A Tale of Two Nathans . . .

. . . and two siblings - all under one roof, that is.
The weekend after our Paris adventure, my brother Craig and his best friend Nathan arrived for a visit (we're talking mid-August now - I'm still about a month and a half behind). We spent the week with two Nathans in the house, yet somehow survived the confusion.
I was thrilled to have my brother visit - since he's living in Los Angeles, we don't get much face time these days. And as Nathan has become an extension of our family over the years (Christmas wouldn't be the same without a Nathan appearance), it only seemed natural that the two should explore Ireland together. What's more, these two are well-seasoned travelers together, so they were great guests. Driven by their inner sense of adventure, they purposefully navigated Dublin without the aid of maps - and managed to find their way back home every time, which is better than what I'd be able to do.

Craig and Nathan's visit included an in-depth exploration of the pubs in various parts of Ireland. The first stop entailed a pilgrimage to the all-hallowed house of Guinness, where they became the first visitors I've had to actually acquire seats at the Sky Bar - you have to be a little cut-throat to edge out all of the other people. Below, Nathan savors the victory with a celebratory toast to the camera:

The guys frequented the Temple Bar area of Dublin regularly throughout their visit. They also invested time in the social scenes of Belfast and Galway. The pubs afforded the opportunity to talk with plenty of locals as well as immigrants from all over Europe. They even had guys giving them beers on the train! My favorite story: during a foray in Galway, some high school kids lit a trash can on fire. Everyone calmly milled about the square, seemingly unaffected by the smoke and flames, until the fire squad eventually arrived to put it out.














In addition to bars, food was another element of interest for these two wily travelers. The guys were particularly fascinated by Irish pizza:














Intent on exploring Ireland beyond its social and culinary scene, the two also ventured upon the popular Irish pasttime of cliffwalking when they climbed Bray Head, a small mountain south of Dublin. The walk rewarded them with great views, as their photos demonstrate.








































These two were fun house guests - I enjoyed seeing Ireland through their eyes. All of the pictures from this post are Nathan's work. I'm putting some on Flickr as well, but if you'd like a little insight into the world of Craig and Nathan, take a gander at Nathan's photo site, complete with commentary that is guaranteed to amuse and delight:

http://picasaweb.google.com/nshipley/NathanAndCraigGoToIreland