Juliana is a wonderful hostess. She was very kind in accommodating an early check-in for us so we didn’t have to drag our bags with us for several hours. She also maintained a patient and helpful attitude even after our flight was delayed and buses became confused.
(I think it’s important to know she was away during our stay before reading this second part. I don’t believe the challenging part of our experience would have existed if she was physically present. Just some bad luck is all.)
There is a heating unit that was very confusing for us to operate as well as a boiler for the shower that must be turned on. There was a paper with instructions that seemed simple enough, but didn’t apply as planned. We couldn’t match the photos with the actions. This resulted in an icy shower (we figured it out the next day) and a freezing night of sleep. Neither of these tasks were something we wanted during a vacation. It just seemed like work. I know she wouldn’t have walked us through it if we messaged her, but we checked-in, read the paper, and left for the day. We didn’t get in until after midnight and felt it wrong to contact her at that hour.
Another thing to note is that most attractions are 10 mins away from her place—by car. Buses run often, but not late into the night. We often just walked because waiting 5-10 mins for a bus, then allowing its 20 min route to arrive at our destination was slower than speed walking the 15 mins or so.
I think with a couple points of clarification in her description, future travelers will continue to enjoy her home in Dublin.