Dublin with the Moning Maniacs, Day 5

  "...Fecking-A, it's good to be me! Wind in my hair! Mega on the move! Leaps tall buildings in a single bound!
  Well, maybe that last part's a little exaggeration, but still...
  Zoooooooom! I freeze-frame through the streets of Dublin."
~Karen Marie Moning, Iced

Dublin on a Monday, post-storm and all is back to normal. My last day, time to work in all my sight-seeing! I mapped out my walking route and headed out.

First stop: The General Post Office (GPO), the headquarters of the Irish Post Office.

Because the GPO served as the headquarters of the rebellion during the 1916 rising, it houses the GPO Witness History Museum which depicts the events of the rising and the struggle for Irish independence.

The museum takes about an hour for the full experience and I hadn't yet had my Irish breakfast this visit. Next stop: Eddie Rocket's Diner. This kind of breakfast is heavy on protein and sticks with you for hours. The breakfast consists of sausage, potatoes, eggs, tomatoes, black and white pudding (actually a sausage-like food), mushrooms, and bacon. Usually baked beans are included as well.

I walked along the River Liffey and headed to the Docklands area of the city.

The palm tree was a little funny to see in front of the Custom House, especially after the snow storm. 

This is where I started to get emotional. The Famine Memorial provided a stark reminder of the impact of the Irish Potato Famine. From 1845-1849, the population of Ireland fell by 20–25% due to mortality and emigration (1 million people died and another 1 million emigrated).

Near the Famine Memorial, a stone commemorates the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (Oct. 17).

"Wherever men and women are condemned to live in extreme poverty, human rights are violated. To come together to ensure that these rights be respected is our solemn duty."
~Joseph Wresinski

A replica of the Jeanie Johnston, a ship which carried Irish emigrants to North America during the famine, is docked nearby. I didn't tour the ship, but did take a few photos.

I spent the bulk of my afternoon at EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum. The displays begin with phrase "We all come from somewhere."

The museum chronicles the reasons people have left Ireland, where they have gone, and the impact they've had in the world--good and bad.

The thing I have found most impressive on each visit to Dublin is the willingness of the Irish to "own up" to the negative events in their history, just as much as they celebrate the good. By admitting to policies that perpetuated inequality or poverty, they make a case for trying to do better. We could all learn a lesson from this attitude and atone for our own mistakes and missteps.

Moving along my path....
My hostel roommate Jillian had told me about Sweny's, a pharmacy featured in Ulysses by James Joyce. The pharmacy is now a second-hand book store and hosts daily readings of Joyce's works.

  








Apparently Sweny's wasn't the only pharmacy in the neighborhood.
















I was determined to see the inside of an old church! I picked Christ Church Cathedral because of its age and history. The church has been around for nearly a thousand years--first a wooden building was built in that location by Christian Vikings in 1030. After the Norman capture of Dublin, lead by Richard de Clare "Strongbow", the present stone cathedral was begun (1172) and continued for many years.

Strongbow himself is interred in the cathedral.

Over the centuries, parts of the cathedral became damaged. An extensive reconstruction began during the Victorian era, and many parts of the original cathedral were moved. The crypt contains a number of these pieces, as well as other historic items--like these statues of Charles I and II.

The crypt also contains a display of Tudor costumes.

These mummified remains of a cat and a rat were found in a organ pipe in the 1850's.

At various places along my journey I saw stones of Viking artifacts embedded in the sidewalk. I also took some time for shopping, with the goal of purchasing Irish wool sweaters.

By the end of my tour, I had run out of time to go through Dublin Castle, but I did walk around the outside.

A quick stop back at the hostel to unload my goodies and I headed out to meet up with some Maniacs at The Brazen Head for an evening of food, folklore and fairies.

A great way to end my visit!