Going into my Irish Finals

Hey friends!

Well, today is my last day of class here in Ireland and I’ve got two finals and a paper due. Surprisingly, I managed to get the work done while enjoying my time here. I’m sorry I haven’t been keeping up on my adventures, life got really busy here and I had some bad news from home about two weeks ago. Needless to say, my travels slacked.

I just wanted to promise all of you who have been faithful to my time chronicled that I WILL be writing more about it, just not from the Emerald Isle itself. This will probably be my last post before I leave on Sunday, just for the fact that I want to enjoy my last few, free days here and get as much in as I can. I figure once I get back in the states and back into the routine of life, I’ll backtrack and write about everything I’ve done over here. I’ve got several weekend adventures to talk about, a few class excursions, and just lots of pictures to explain. Besides, the more I “sit” on my adventures and think about them, the better I can explain them! I hope my blog has been interesting and that you’ve enjoyed my writing. If you want to know any specifics or tips if you’ve decided to travel, feel free to drop me a comment.

Again, thanks for reading and keeping up, I appreciate it! Look for more of my stories here in a couple of weeks.

Behind bars with a little Yeats to keep me company

How odd it feels to be two days late in writing about my excursions! I’m sure I’ve keep you waiting, I’ve kept myself waiting! Wednesday was quite a busy day for me and after making it home, I had to save my energy for the pubs! I think I covered most of the city of Dublin that day but it was well worth it.

We only had two places to visit Wednesday, with our first stop being Kilmainham Gaol (pronounced jail). That’s right, I was behind bars all morning. Well, not so much behind bars considering the jail itself is quite old and the cells have heavy doors instead of bars. The bars I saw were the front gates, and unlike most passing through that way in history, I got to leave through there as well. Kilmainham Gaol is now a museum but was once considered an important part of Irish history. It was first established in 1796, but most people will likely know it and associate it with the 1916 Easter Rising. You might also remember it from movies such as the original Italian Job, Boondock Saints, Michael Collins, In the Name of the Father, and The Wind that Shakes the Barley. The last three all center around the Irish history.
It was quite a heavy place to be in. We just studied the 1916 Rising this week and actually watched Michael Collins so my mind was on top of things. I really didn’t know much about the Easter rising before I came over, but I’m so intrigued by this time in history. It was a hard time for the Irish people, but what these men did lead way to the Irish Free State.
The gaol itself is panoramic in nature. It was built with the idea that wherever a guard was standing, he could see any and every prisoner. This idea was reinforced on the inmates themselves by a little carving on the back of their door. It’s oval shaped with a peep hole in the middle for the guards to look through. The carving represents as eye so that prisoners feel like they are always being watched. Oddly enough, most multiple level shopping malls are set up this way so shoppers can see every store. What’s so meaningful about this gaol is that the fourteen leaders of the Easter Rising were brought here immediately following surrender, charged, convicted, and executed over a span of nine days. The last stop of the tour was in the yard where the prisoners were shot, military style. I felt very haunted out there.

These men that planned the rising were not military men, but civilians who were poets, mystics, and writers. They had a dream of the Irish Republic, free from Britain’s rule and they knew the only way to accomplish this goal was through a “blood sacrifice.” So, they staged a rebellion and failed. At first, the Irish people were angry at the men and wanted nothing to do with this, but once word of their executions got out, the people changed. These men achieved their idea of a “blood sacrifice.” The shedding of their blood lead way to the culmination of the War of Independence, which ultimately lead way to the Irish Free State.
As for the executions of the men, thirteen of them were blindfolded and shot at one end of the yard, now marked by a black cross. There were twelve British guards who had the pleasure of taking their revenge by killing these men, but every time, one guard had a blank bullet, only none of them knew who did. The reasoning was so every day the guards could leave and have a slight thought of hope that their’s wasn’t the bullet that killed a man. On the other end of the yard also stand a black cross marking the spot where James Connelly was shot. Connelly had been seriously injured during the rising and wasn’t actually kept at the gaol because he was in the hospital. the last day of executions came and Connelly was too week to walk the end where everyone else had been killed. He was wheeled in on a stretcher through a door on the closer end and strapped to a chair because he couldn’t even stand. He was blindfolded and shot.

Outside of the gaol, across the street, stands a new memorial to the men. When we first got to the gaol, I was the first one to walk over and figure it out. It is quite an amazing piece of work. There are fourteen statues all with black blindfolds on. There verdict is written at their feet. What I also found amazing was the artist put holes in each of the statues chest, of what I can only assume represent bullet holes. There is a little table in the middle with the proclamation of the Irish Republic that Patrick Pearse read on the front steps of the GPO before the rising. I encourage you to look up the 1916 Easter Rising and feel the depth of these men’s deaths.

