Howth

Me and Brooke at Howth

My sister flew into Dublin last Friday, and we had a lot of fun. Brooke stayed through the week (leaving early this Thursday). Our first adventure on the Friday she arrived was taking the DART out to Howth.

Brooke on the DART

The group at Howth - Jackie, Michaela, Casey, and Me

Howth is a small seaside village just outside of Dublin. Jackie, her friend Michaela, and Casey decided to join us for the outing. The day we went was chilly but sunny, and it was definitely worth any discomfort. After getting off the train we got some Beshoff's chips at a takeaway counter so Brooke could have her first Irish french fries. We took pictures along the water of the lighthouse and walked up a hill into the suburbs and stumbled upon an old abbey. After heading back down and walking a little around the bay area we began our search for Howth Castle in earnest.

Boats and a cute lighthouse

I should explain that the map we were using was slightly inaccurate. By that I mean it looks like the same artist that made the Malahide Train Station sign (visible in one of my previous entries) was also commissioned to scribble a few drawings in crayon and call it a map of Howth. We tried to follow the signs and information we were given by a man at the convenience store, but we ended up hopelessly lost. Somehow we made our way into suburbs where all the houses looked the same, and then on some random paths in the woods surrounded by tons of strange garbage (carpeting on the path, an old door to make a bridge across a large puddle, some discarded wheelbarrows, etc.).

The adventure begins...

After taking a short venture on to one of these paths, I emerged from the woods and onto a golf course, where I practically ran into three guys, who looked a little confused as to why I had popped out of the woods. I can't really blame them. It was pretty hilarious. I asked them where the castle was, to which they replied, "which castle are you looking for?" Apparently we were close to the border of another town! They started laughing hysterically as I showed them the map, but were nice enough to explain that we would have to go across the golf course, turn right at a flag, and walk through the woods again.

An old crabby man then came up to us and told us we better hurry; he was hitting in that direction. Jackie of course flipped out, put the fear of God into us by telling us some story about the eye doctor in her town who got hit in the eye by a golf ball and went blind (she was quite serious, but I couldn't help but laugh at the irony), and started screaming at us to run. So we ran!!! We must have looked like absolute crazies, but it was one of the funniest moments I've had yet on this trip. The whole thing was just so over-the-top. As I was running I also had the chance to notice that Howth's golf course has quite a nice view of the coast.

I can't believe someone actually caught this moment on camera. Those poor unsuspecting golfers!

The infamous Howth golf course

After our sprint we made it to nearby Howth castle. Our tour guide books all say that you can take tours. Apparently that has changed; it's now a privately owned culinary school. After taking some pictures around the area and being followed by a man on a lawn mower (Brooke thought it was a zamboni at first), we went to go look for the beach.

Howth Castle - pretty nice location for a culinary school!

Howth has two beaches, but with that map, we couldn't find a damn one. We wandered around the town, and eventually Michaela and I accidentally walked into a tennis court that we thought was a park or pathway connecting to the beach. There was a group of guys there "playing tennis." By that I mean they were playing in true Irish style - two of them were lazily swinging rackets back and forth and the rest were smoking and drinking. Michaela was then introduced to Irish flirting. When we asked for directions to the beach one of them said, "You go stand on those train tracks over there. That's how you find it." The poor girl was horrified, but her shocked reaction was priceless. Some of the less socially awkward ones actually provided us with good directions, and even though we had to go back a ways to find it, we did make it to the beach.

The tennis courts. Yes, there really are palm trees in Ireland!

It was obviously too cold to enjoy the beach in the usual manner, but we walked along the sand and rocks, collecting shells and taking photos of the islands off the coast. It was really pleasant and relaxing, especially after running around trying to find everything all day. I loved Howth - it's a small town (though you wouldn't have guessed by the amount of running around we did), but quaint and charming. I think we covered every inch of the place, but I would still go back if I had the time or a reason.