Left Seattle at 12:30 pm yesterday. Met lovely people on my flight, 2 women from NY, one a fiight attendant and another an WSL teacher and nice elderly Irishman. The only rough patch was transferring planes. I had an an hour to get to my next plane and I had to go to another terminal at JFk, which means you have to wait till they send a bus for you, so that was tight and stressful. I sat next to a young college aged Irish lad who was very noce on that flight. After we landed It took 1 1/2 hours to get thru customs. He spent 30 seconds with me, so I have no clue , why it takes that long. Next I picked up my car. I was suppose to get a non air conditoned ford focus, but the rental guy hooked me up. he gave ame an air conditions SUV. But, I tell you after driving these narrow roads, I think I would have been better off in the Ford. The GPS kept loosing satelite signal, so i would drive and get lost. Finally, I retraced back to the airport and found a fruit stand to ask directions. This woman said she was going close to where I was going so she said I could follow her, thank goodness. Finally, after driving 90 miles to a city center that is 15 miles away, I get into Dublin. Again, I cannot find the hotel. I keep driving down all these one way roads hopelessly getting lost. So, I decide to park and exchange my american dollars for euros before the bank closes and try to get a cell phone and an o2 for the netbook. The bank was totol security. I had to buzzmy self in two doors and to leave had to buzsz myself out 2 doors. good thing it was not payday in Ireland, that would have taken forever. After, geting everything done I make my way back to my car exasperated because it was after 5 and I still had no hotel room. Someone suggested following a taxi to the hotel. I found one, but he was waiting for a fair, but gave me directions. I asked him if there is a time limit for parking afound out you need to pay, even though I did not see a paring meter. he said he was surprised there was not boot on my car if I had been there 3 hrs. He said they probably gave me a break, because they can tell it is a rental. Phew! So, again I head off to find the hotel and I drive in circles a few more tiems before i park and decide iam going to walk t find it. After asking another taxi drivers help, who walked with me to find it. Success and I was only a block away. it was brick and atached to alot of other business and only had a tiney cold sign , so it was hard to see, even though I must have driven past it amillion times today. So, I get checked in and she sends me off to their parking garage a half mile away.Good grief, more directions and a map. I enter the gated garage and find out I have to park in the basement of the garage. I had to drive my car into a one car elevator and it takes you to the bottom. Well, I get in there and it does not move. I finally figured out I needed to swipe my parking ticket to make it move. Then it takes you to the basement. Then I discover I am locked in the garage. I fianlly found an emergency stairwell and took that.
Well, it is 4:08 am and I have been up 43 hours, so I think I will sign out before another day of adventure.