17.10.13

I’m actually in Ireland! I can’t believe it; I’ve wanted to see this country practically my whole life and I’ve finally made it happen. It’s pretty exciting. I’ve walked a few miles today, and considering I only got a couple of hours of sleep on the plan with a screaming baby and my body thinks it’s 8 hours earlier than it usually is, I’m pretty beat.

Anyway, some first impressions…

1        1.  A lot of what I saw initially reminded me of Germany, and I know that that’s just because of the “European-ness” of it all – different cars, lots of roundabouts, the long wide license plates, etc. Also, it seems that most European cities have some sort of pedestrian-only shopping center. So, while people proclaim Grafton Street as a must-see site, to me it’s something I’ve already seen in many other cities.

2     2.  I LOVE the weather. After Santa Ana winds, I’m so happy to have clouds and 50 degree weather and a breeze. Apparently I brought the sun again, though, because it was pouring yesterday and sunny and warm today (I honestly could’ve worn a short-sleeved shirt most of the time and been fine).

3    3. Traveling alone is only as lonely as I want it to be. If I decide that I’m worn out from putting myself out there with new people, then I can go ahead and eat alone, but I can’t feel sorry for myself while doing it, because I made that decision. If I want to chat with people, I have to put myself out there and there’s no one to do it but me.

      4. The Irish really are as friendly as everyone says, and they’re much more “touchy” than a lot of Americans. Today a man told me about everything in his life, from where he went to school and how he was second in his class, to what his son does for a living, to how he likes country music, and how he thinks the tiny cramped bunks in a submarine are responsible for the emergence of homosexuality among military men.

I saw some really cool sites today as well.

First was Kilmainham Gaol (pronounced kil-MAIN-hem jail), because it was furthest away. It really was a good introduction into modern Irish history and it focused a lot on the Easter Rising and the War of Independence. The Irish clearly have a lot of pride in their cultural heritage, and they remind me a lot of the tour I took in Prague: The epic tale of a people who have always been oppressed and only recently won their independence. I wonder if, 300 years from now, some small group of people will be telling the story of how they won independence from the Irish. Anyway… Killmainham Gaol was supposed to be revolutionary for its time, and it was believed that strict discipline, individual cells, religions, and physical labor could bring about reform. The jail never served its full purpose because of overcrowding. In fact, during the potato famine, people would commit crimes just to be put in jail because it guaranteed a meal and a roof over their heads (regardless of the meagerness of the meal or the lack of glass in the windows). It served as a county jail until the early 1900s before it became a war criminal jail during the Easter Rising and War of Independence. It was a really haunting place, especially with the grey skies and cool weather. As we walked through dark hallways with peeling plaster and a persistent chill, it was easy to imagine what it must have been like to be perpetually cold and hungry through long winters. The prisoners received wet straw for a bed, a bucket for a toilet, one “meal” (soup made of flour and potatoes) a day, and a single candle for both light and heat. The whole jail is very humbling. It also holds fascinating stories of political prisoners who were held there, and their subsequent executions were a huge factor in boosting national moral in favor of a republic. I basically knew nothing of Ireland’s recent history before that tour, and now I feel as if I understand their resentment toward the British and their fierce Irish pride.

Entrance to Kilmainhem Gaol, where prisoners were hung.

Inside a jail cell in the old wing.

The foreboding hallways of the old west wing.

One of thousands of bonnets hand sewn as a memorial for female political prisoners who were sent to Australia.

View from inside a jail cell.

Inside the panoptic (all-seeing) East Wing.

I also made the obligatory tourist stop: The Guinness Storehouse. I used my student ID (hooray for no expiration dates!) and got in for 13 euros instead of 16. Hey, when the dollar has plummeted and one euro now equals $1.43, I’ll save money any way I can. The factory was pretty informative, considering I know almost nothing about the production of beer. I also took this fancy “tasting experience”, where I learned how to properly drink a Guinness so as to get the full flavor (see instructions below). The “tasting experience” was pretty flashy, with one room painted all white so that we would only smell, and another decorated like a sitting room of some lord. But the museum is pretty well done; it’s just enough of the fantastic to keep you interested but not so much that it feels too Hollywood. And obviously, the Gravity Bar is pretty cool. It’s one of my “must-dos” in a city to get to somewhere high and get panoramic views. Well this definitely accomplished that, with a Guinness in hand.

How to properly taste Guinness:
1. Stay standing straight and tilt the pin toward your mouth. Leaning into the pint will give you a mouthful of bitter Guinness foam.
2. Take a breath right before taking a gulp of beer.
3. Don't just sip the beer: Take a big drink!
4. Swish the beer around your mouth before swallowing.
5. Breathe out after swallowing the beer.

I worked REALLY hard to keep that from being vulnerable to "that's what she said" jokes, but it still sounds dirty. Oh well.

Self-explanatory

View from the Gravity Bar

Need  I say more?

I did a lot of wandering through city streets because I didn’t feel like messing with the buses, and I always think that the best way to get to know the lay-out of a city is to walk it. Once again, I am grateful for my innate sense of direction: I didn’t get lost once and I won’t get lost, as long as I know where the river is! I wandered past Christ Church and didn’t quite see what the fuss is all about and strolled through Temple Bar, which is definitely cute. I stumbled upon Dublin Castle, which was definitely worth the 3 euro 50 to see inside, despite what Rick Steves wrote about it being boring.

Dublin Castle. (Err, Palace, rather. And only part)

Ooo pretty ceilings

More pretty ceilings.

The Drawing Room

Horrible selfie, but proof that I was there!

St. Patrick's ballroom, named for the knights of St. Patrick

I found my future living room armchair.

Here are some interesting facts I remember about Dublin Castle:

1.      It was the seat of England’s rule over Ireland for more than 700 years.

2.      It was founded before the Vikings came, but they established a fort at the location that was there basically until the British arrived.

3.      The name “Dublin” comes from “dubh linn”, which literally means “dark pond.”

4.      James Connolly, prominent leader of the Easter Rising, was held in the castle when it was a WWI Red Cross hospital because of injuries to his leg. It was here that he was also tried and sentenced to death.

5.      Drawing rooms are called such because it is an abbreviation of “Withdrawing Room”, or the place where men and women retired (separately) after dinner.

6.      “Petticoat mirrors” were mirrors underneath end tables against the wall and they allowed women to check that their ankles were still covered.

7.      Dublin Castle made use of mirrors in north-facing rooms to create the illusion of more light.

8.      King George III was so fat that he had especially large thrones made for him. This was a problem when Queen Victoria came along, who was less than 5’, and needed the bottoms sawed off of the chair legs.

Finally, I went to City of a Thousand Welcomes, an organization that sets up meet-and-greets between tourists and locals. I had a hard time locating it because I remembered it on the wrong side of Stephen's green. But a nice local woman helped me, and in the end I needn’t have worried about being late, because it was a thank-you reception for all of the CTW volunteers! Soooo I kind of gate-crashed a party. But no one seemed to mind. I talked to one elderly man for about 45 minutes, and he basically gave me his life’s story. But he ended the conversation by giving me his card and offering to put me up if I ever come back to Ireland. He also said, “You’re a testament to your parents.” How sweet!

Tomorrow I go to Glendalough, and hopefully this weather will hold out, because I plan on walking around a lot!