When I die, Dublin will be written in my heart.
~James Joyce
We walked over 9 miles today! In addition to some standard tourist attractions, we also took the opportunity to indulge in a little "fan-girling" and "fan-boying." We visited Trinity College and the Book of Kells, toured Kilmainham Gaol, and became Guinness connoisseurs. I'll let the pictures and their captions tell the story.
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| Trinity College Library |
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| The "Long Room" at Trinity College Library |
Jeff's fan-boy indulgence: O'Donoghue's Bar--home of The Dubliners, credited with a resurgence of traditional Irish music, and influencing Bono of U2. (Personally, I think without groups like The Dubliners, there would be no Drop Kick Murphys.)
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| Oscar Wilde |
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| Molly Malone |
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| One does not hit all the sites without a little planning. |
Just 2 of my fan-girl moments.
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| The inspiration for Barron's Books & Baubles in the Fever book series by Karen Marie Moning. |
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| The Gaiety School of Acting--alma mater of Aidan Turner. (Oh yeah, and Colin Farrell, Olivia Wilde, Eva Birthistle and Colin O’Donoghue.) |
Kilmainham Gaol, in operation from 1796-1924. A large percentage of inmates were victims of poverty--men, women, and children incarcerated for crimes as petty as stealing bread. It also housed political prisoners, the most famous of which were the leaders during the 1916 Irish Rebellion that ultimately led to Ireland's independence. Today marked the 101st anniversary of the execution of some of those leaders.
At the Guinness Storehouse, we learned of the history, brewing, and innovations of Guinness and how to properly pour Guinness Draft. And yes, I drank Guinness. I'm generally not a beer drinker, but Guinness tastes better to me. Of the 4 brews we sampled, the Extra Stout was my favorite.
Your photos made me nostalgic. I'm happy for Jeff to have made it to O'Donoghue's Bar.
ReplyDeleteHe said he had to make it right after our fail.
DeleteYes, I felt guilty about that fail.
DeleteOh, and thanks for visiting my favorite guy Oscar. :)
How could you NOT stop where U2 and the Dropkick Murphys were? Go Jeff! Looking forward to tomorrow :)!
ReplyDeleteOur Guinness guide gave us the scoop. It's the same Guinness the world over. It's all in how you serve it. In Ireland, Guinness visits every place that serves Guinness Draft once every 28 days to be sure it's stored, served, etc. according to Guinness requirements. They can't do that outside of Ireland, so they have less control over the end product.
ReplyDelete