We had a decent amount of time between the Gaol tour and our next stop, so I skipped lunch that day and headed over to the Chester Beatty Library. This was recommended to me by a reader and I have to say Thank you!! I spent a good hour and a half there taking everything in. The CBL is an art museum that houses a beautiful collection of manuscripts, prints, drawings, rare books, (and more) assembled by Sir Alfred Chester Beatty. It’s a very rich collection from areas such as Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. I could not believe so me of the things I was seeing. Since I didn’t have time to thoroughly see everything, I chose a few specific areas to look at more closely. The first level of the museum is dedicated to “The Art of the Book” and it holds many rare and very old books. There’s a exhibit of book binding spanning several hundred years, as well as the development of books and early, early manuscripts. The second level of the museum is dedicated to sacred texts, illuminated manuscripts, and paintings from different religions. I spent my time in the Christianity section starring at several pieces of the bible on papyrus . They were so simple and so very old, but so beautiful. I saw pieces of Genesis, Hebrews, and the four Gospels. I couldn’t read them of course and only knew what they were form the information cards, but I guess Sir Beatty’s collection includes many papyrus scripts of the Bible, and only certain ones are on exhibit. It was quite fascinating.
The other piece of the Museum was a temporary exhibit on Rembrant. Several of his sketchings were on display. It was beautiful. I’ve never seen any of his work before, literally close enough to touch, and so I enjoyed walking through and seeing them. Several of his sketches were heavily focused on religion, and I think my favorite was entitled “Adam and Eve.” It’s a sad, but beautiful story in my eyes. As I said before, I didn’t have much time there so I’d like to go back if I can make it. If not, I’m still happy to have made it there.

Our last planned tour of the day was one I have been looking forward too since I found out about it. We went to the National Library for the The Life and Works of W.B. Yeats exhibit. It was absolutely worth it and I will be going back most likely on Sunday to do a little bit of research for a paper. Like most of the National things around here, it too is free. The exhibit was fascinating and if you go to the link, you can take a virtual tour. We actually had a guided tour that lasted about forty-five minutes and I’m glad. If I hadn’t had the tour, I would’ve been caught up in reading his original poetry manuscripts and not learned anything new about his life. Such as how Yeats’s was a horrible speller, wasn’t the best in school, but liked to run and actually won first place in a half-mile race once. What can I say… he was destined to be my favorite poet. The exhibit itself travels chronologically through Yeats’s life and has many of his original manuscripts and pieces of his life on display. The Library actually holds over 2000 pieces of writings and documents and pieces of Yeats’s life. I did learn one things about Yeats’s that I’d somehow passed over before and that was that he had been a member of the Golden Dawn, an occult. Odd to me and can’t say that I like it, but I do understand where his poetry from that time of life is coming from. One of the greatest pieces I set my eyes upon (besides the numerous original copies of (Easter 1916) was his Nobel Prize medal. How I wish cameras are allowed in some things!
The Yeats exhibit put me in a very literary mood and the Irish weather was quite erratic that day. It was wonderfully sunny so I decided on a stroll with some of the other girls.  We headed down to Merrion Square, laid out in 1792, to see all of the National Buildings and the Georgian Houses. I know, I’ve been here four weeks already and hadn’t seen them! The doors were so fun and I really want a Georgian door now, bright yellow, for my house. We stopped by number 82, Yeats’s house for awhile, and then perused on down the street reading all the plaques and seeing what other aristocratic and famous figures had lived there. Around a few corners we ran into the family home of Oscar Wilde and then slipped into Archbishop Ryan Park to see the famous statue of Wilde. I won’t tell you that we had fun taking pictures with him, hence my face. I’ll also keep quiet the nickname that Dubliners have for him. Ok, I can’t. The statue is often referred to as ‘the fag on the crag.’ Horrible, I know, but he isn’t the only one with a nickname.

Still taking advantage of the day, we walked along the Canal Bank to find the ‘the crank on the bank,’ known to some as the statue of poet Patrick Kavanagh. The other girls with me, Jill, Jenna, and Elizabeth, enjoyed the walk too I think. We’re all literature lovers so it was fun seeing these houses and finding the statues. Jenna had a lot of fun as she posed exactly like the statues and had her picture taken.  While we were snapping photos of Kavanagh, an older man stopped to talk to us and said he knew the poet. We aren’t quite sure if he really did, but he was old enough. He told us where Kavanagh had lived and stories about drinking with him in the pubs. To him, Kavanagh was a character, but it’s quite possible he knew him and drank with him. Like most writers in Dublin, he frequented the pubs a lot.

