![\"Stag_EnglishGuys\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Stag_EnglishGuys.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA few months ago I was invited to a friend’s stag party. Stag party is UK \/ Irish name for a party that is known as a bachelor party in US. In Croatia we call it “moma\u010dka”, and translation would be “young man’s party”. <\/p>\n
Since we live in the city centre, and we witnessed many stag parties here, I was at the same time delighted and frightened with this invitation. I mean, we all know that Balkan boys can drink a lot, but drinking with Irish is totally another level, and I was not confident in my drinking form. But a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do. I expected this to be one of those “those who survive will talk about it” stories. \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n
Dublin is a well known party place where men from England celebrate their stag parties, and almost every weekend you can see different drunk super heroes, prisoners or people wearing gimp masks walking around the city centre. <\/p>\n
Our stag’s best man organized the whole thing, and in his last organizational e-mail he mentioned that gimp mask is a must for the stag. At that point I was not certain any more, is masking English thing only, or should I get dressed a bit different. <\/p>\n
My phone rang at 11:30 AM that Saturday and it was high time to find the guys in a pub next to place where we live. To make my life easier, there was an English stag party ongoing already. <\/p>\n
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When I saw Popeye and other sailors out there, I had a feeling that some things might go wrong that night. \ud83d\ude42 Heisenberg, Jessie, Shrek and some other familiar faces were in the pub and when they saw my confused face they started making jokes and asked what is the mask I’m wearing that day. Luckily none of them looked like the guy I was looking for, and at that time I got a message to get upstairs. What a relief that was. All the guys were dressed regular, and no masks were involved on our party. \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n
![\"Merchants_Arch_Stag_Party_Large\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Merchants_Arch_Stag_Party_Large.jpg\")
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We started a day with the full Irish breakfast and a pint of Guinness. It would all be easier for me if my wife and I were not out the previous evening, and that we did not call Soshko for a drink, because going out with Soshko means only one thing – fun and a lot of wine. Yes, we had a few glasses too much that night, and I did not feel like drinking again for 10-12 hours. (Or at least I thought so… \ud83d\ude42 )<\/p>\n
![\"Merchants_Arch_Full_Irish_Breakfast\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Merchants_Arch_Full_Irish_Breakfast.jpg\")
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Luckily, after the breakfast, we ended up in the family bowling area (as planned) where we bowled for three hours. Since it’s family bowling venue you can’t buy alcohol in there. <\/p>\n
![\"Stag_Bowling\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Stag_Bowling.jpg\")
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Just to prove it – check the number of kids bowling, and soft drinks on our table on the photo bellow. The small bottle next to blue energy drink is a well known “plum juice” from Croatia known as “Rakija”. \ud83d\ude00 Well, that’s what we drink during stag parties and weddings on the Balkans, so as I’m learning Irish customs I’m also trying to introduce some of our customs to the Irish guys. \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n
(Just for the Irish and foreign readers – Rakija is a fruity brandy, similar to German schnaps, with a minimum of 50% alcohol. It can be made of almost anything that contains natural sugar, but most well known on the Balkans are made of plums, pears, apricots, quince and grapes. This was the plum one that contains about 52-54% alcohol.) <\/p>\n
![\"Stag_Kiddish_Bowling\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Stag_Kiddish_Bowling.jpg\")
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After the sports, we headed back to Dublin city centre, to a well known “Stags head” where we started our drinking tour. We planned to stay there for a couple of hours, and as someone mentioned that Smithwick’s is lighter beer with lower amount of alcohol that was my choice for the night. After 5-6 beers and the whole day outside we (mostly me) needed some food. We ate special burgers that are made on the streets of Dublin in Dame Court. (And that special burger will be my next story \ud83d\ude00 ). <\/p>\n
After the meal, we headed to see dog races. Yep, I’ve just learned that there is a special Shelbourne stadium for dog races here in Dublin. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n
![\"Dog_Races_Dublin\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Dog_Races_Dublin.jpg\")
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This was a special experience for me, first of all we were already filled with beers, and most of us had no clue about how things work here. But after just a few races we were all experts. We were betting 2-5 Euro on the winners, on combination of first two dogs, and combination of first three dogs. Then, just as all others we would scream and back our favourite dog. <\/p>\n
![\"Greyhounds_Running_In_Dublin\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Greyhounds_Running_In_Dublin.jpg\")
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In this case, I was screaming “Come on four!!, Come on!!”. Just for the record, “four” came second. He was behind the winning dog for a dog hair, or less than a millisecond. Instead of winning \u20ac40, I’ve lost \u20ac5 but no worries, in next race I played \u20ac2 and got \u20ac18 back, and ended my betting day with \u20ac6 positive balance. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n
![\"My_Lucky_Ticket\"](\"http:\/\/igor.stojakovic.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/My_Lucky_Ticket.jpg\")
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There were thirteen races and the whole show lasted almost three hours, so a couple of pints were needed here too. After that we returned to “Stags head” for some more beer and burgers. (Not the magic burger this time). Later during the evening we ended up in a club, where we continued drinking for a while until we lost our main man. <\/p>\n
Since our main man was out, the party was over. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n
Few days later we compared Croatian vs. Irish stag party. I mentioned that usually, when boys are younger many stag parties in Croatia end up in strip clubs or having a paid stripper on the party. Apparently it is usual in Ireland too, but was not the case this time. <\/p>\n
Also, I planned to take some photos from our Main Man, but as on any good party, he lost his cell phone on the way home, and we lost some valuable photos of that night. Actually, his phone was stolen and the guy asked \u20ac400 to return the phone, but that’s a totally different story. <\/p>\n
Still, I’ve noticed that some Irish guys did not want to break the drinking chain with food intermezzo and they seemed quite broken for the next day or two. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n
To conclude, stag party in Ireland looks pretty much as any stag party in Croatia. <\/p>\n
Luckily, it seems that I’m still handling parties well. \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n
Till next time. <\/p>\n
Love<\/p>\n
Balky<\/p>\n
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