On the end of the afternoon, in route to Dublin, I crossed a small town and I stopped to ask an adolescent the distance to the next city. And I found incredible because the boy answered me: “I don’t know how many km are, but by car it is half hour”. After hundred meters, on the exit of the village I saw a giant poster that indicated the city to 7 km.
In this way people are inlands of Europe, the simplest thing can be asked, but anything guarantees that the answer is the correct one.
But the most difficult thing was to understand that the distances in United Kingdom are indicated in miles, while my map showed me the same numbers but in km. What disillusion it takes me when I discovered it!
Dublin, the capital city – Km 36,310
Finally I arrived in Dublin after two cycle days, crossing green prairies and bordering the Ireland Sea. With several sprinkles and feeling that there were more kilometres uphill than downhill.
The Republic of Ireland, contrary to Northern Ireland, is part of the European Union, and its currency is the euro. According some people told me the helps of the UE have improved the infrastructure, and many multinationals companies have established headquarters in Ireland, in the computer science’s fields, the chemistry and the telecommunications.
Dublin is the main domestic attractiveness, with a great castle, its cathedral and its national museum, among other places of interest; but mainly with a very lively night life, and that was reflected in my sales; in Dublin I sold like in any other place of Europe.
To my arrival I knew Rageeb, a guy from Bangladesh that took living one year in the Irish capital and that he had as profession the painting. He hardly met me he offered me to go to his house, and I didn’t doubt it, it was a good place to save me the inn.
I also knew Coloumba an Irishman that knew the history of their country well. Coloumba admitted me that he had not worked for several years, he was alcoholic and the government subsidized him. I stayed in Dublin during almost 2 weeks, I checked the bike with John and I live together with the Irish people and I understood that they are very different to the English people. They are helpful, open and friendly; the Irishmen are good people.
After some days in the capital I got sick. I was several days with high temperature and a strong pain throat, the cold in my working nights had punished me. Some nights it was below 0º. I tried to buy antibiotic, but in the pharmacy they told me that non-prescription doctor they could not sell me it and I was very bad.
But I knew María, an Italian girl who studied English and worked as kitchen boss in an Italian restaurant. She gave me the antibiotic and she knew how to take me care. That´s why was very difficult to leave the city…