Over all, it was a grand day. I couldn’t believe how slowly time passed and how much I was able to see! And I really felt like I covered the length of the city. I’m slowly crossing off the last few things from my list, it’s hard to believe my time here is coming to an end. Next week, we’ll find the Joyce statue.

Everything else in Galway

Galway was a great weekend get away for me, and even after the beautiful Cliffs there was still more. 
We headed back into Galway that evening and settled down at our hostel, then hit the town. Galway City was fun, and it was nice being in an area different than Dublin. There were some great pubs, which I looked into, but didn’t stay out for. I was exhausted that first night and had a slight panic attack, so I turned in early. The next day we hit a few sites before returning to Galway even earlier.

Our first stop was the recreation of The Quiet Man cottage. The Quiet Man was a movie made in 1952 starring John Wayne as a disgraced American boxer retiring to Ireland. It also stars Maureen O’Hara and Barry Fitzgerald. It’s the typical American idea about the Irish countryside, Irish life and temper. Nonetheless, I think it’s a decent movie. It did win two Oscars. The movie was actually shot in the west of Ireland, and pretty popular in it’s day. Henceforth, the recreation of the cottage. It wasn’t anything too spectacular in my eyes, but a neat little touristy thing for anyone wanting to see what a typical 1920′s Irish cottage would look like. I was caught quite off guard when I actually walked in the cottage and there were these life-size wax figurines convened around a kitchen table. That was quite laughable. I missed my chance at getting a picture with John Wayne, but I am in Ireland after all. I’m sure there’s plenty of time for that in America.

After that short little pit stop we headed to our destination for the day–Kylemore Abbey, in Co. Connemara. What a beautiful sight that was! Currenly, Kylemore is home to a group of Benedictine Nuns and an international boarding schools for only about 70 girls, very prestigious. It’s the oldest of Benedictine Abbeys in Ireland and the most photographed castle as well. I couldn’t resist helping that statistic. It was beautiful, but not necessarily the castle I was on the hunt for. Though I am glad I got to visit here. The history is that Mitchell Henry, a wealthy politician from England, built Kylemore Castle as a private home for his wife, Margaret. Such a beautiful story, but unfortunately, Margaret died three years later and never actually got to enjoy a long life in the castle. Henry also built a Gothic church on the grounds as a memorial to his wife and the two are buried there. We didn’t have much time on the grounds and so I wasn’t able to get to the church, but that’s ok. Because the nuns actually reside in the Abbey, only about three rooms on the first floor are open to the public so I walked through. It was quite interesting. There were some mock rooms of how the Castle would’ve looked during the Henry’s life and a room dedicated to the nuns and their history. 

The reason I didn’t get to see the church is because I spent too much time perusing the Victorian Walled Gardens on the land. I felt like I had stepped into The Secret Garden. They were so magnificent and any gardeners dream!  The gardens themselves are about one mile from the castle and 8.5 acres in land. Six of the acres are enclosed by a high brick wall. I felt as if I were stepping back in time in that place. The gardens are kept up today and include an amazing amount of flowers, as well as the largest herb and vegetable garden I’ve ever seen. (It beats out Wayne’s Grandaddy’s by far.) The only thing not remaining from the original gardens are the glasshouses. These were just what they sound like, glasshouses, which were situated from end to end of that garden with the purpose of providing the ladies a stroll through the gardens during the winter months. I took several pictures and just enjoyed myself walking through them. There was long path and a short path for the stroller, however, I found my own way around. This picture I’ve posted is what the garden looks like upon entering. Like most pictures, it doesn’t do things justice, but it gives you an idea to the enormity of it. I love how the very center tree in the garden is a palm tree. Amazingly, they grow all over Ireland. 

The Kylemore grounds themselves are situated with the area of The Twelve Bens (or Pins), a small mountain range located within Connemara National Park.  It was such a beautiful area! The bus ride was interesting going through the mountain range, but it was worth it for the sights alone. We didn’t stop, but another place of interest we drove through was The Burren in Co. Clare. This is a very unique area, different than any other place in Ireland. It is very much like it’s name, as it is a bare area. There are no bogs and very few pastures. Instead, the Burren is made up of huge areas of limestone and amazingly, home to a wide variety of orchids and other plants. The rocks have a micro-climate of weather, and so various Arctic, Alpine, and even Mediterranean plants flower in this area. The Burren also holds history as ancient dolmens, wedge tombs, and stone forts can be found there. I’ve heard there are walking tours of the Burren and it’s something I will definitely be looking into when I visit again. 

