And, to finish up the Honeymoon series, some random moments from the trip:
"I'm Batspud..."
Our tour bus mascot from Ireland: Batspud - not the hero our tour needs, but the hero it deserves.
"The Cliffs of Insanity!"
Well, actually the Cliffs of Moher, located in Ireland's County Clare, but these are also the cliffs featured in The Princess Bride for the scenes where Westley, in his role as the Dread Pirate Roberts, is pursuing the kidnapped Buttercup, only to be faced by the deadly swordsman Inigo Montoya when he finally reaches the top. Good thing that he's not left handed...
“Please look after this bear.”
As part of our time in London, Karli wanted to visit the Paddington Store at Paddington Station, in order to purchase - you guessed it - a Paddington Bear. I was originally just along for the ride, but I fell prey to my own worst habits and picked up the first Paddington book for a read while Karli was comparing ursine price breaks. As such, not only did I end up paying for her bear, but I also bought a copy of A Bear Called Paddington for myself: not my usual thing, but call it a tribute to Fantasy's younger sibling, Make-Believe - and after all, to quote Mrs. Brown, “It's nice having a bear about the house.”
“It’s been a long time since I’ve bought women’s clothes.”
Having been unable to find exactly my size when Doctor Who t-shirt shopping in London, we were pleased to see that our AirBnB was just across the river from the Dublin Forbidden Planet International location. Which, as it turned out, had next to ZERO Doctor Who inventory - it's hard not to wonder if it's politically motivated, it was clearly evident over the course of our time there that the Republic of Ireland is a long way from forgetting its history with England. (But, really, who are they punishing here?)
“When in doubt, go to the library.”
The Long Room at the Trinity College Library in Dublin - in spite of rumours, not used as a set for any of the Harry Potter movies, but a magical place nonetheless if you're in any way a lover of the printed word.
“Fhtagn?"
A somewhat Cthulhoid piece of art in Dingle. EVERYTHING that I've read on the topic says that it's a bad idea to ask the inhabitants of an isolated seaside village about their enigmatic tentacle statue, especially if you're going to spend the night...
Dublin, Disney Store, Hulk. Questions?
And, of course, books.
As always, I bought books whenever the opportunity allowed. In addition to the purchases in Paris, London and Dublin that I've already mentioned, shout outs to Notting Hill Comics in the Portobello Market for Robert Holdstock's Eye Among the Blind, a battered copy of Willy Ley's classic 1958 book Satellites, Rockets and Outer Space, and Murray Leinster's The Brain Stealers, and to the Apple Bookstore in York, for A Storm of Wings by M. John Harrison. (Which I thought I already owned - and do, as it turns out - but I couldn't take the chance of being wrong.)
