Day 13

It was a dark and stormy night....
No it wasn’t really, is a rather pleasant night with a good bed and sound sleep.
Today was the day we you DO Dublin, rather like Debby.
An early start with the breakfast courtesy of the YHA. Part of the deal. Plenty to eat but woeful coffee.
We had a Hop On Hop Off ticket that allowed us to keep going around Dublin until we got dizzy or they kicked us off.
We chose to do the round trip once then hop off and on as the mood took us.
Nearly two hours later we had managed to take in the new Millennium Spire that most Dubliners hate, calling it the Spire in the Mire amongst other derogatory terms; the James Joyce statue; the O’Connell memorial; O’Connell Bridge, Trinity College; The Book of Kells; the keyed Merrion Square, the Oscar Wilde Memorial; the National Museum; the Molly Maguire statue; the National Gallery; Temple Bar, the Medieval City; Dublin Castle; St Patrick’s Cathedral; Christchurch Cathedral; St Catherine’s Church; The Guinness Storehouse The Irish Museum of Modern Art in the old Royal Hospital; the Kilmainham Gaol; Phoenix Park which has the Wellington Monument, the US Embassy, the President of Ireland’s Residence and the Dublin Zoo within its fence; the Four Courts; the Ha’penny Bridge; the Jamieson Whiskey factory; the General Post Office and finally the Parnell Monument.
All of these have some significant part or hold some significant item related to Ireland’s turbulent past.
Having done the round once we get of on the second pass at Trinity College, one of the most famous Universities in the world. Its libary holds the Book of Kells supposedly one of the most beautiful books in the world. It was produced in the 9th Century and the four gospels in that olde worlde manuscript writing, on vellum. Vellum is the skin of calves.
It is quite a work of art; however I was more impressed with the Long Room, which is the main Trinity College library. What a place, with books wall to ceiling, old leather bound, no paperbacks here.
From sophistication we head to the Temple Bar which is the pub district of Dublin, diagonally across from Trinity
College. Fitting really as most students like to drink, and many like to drink a lot. It’s all cobblestones, narrow streets and yes, pubs.
We find our way to the Ha’penny Bridge, across the Liffey River. Properly called the Liffey Bridge, it is a footbridge across the river and got its alternative name as you had to pay a Ha’penny to cross it. I gather it was the playground of one Eve Buckley, then known as Eve Cullen.
We had lunch in a pub in temple Bar, and why not, we are on holidays. I go for a pee, and find myself chatting to the maintenance man. You here for the marathon? Hell no! I’ve done it 15 times. What was your fastest time? 3 minutes 4 seconds, never could get under 3 minutes. As so the conversation went whilst I did my business, zipped up, washed my hands and retreated out the door, discussing running times compared with bushwalking times.
He pops up again as we’re finishing lunch and we have a long discussion about Australia, his brother lives there, as does about half of Ireland, and I guess the other half live in the US. He’s quite good fun and entertaining.
We then head off to the old city, yet go past it so detour to St Patrick’s Cathedral. Largest cathedral in Ireland, other than that it’s just a church with an ego.
Back on the bus and head for the Guinness Storehouse, the number one tourist attraction in Dublin. Too too many people, however they have a 7 flour self guided tour all about the making of Stout, the history of Guinness, the marketing etc. And ending with a pint of Guinness on the top floor that looks out over all of Dublin. Quite speccy really, though the Guinness is an acquired taste and I haven’t acquired it yet.
It’s now quite late so we leap aboard what is the final bus of the Hop On Hop Off series and head back towards the YHA. We stop briefly at the GPO, to get a stamp and then head back in the rain to home base.
We’re quite damp by the time we get in.
What did I learn about Dublin? There’s far too much to see in one day. There are more taxis in Dublin than in New York. The Dublin Zoo has a world renowned lion breading programme. That the MGM lion is from Dublin Zoo and if you listen carefully you will hear the Dublin accent in the roar. The Irish fought a lot and fought everyone. They even fought for people they fought against, but not at the same time. That the Duke of Wellington was Irish, though wasn’t that happy to acknowledge it. He was I think the only Irish PM of England. The current President is from Northern Ireland. The Irish play cricket. The city is full of writer’s of note, Joyce, Wilde. The city had four keyed squares, which means they were only accessible if you had a key. This kept the riff raff out in Georgian England. There is one remaining keyed square in Dublin, Merrion Square. It is essentially a private garden. The Phoenix Park, however, whilst set up as a hunting ground for James II (who never visited) is now a public park larger than Hyde Park in London 7 time over and Central Park 2 ½ times over.
Please sir, my head is full, can I stop now. Just one more fact boy and you can go.
Jonathon Swift, author of Gulliver’s Travel, was rector at Christchurch donated 700 pounds to set up a lunatic asylum in Dublin.