Once we returned to Galway that night, Jill and I freshened up and headed out on the town (that’s where my previous pubs post comes from.) A fun site we saw before the night bloomed was the statue of Oscar Wilde in the square. I couldn’t resist the photo opportunity. Not like I was afraid he’d hit on me or anything, despite his being dead, he was also arrested back in his time for homosexual behavior. Wilde’s family home, as well as another statue of him are located here in Dublin, I hope to be visiting them sometime this week.
For dinner that night I had a landmark experience. My travel guide recommend a place called McDonagh’s, also backed up by a few locals we met and so the girls and I had to check it out. Quite happily, I enjoyed my

first taste of fish and chips! I had fried cod (the only way to go) and with a little salt and vinegar added to my chips, I’m never going back! I highly recommend stopping at this place if you’re in Galway. Once you walk in there is an upper scale seafood restaurant if that is too your liking, but I’d say stick with the Fish-n-Chips side. There are about seven different kinds of fish to choose from, and if you don’t like the sea, they always have chicken!

Well, I think that pretty much sums up my excursion to Galway… now it’s off to class for the day. Enjoy your morning everyone!

My trip to Galway – Cliffs of Moher

The Cliffs of Moher. There really aren’t many more words that can describe my short time spent there other than telling you what they are and showing you pictures. I think I took about 100 or so pictures, in about the forty-five minutes I was there. I won’t post all of them, but I’ll put enough up so you can catch a good glimpse. I’m warning you, the pictures do no justice to the actual site. The Cliffs themselves span about 8km of the coast and rise to about 214 m high. In American terms that’s about 5 miles and 709 feet. Which is pretty high for someone like me who is terrified of heights. If I could describe the Cliffs in one word– well, I really can’t. They are breathtaking, magnificent, amazing, beautiful, God molded, and they left me speechless. Which is actually saying a lot. I took so many pictures (the heading of my blog is one I took, as well as about 13 of myself with the Cliffs and/or ocean behind me), but I also escaped from my friends for a short time to just sit by myself and take it all in. At one point there’s a big sign that says “no traveling beyond this point” and then there’s a trail that goes along the edge of the Cliffs. There’s no rail or anything, hence the sign. BUT, no one really listens to it, I guess. We all went beyond the point and amazingly, I wasn’t terrified. At first glance, I was a little shaken, but the more I walked, the less fearful I became. I’d like to say that I believe I actually conquered my fear of heights. I found a spot to sit near the edge (still a decent way back Mom.. I wasn’t about to dive off of them) and contemplated the beauty. It felt like the only thing to do.
Being the emotional person that I am, I cried while I was sitting there by myself. (You’ll notice my eyes in the picture with Jill.) I sat there looking over the Atlantic Ocean and taking in the shear height and majesty of the Cliffs and I couldn’t say anything. I felt so insignificant but so much more as well. There were no words to describe that moment and the only proper feeling was tears. It wasn’t sadness or hurt or any emotion usually associated with crying, it was simply, crying for the beautiful.
I wish I could package up the Cliffs of Moher and send then to each and every one of you. I wish my pictures could show the majesty of them. I wish you could grasp just how immense they are. I wish you could feel the emotion of being so insignificant yet still having so much purpose. The catch of my breath at the sight of them and the way my heart swelled at being in the presence of wonder and awe….I wish I could share those. If you ever see one thing in your life full of majesty and grace, these would be it.

I’ll try to let my pictures speak, but I know they truly can’t.

My trip to Galway – Thoor Ballylee

And so, as I promised many, many times, here begins the story of my weekend adventures. Starting with my excursion to Galway.

