#9. Conlon’s, Geevagh, Co. Sligo. €3.50

This was a real treat. Guinness served at room temperature, three pours and the head cut off the top with a bread knife. No logos on the pint glasses. Conlon’s is the local around the corner from Gabe’s school. Barely a pub, you need to walk through the living room of the house to get to the toilet.

There’s barely enough space for six stools and only a single tap … for Guinness. Not counting Gabe, I was the youngest in the place by at least twenty years. One of the patrons, with a thick country accent and a few pints ahead of me, struck up a conversation and the only words I could make out were “thirty-five.” I don’t think either of us will remember much of the chat.

I wasn’t about to start snapping away with my Canon so I used Gabe as the curious kid with the mobile phone camera. Good stuff.