The Proverbial Piss-Up

I've been in Dublin for several days now but I still haven't seen much of the city, spending most of my time in sessions, press briefings and searching for wifi. Last night, though, there was a networking event organized for the meedja attending the conference and because this is Dublin, naturally the location was the Guinness brewery. I have been to Dublin a couple of times before but not since about 1996 and the only things I can remember are a) going to see The Woman in Black at the theatre and b) the tour of the Guinness factory. I didn't drink more than a sip of Guinness then and I wasn't tempted this time either.

Brewing the black stuff

First, we had a quick coach tour of the city, where the driver pointed out various science-related sites--St Patrick's Cathedral, for example, which is associated with Robert Boyle (he of the law) and his family. Then we had a quick wander through the museum section of the brewery before ending up in the Gravity Bar, which has an impressive 360 panorama over the city. Dublin is a small city and it's also quite low-rise, but the view was still pretty cool, especially as the sun went down and the lights came on; I was clearly concentrating so hard on the networking part that I forgot to take many photos. Luckily, wine was on offer for those of us who don't do Guinness, although the beef stew I had for dinner did have Guinness in, so I don't feel too bad. 

Dublin by night

My schedule eases off a little today and I'm hoping to visit some of the more interesting areas of town and to take in a few more independent espresso bars and maybe even a shop or two.