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Trying to settle back in to teaching, preparing and doing all those things we have to do on a daily basis has made me somewhat busy. When I come home I feel the need to keep to myself, entertaining students all day really isn’t an easy feat and really talks the ‘talk’ right out of you, no matter how much Lyons tea you drink (insider joke, which you will understand if you watch this ad).
But yesterday I decided it was time to catch up with a good friend and since I had free tickets to a film it seemed like the perfect opportunity. And oh how right I was!
I had seen a trailer for the film, a documentary called The Irish Pub and was really looking forward to it. It was such a beautiful film, all about proper Irish pubs and the part the play in Irish society. (You can find a review here).
But what made the night out with my friend so special was that the film maker Alex Fegan and most of the pub owners from the film where there too. It was great to get a chance to chat to some of them and the stories they told were funny and truly part of what makes Ireland great.
My friend and I ended up meeting the owner and some of the locals of The Palace Bar, an old Victorian pub and bar established in 1823. It is one of the oldest pubs in Dublin and you can find it ob Fleet Street in Temple Bar, at the heart of this dirty old town.
These charming old men, one with a long white bear, one with brilliant blue eyes and one even with a cane bought us drinks and in true Irish fashion enchanted us with their tales of old. They talked about what the Pub means to them and who Dublin has changed, they explained that although all enjoyed a drink or five going to the pub was all about community, after all it is called a “public house”, a place for people to meet and share each others lives.
As we finally said our good-byes, cider in our bellies and smiles in our hearts, I could help but be grateful for such a wonderful night out and for the chance to hear those tales of old form those who lived them, a dying bread of old-fashioned Irish men.
The men who shared the tales of old with us (still from the film The Irish Pub)
jensinewall 
your post makes me miss my Dad. Second generation American, my grandparents hailed from Ireland, I know I still have some relatives there, just don’t know where. Anyhow, my Dad had a bar he frequented often. His favorite saying was that an Irishman is never drunk as long as there is a single blade of grass to hold onto so he won’t fall off the earth. When he died, my sisters and I tried desperately to spend his last money in his wallet at the place it would have gone to anyhow. We couldn’t buy a drink if we tried (which we did), and we heard stories of old and stories of my Dad. Great post. Hungry for some pub food now… there’s an Irish pub about 5 miles from here. DAF
It made me think of my dad too … can only recommend you see the film if ever you can … a beautiful story told so wonderfully
I will remember it and hopefully be able to see it.
do and take your brother with you :-), think I may buy the DVD for Christmas for mine
What a great way to ‘get away’ from the daily grind, Jensine! Must have been a really fun time (envy here, just a bit!)!