After quite a long bus ride (about 3 1/2 hours) across the country, and before even getting to Galway City, our first stop was Thoor Ballylee, W.B. Yeats’ country home. I’d been in the country for about seven days and this trip was my first step outside of Dublin, needless to say, I was super excited to find out Yeats country home was our first stop. The roads getting there were quite narrow, and quite Irish countryside– beautiful and postcardish. Many turns and curves later, we entered the land of Yeats. This tower was a 16th century Norman castle built by the family de Burgo. Yeats bought it to satisfy his country longing and to be close to his deep friend and love, Lady Gregory. He restored it for his wife George. Yeats saw the tower as very full in history and romance and once said in a letter to Olivia Shakespeare that “We are in our Tower and I an writing poetry as I always do here, and, as always happens, no matter how I begin, it becomes love poetry before I am finished with it.”  What can I say, it was both exciting and hard to walk into. I couldn’t believe that I was setting foot into the place that one of my favorite writer’s had called home, and yet I didn’t want to walk in because I knew I could only be there so long. Of course I pushed that feeling aside and amazed myself at everything. The tower itself has four floors, with the first devoted to a dining room full of some of Yeat’s work and original documents. I spent a lot of time in that room, skimming through the cases and peering at the work. Something I stumbled upon was a letter from Yeat’s regarding the buying of the tower and it contained his signature. To know that he had penned sevenlittle letters in front of me, his name authentic from his hand, was overwhelming. Some of you might not understand but put it in the perspective of your current, favorite rock star or someone of importance to you. I mean, it wasn’t an autograph I could take home, but just seeing his writing in front of me and having understood how important his words were and are to Ireland, was amazing. It’s the whole living history I’m experiencing while here. There’s just a feeling that’s so unexplainable and full of many emotions that brings such a smile to my face.
There were also several first additions of his books and such in cases throughout the tour. I was glad because the tour itself was self-guided so I was able to spend as much time as I wanted wandering through the house and reading the poems placed on the wall, or looking through the cases of his books. I think my favorite part about the tower itself was the staircase. It was a winding one, and an inspirational one for Yeats. He declared “This winding, gyring, spring treadmill of a stair is my ancestral stair” in one of his poems. Thoor Ballylee was one of Yeats’s muses and something he devoted his poetry too. In 1928 he published the collection titled The Tower and in 1933, The Winding Stair and Other Poems. Both collections contain a vast amount of poetry dealing with his life in the country and the tower itself. I think I walked up and down the stairs a couple of times just wondering to myself at how many times he had climbed those same stairs.
At the top there was this tiny, tiny door (smaller than me even!) which led to the roof. What a view it had! I stood there for quite awhile and enjoyed taking pictures of myself. The west is radically different than Dublin, and looking out onto the countryside made me realize for the first time that I really was in Ireland. This is the beautiful land that I’ve seen in books, and pictures, and movies a countless number of times. And here I was looking out at this land with my own eyes. I talked with several of the girls while we were upstairs enjoying the view and none of us really wanted to leave. We’re all literature lovers and it was incomprehensible at how many time Yeats had probably stood up there and took in his country, to in turn write about it and immortalize it. As for me, I took as many pictures of myself as I could because I don’t want to forget that view or the feeling. It’s only too prominent in my smile.

As also promised, I did see a LOT of sheep while in Galway and I have the picture to prove it. We never had to stop for the sheep crossing the road, but there were a few loose ones occasionally wandering on the pavement. The bus always sent them running.

Thought

Today is a good day… just throwing it out there. I finished Gangs of New York this morning, printed off my paper, and I’m traveling to Blarney tomorrow! I hope the day is wonderful for all you as well.

On another note, I miss running at home and doing my yoga. I’ve severally slacked off here, it’s just hard to get into a routine when you’re so far away from home… and expensive to pay for yoga classes here. But, I’ll be getting right on that when I return. Just a thought… I’m bored waiting for class, wishing I could be pacing on the hills.

Casino’s and Sports… not your average American themes

Hello world!

