#FirstDate #FirstDates #FirstDatesIRL #Dating #Dublin #Dublin2 #DameStreet #TheDameTavern #Ireland #LEGO

FirstDate52 was doing some work in Dublin, and she wanted some company. So, she invited me to stay with her at a hotel in Temple Bar, Dublin. I learned it was not the best part of Temple Bar when I saw two people getting their fix on while walking towards the hotel. As FirstDate52 was busy with a video conference, I walked around the block to avoid any interaction with the drug users. As I walked around Christ Church Cathedral, there were about a dozen people milling about, and they were clearly up to some type of dealing/buying/using as well. It was nothing new to see a bunch of addicts in one place, but it was a part of Dublin I had not noticed before.

After her call was over, I hurriedly went to her room. There were two double beds there, so cuddling up later wasn't a certainty, but it wasn't off the table either. We went to a pub next door to loosen up. She definitely likes her Guinness. Also, she is clearly a semi-regular here and in other places around Dublin as people knew her by face if not by name. After drinks, we went across the Liffey to look for a bite to eat. It was my intention to put a little distance between us and that part of town for dinner. We went to the Italian Quarter of Dublin to have Italian food, funny enough. We got a large charcuterie board and paired it with a nice wine.

After dinner we went back over the Ha'penny Bridge, and winded our way to The Dame Tavern. This was another place she had clearly been to before. There were some young musicians warming up, so we got our drinks and settled in for the night. These four lads played some amazing rock songs. I was a bit surprised that they would even know some of the songs. The singer looked like a young  Chris Robinson (Black Crowes), there was a guitarist, a fiddler and a dude playing a fiddle case with his drum sticks. That dude happened to be from Pismo Beach, California, and he had just flown in that day to hang out with his old friends. It was a very good pub night and a reminder of why I love living in Ireland.

We went back to the hotel, and I made sure to be alert as we walked into that questionable neighborhood. Alas, there were no complications. It was late, and I still wasn't sure what her plans were for me; we hadn't even kissed yet. I went to the bathroom and changed into my PJs. She wasn't sprawled out sexily on her bed when I emerged from the bathroom, so I got into the other bed. She proceeded to get under the covers of her own bed and change there. It was now clear that we were just gonna be friends, and that was ok. The next morning was gorgeous with nary a sign of the rampant drug use from the previous afternoon. I grabbed a sausage roll and headed to the bus.

She contacted me a little later to do some work for her. She wanted to establish her business in Ireland, but she couldn't get a dot IE (.ie) domain suffix as she didn't live in Ireland. As I obviously did, she called on me to make the purchase. I also did some graphic work for her as well. She paid for all, and was a good client. There was clearly no romance there, but I didn't mind getting some work out of it.

(Last Dated – October 2021)