Irish Pubs and Irish Watsons

Ever wonder what it's like in an Irish Pub? My suggestion is to go watch Lord of the Rings and pay attention to every Shire pub. That'll give you a clue.

Here's what I was told: pubs are family-friendly places where they don't allow smoking and they play traditional Irish music around 9:30 every night. And that's about accurate, though I don't know that I consider places that serve alcohol as "family friendly." Then again, I had to serve some alcohol when I worked for Disney, so there you go. Anyway, we met this lovely old man named Phillip. He was the epitome of an Irish gentleman. He sang songs and introduced himself to everyone personally, trying to remember their names however he could. He told me the Irish word for "Heather" (it started with an "F" but I don't remember it, sadly!) and told me that I was cheeky. I'm not sure what I did to prompt this besides smile at him, but maybe it was my cheeks that inspired him. :) He started putting us on the spot one by one, asking us to sing. My friend Marie sang Coldplay, but I blanked at the last second and ended up singing Mary Had a Little Lamb (sheesh! of all the songs I could have picked!) and dedicating it to Ireland with all of its sheep. Then another American lady who had joined our little group started singing the Brady Bunch song, which Phillip had never heard, and we all joined in with her. Phillip thought it needed more verses than just the one, but he was still grateful for the song. For any of you who've watched BBC's Sherlock (or for any of you who are familiar with Martin Freeman) picture an aged Martin Freeman with an Irish accent wearing a white Watson sweater and you have our friend Phillip. He was a sweetheart, and definitely a regular at the Courthouse Pub since everyone there seemed to know him.

Around 9:30 a couple of musicians started playing a violin and a guitar. The music was absolutely beautiful, just like the rest of this country. It feels like I've been here forever, but this is only the third night! Fortunately I seem to be over jet lag, though the bus still tries to lull me to sleep. There's still so much more to do and to see! We're off to Killarney tomorrow, and will end the day in Cork. Until then, good night, everyone!