Today was excursion number three for my group! Unbelievably, today also marks the half point of my trip. I have a feeling these next two and a half weeks will be going by much faster than the previous ones. It’s been amazing so far, but the school part is starting to get to me. It’s quite easy to forget that knowledge is the reason I came, and I actually do have homework. Which is why my posts have been less frequent lately… but I did finish my first paper tonight (a 3 pager ending up at 5) so I’m at liberty to celebrate with fun writing. I enjoyed my outing in Dublin today, it was different than originally planned, but neat. We were supposed to split up this morning with the film class going to the Irish Film Institute and the rest of us traveling to the National Museum of Archeology and History. Well, the IFI tour was cancelled for some reason and not many people wanted to go to the museum so we ended up voting and traveling to the Casino Morino today. I wanted to go the museum again (I went last weekend…another post soon) but the Casino wasn’t too bad.
Before you go off thinking I’m over here gambling my money away, the Casio Marino is not that kind of casiono.  It is actually one of the finest 18th century neo-classical buildings in Europe. It is located in the area of Marino and Casino is taken from the original Itialian meaning, “little house.” The Casino was designed by Sir William Chambers as a play house for James Caulfeild, a pretty rich and famous guy here in Ireland. It was pretty much a mini house where all of his aristocratic friends and himself would go to gather, party, play cards, have socials…etc. Caulfeild met Chambers while on his Grand Tour of Europe and the two actually designed the place together. They wanted to create a perfect architecturally structed building and this is what the Casino became. Chambers was teaching King George at the time of design and couldn’t really leave, so the two men communicated through letters over 15 years to design the place. The outside of the building is representative of Greek influence while the inside varies form different Greek, Roman, and French influences. It’s really a trick house because of it’s perfection. Unfortunately (like most places I’m finding) I couldn’t take pictures inside. When you look at the house from the outside, it appears very small and you’d think there is only room for one big room, when in actuality, there are sixteen rooms and three floors inside. The men were genius in their architecture and did many trick things to keep people guessing. For instance, the front door appears very large, to open into one room, but only part of the door opens in proportion to a person’s height. As for the windows, there is one window on each of the remaining sides composed of thirty-three panels. The windows actually span all three floors inside, but the glass panes themselves are curved so for the outside onlooker, the light reflects and you cannot tell there are three separate floors.

The place was really very beautiful inside and we even had to wear special slippers because the floors are original, rare wood, over 270 years old. I can’t totally explain the building, but in short, the architecture is perfect and trickery is involved to give off the illusion and then surprise. The influence of Greek and Roman decoration is very prominent inside, and I again felt amazed while standing in history. I suggest visiting it if ever in the area, but definitely researching it as well. My favorite part were the stone lions outside, originally meant to be fountains, as everything, everything, has a purpose in this place.

Our only and other stop for the day was Croke Park and the GAA Museum, home of Gaelic sport and the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Croke Park is actually the fourth largest stadium in Europe. I actually didn’t know much about Gaelic sports before I came over here, but they are a big thing in Ireland. Gaelic sports include Gaelic football, Hurling, Handball, Rounders, and Ladies Football. It turns out that the All Ireland Gaelic football semi-finals are playing this week, in which Dublin is playing. Some of my classmates got tickets a few weeks ago and had I known, I would’ve been on top of that. Right now we can’t get any tickets, but the held ones go public tomorrow so I’m hoping to maybe get one and see the match on Sunday. it’s supposed to be good. Gaelic Football is kind of like soccer, but not really. I totally don’t understand it at all but it looks so fun! And the support is amazing. All of the GAA athletes are amateurs… they play for free. Could you imagine if that happened in America? We’d have no sports. It’s great to see people playing for the love of the game, and there is so much support.
Our tour consisted of a walk through the museum (in the stadium) and then we got to actually tour the stadium itself. Our first stop was the players’ lounge, which was fun being behind the scenes. The lounge has a beautiful chandelier centerpiece that is made of Waterford Crystal, with 55 bigger lights shaped like a Gaelic football (which looks like a volleyball) and 72 little balls which are the hurling balls. I think the 55 stand for the number of counties in Ireland with teams, and 72 is for something too…but I can’t remember. What else is cool is that the colors can be changed, so usually they are set to the winning teams colors after the game when they are in the lounge relaxing.
After the players’ lounge we got to see the dressing (locker) rooms and then head out into the park. We sort of traveled backwards of the players…The stadium was huge and I’m glad I’ve conquered my fear of heights (again, another story) because we traipsed up to the top level and boy was that a view. I felt like I was going to fall even though we weren’t, the stadium holds close to 85,000 people if that tells you anything. I think my favorite part of the tour was actually the museum.There is so much history in the GAA that you wouldn’t think of because it’s an athletic association. But like most things in Ireland, it’s rooted around politics and such. Take for instance the Bloody Sunday incident on November 21st, 1920. “Bloody Sunday” is probably known by most as the U2 song (for you mom!) in reference to the Northern Ireland incident in 1972 where protesters taking part in a banned march in Londonderry were  shot by the British Army. Since that incident, “Bloody Sunday” refers to that, but before, it evoked a memory of November 21, 1920, when 14 British secret service men were simultaneously killed by the Irish Volunteers in their Dublin homes, and in retaliation Auxiliary police killed 12 spectators and players and injured 60 others at a Dublin football match. One of the murdered was football player Michael Hogan. It’s quite a prominent piece of historr in the GAA and very moving to think that a sport has such a connection with politics and history. 
We ended the tour with a trip to the shop, where I bought my own authentic Dublin football jersey, in hopes that I could wear it to the game on Sunday if I ever get tickets, as well as a few souvenirs for others.  A few of us girls who want to go decided that if we can’t get tickets, a pub with a few TVs will be nice. I’m sure the atmosphere is great, just not live. The perfect place for my first pint.
It was a fun day followed by a nice finish to my paper due tomorrow, and some good chocolate. I’m beginning to fall in love with the candy here, so it’s good that I have to walk and walk up hills everywhere. I’m planning an exciting weekend this weekend… still so much to do and so little time!! Tomorrow: hopefully a walk around to see some literary giants. Granted on that wonderful Irish weather.

