Our FIRST hostel experience! Dublin International Hostel
From Cheryl: We had room 305, beds 3 and 4. I took bed 3, the bottom bunk , and Lisa took bed 4 – the top bunk. Looking back no one is sure why we would EVER let Lisa have the top bunk. She is quite a bit smaller than I am, and let’s just say she is not the world’s most graceful person! I was always a bit fearful that she might stumble as she got in or out of bed. As the trip progressed, she took many a top bunk and did a fabulous job of NOT getting hurt.
Okay, it was time to rest – our bodies think it is 4:25 am EST after an all night flight with no sleep. We ended up sleeping – quite nicely I might add – for about four hours. The room was pretty clean, but well worn.
The hostel looks like it might have been converted from an old church. The phone booths are old confessionals, and the dining area/restaurant appears to be the main area where sermons were once performed. There is a kind of musty or old smell about the place but the staff is great and I slept wonderfully! After about twenty minutes we were able to locate laundry facilities, the communal kitchen, library/sitting area, and the desk for help with tours. We were settled in!
By 6:30 pm I made my way into the restaurant area which is only open for breakfast. The restaurant is a nice place to read, relax and observe the few folks that are in here. Many are doing the same as I am, just meditating and chilling out in the beautiful room. This room might very well have been a place where sermons took place, or even perhaps where prayers were taken. It has beautiful stained glass images you would see in a church.
One of the girls is giving haircuts to all the other travelers. I saw a sign up that she charges €10 per cut and she wasn’t hurting for business! I saw her take on a new customer, a nice looking young man from Spain. I later learned his name was Luis. The concern I saw was that she did not speak Spanish and he did not speak English! So, here he is trying to explain how he wants his hair cut. He is getting opinions from all the others around him, including us, on how he should get it cut. My guess is he was also hoping for a bilingual translator!
What an interesting way to live for a period of time. Backpack, live in hostels, haircuts in a dining area by the traveling staff where you are unsure of the outcome. I really enjoy watching them all. Right now, I am new to this lifestyle, but if it all goes well, these will be my people soon enough.