It was very popular and not a bad zoo. If I had to rate it I would say that it wasn't as good as Taronga Park Zoo in Sydney but is much better than Wagga Zoo. The last time we went to Wagga Zoo we heard that there were no more pigs on display because someone had jumped the fence and stolen one for a BBQ. Oh dear.We saw some tigers and monkeys that had been mulesed and some ducks (the therapy is working - Jack was very pleased to see them) and some giraffes and zebras and ostriches. The tiger walked right past Jack and I but I was a bit slow with the camera. We also saw a cage that had a sign saying Jaguar but there was only a goat.After the zoo we waited for the bus, but when it turned up I couldn't find my ticket so the man kindly offered to let me on. As I searched through my stuff Jack had found a roll of paper which he busily started shredding. When I finally found my ticket I panicked and thought I'd got on the wrong bus (as there are a few different companies) and wondered what to do. Jack started playing peekaboo with two lovely American women who were willing participants and thought he was 'just adorable'.