Have a great night everyone!!

Making the most of a Monday

Here’s a little change of pace for you. I finally hit the homesick stage, but not quite homesick. I’ve been traveling to camps since I was a kid so I’m used to being away from home at times. Then college happened and I made myself a new home. This being my first time out of the country, I knew the missing home stage was bound to happen, even though I proclaimed constantly it wouldn’t. I was bound and determined to have a great time, be adventurous, find myself, and let go of stress. So far… I am, but I also hit a slight wall today. It’s kind of like running. I can go so far and then suddenly, my mind stops and tries to convince me I can’t go anymore. I think that’s what happened today. I actually didn’t get up and run today, I didn’t want to be in class, I’m tired of school and actually of reading. I’ve been working on a paper, having fun writing it, but I just can’t seem to find the right place to work in or concentrate. I had to go to the market today and it was overwhelmingly busy, then afterwards I missed two buses and had to wait forever for the next one. It was as if suddenly, I just wanted to be in America, in my own car, driving home to Wayne, whom I miss terribly.

Enough complaining though because I made the most of today. I’m currently watching Gangs of New York (part of the subject of my paper, dealing with the Irish Immigrants and the legacy of violence and wildness that has followed them since their time in Five Points) and I’ve forgotten how visually and audibly stunning the movie is. Besides that, I finally planned the rest of my time here. I’ll be traveling to Cork and Blarney this weekend with a few of the girls, we’re booking tickets for the train tomorrow and I can’t wait! I’ve never traveled cross country on a train before so this will be a doubly good experience for me.
Beyond that, I’ve turned my last weekend into a show weekend. As a class we’re going to see “The Wier” by Conor McPherson at The Gate Theatre on Thursday the 24th. McPherson is an Irish play write and I’ve heard nothing but rave reviews of the show. Going from that mood, I decided to book two other tickets for myself that weekend.
I’ll be seeing Riverdance at The Gaiety Theatre on Wednesday and that will be simply amazing. I debated about seeing them, but I do love Irish step dancing and it seems perfect to see the show live, here of all places. Not to mention my ticket is five rows from the stage, center.

I really couldn’t stop there so I also booked a ticket to see Anton Chekov’s “The Three Sisters” at The Abbey Theatre on Saturday. I was able to obtain great seats again, and of the three, I think I’m most excited about this show. Even though it isn’t an Irish play, it’s in the Abbey Theatre, my excitement explained in previous posts.

In light of today, it turned out really well. I finally feel good about the rest of my trip and less overwhelmed because everything I want to do is booked, with some extra time for spontaneity. I have nothing left but to experience Ireland! To end the night, I even got to talk to Wayne. Well, enough about my life, this is my travel blog… I’ll be writing about this past weekend hopefully tomorrow…once I get that paper done.

Have a great night everyone!

Not so (sweet)tarts

Ok, here I am getting ready to turn in for the night and yet, I feel the need to write. I’m slightly behind on my adventures so I’m backtracking once again to last Wednesday and the story I owe you. One stupid American Tourist, coming right up.

Scenario: A small group of about seven friends- American students in a foreign country, i.e. Ireland– touring St. Patrick’s Cathedral on a Wednesday morning. Trying to save a little money, since the exchange rate is high, they have all decided to pack sandwiches and find a nice spot to eat their lunch during the break before more touring at the Dublin Writer’s Museum. Since the weather has been miserably rainy all morning, and not really thinking about how certain expectations might be different, the seven friends file into a little cafe where they have decided to order coffee and dessert and eat their sandwiches. Their original plan of sitting by the river was crushed due to rain, and a cafe, seemingly casual, seemed like a fairly cheap place to at least order a little something while they ate their sandwiches. And the conflict begins…

So the morning had just been horrible with the rain and we were all very tired of being cold and wet, not to mention getting a little hungry. None of us really wanted to spend too much on lunch since we all have means to pack it, so we decided to try this little cafe, Queen of Tarts (the name should have forewarned us) where we could order coffee and/or dessert while we also eat our sandwiches. I wasn’t even thinking about how things might be slightly different here since we aren’t in America. I know places at home usually don’t allow outside food in, but I go to cafes all the time with a sandwich or something, and as long as I order a drink I’m usually ok to eat. I notice others do it too. Well, it doesn’t quite work that way here. I don’t know if it was because we were a bunch of twenty something students, Americans, or just because we were wet and soggy, but we were completely embarrassed by the owner. We walked into the cafes (Picture of us–happy before) at down over on the side, where no one else was at, and pulled out our sandwiches. The waitress came over and took our order down, not saying anything to us about our sandwiches so we assumed we were ok. Every one of us had ordered something but we ended up being wrong about our sandwiches being ok. About twenty seconds later I saw the waitress convening in the corner talking to what I only presumed to be the owner. Needless to say, the owner came over to us, looking directly at me because I was in the middle) and proceeded to bluntly tell us that “Absolutely not, you can’t have that here, absolutely not” or something to that extent. I immediately felt like an idiot because it seemed directed at me even though it wasn’t.
A few of us tried not to get angry at the point and ultimately didn’t enjoy the dessert we ordered (definitely over priced, but again, should’ve figured that out by the name of the place). We couldn’t figure out why the waitress didn’t tell us herself that we couldn’t eat there when she came over the first time and if I hadn’t been paralyzed with embarrassment I would’ve said to the owner, “Ok, I’m sorry, I’ll take it elsewhere and you can cancel my order.” I still don’t understand the waitress and her inability to explain the rules. In the end, we were stuck with overpriced dessert with no lunch, and then even more angry because they wrote a gratuity on the bill (there was nothing posted about percentage because of group number or anything). We weren’t planning on leaving much because the waitress herself was not friendly and couldn’t even bother to ask us to put our sandwiches away. We just assumed they figured our group had caused enough trouble and wanted more money from us. Even after all of that, they couldn’t take Jill’s debit card because her order wasn’t over 10 Euro (again, nothing posted anywhere about having to have a certain amount to use debitl) so we all threw in some extra coins because they wouldn’t let us pay separately anyway, even though a few other girls from our class were able to pay separately before us. Which I was keen to noticing because I couldn’t help also seeing how they rolled their eyes and made snotty comments about our little experience. They were the type of girls to fit right into the place anyway.

It was just a bad experience gone even more horribly wrong because of embarrassment and suddenly feeling like a stupid tourist. I suppose if it were a good experience, I might suggest you eat there if you ever visit, but I doubt I would. It was really overpriced for something not that good, and their attitudes, not friendly at all. I like to call it the hoity-toity tea shop now that I can laugh about it. The name fits though. The owner was a tart one.

The Queen of Hearts she made some tarts all on a summer’s day;
The Knave of Hearts he stole the tarts and took them clean away.
The King of Hearts called for the tarts and beat the Knave full sore
The Knave of Hearts brought back the tarts and
vowed he’d steal no more.

Have a good night everyone!

Dispersing words…

Well, I visited Howth today and it was great! The weather was slightly cold, but it felt amazing to be on the sea. I was going through my finance today and trying to plan trips and such (it’s hard to believe I’m going into my third week, things are going by to fast) and I think I am going to devote the last weekend to seeing some shows. We’re already attending a play at The Gate Theatre as a class, but I’d like to see a show at The Abbey and I’d love to go see Riverdance while it is touring here. How cool to say I saw it in Ireland. There’s just so much to see, as I’ve probably said a million times, it’s hard to feel like I’m seeing enough or experiencing enough. So many people from the group are traveling everywhere and seeing everything they can, I just feel like I can’t quite do that… I won’t appreciate it enough. But, next weekend is Cork and Blarney. I’ve been determined to kiss the stone since I was little, and here I am. It will happen!

I’ll write more later, just getting some thoughts out. now. I’m here by myself, a little tired and slightly bored now waiting for the hours to count down before I head into Dublin tonight. I’m becoming a regular at the pub scene. I guess it helps that I’m not drinking and just enjoying the music. Which I am, very much. I found a new pub last night, Gogherty’s, and they have traditional music everynight. As in, guitar, fiddle, pipes, whistles, flutes…it’s pretty much wonderful.

Have a great afternoon everyone!