European Literary
Trails
Director:
Professor Jolanta W. Wawrzycka
Jenny Cline's Web Site 2003
Dublin, Ireland
Journal Entry: May 24, 2003
We're on our way to Dublin...our last stop in Ireland before leaving the country for Italy. I'm excited to see what Dublin is going to be like. Is it like our major cities: DC, NYC? We'll see. It will be a nice change from the small cities we've visited for the past two weeks. I won't have to walk outside to the side of the road at 12am to use phone that's for sure:o)! We'll also be switching gears as to what writer we'll be studying. Mr. James Joyce we'll be the center of our attention in Dublin. I feel like we've already gotten a little taste of his life through our visit to Nora's house so it will be interesting to learn more. Before we get to Dublin we're going to stop at Newgrange for a tour. From what I've read in my Ireland Eyewitness Travel Guide Newgrange is one of the most famous passage graves in Europe. It was built around 3200BC and the legendary kings of Tara are said to have been buried there.
We toured the inside of Newgrange. It was scary as you can tell from the picture the entry way is tiny and narrow...it doesn't get much roomier inside. When archaeologists discovered Newgrange in the 1960s they found that on December 21 (the winter solstice) rays of sun enter the tomb and light up the burial chamber. This fact makes it the oldest solar observatory (Ireland). We got to see how the sun peaks in to the chamber through a demonstration that our guide did using a flashlight!
Above: Me in front of the entrance to Newgrange
Right: A better view of Newgrange in its entirety.
Journal Entry: May 25, 2003
Today is our first day in Dublin and our last day with Keith. He's taking us to Glendalough and then he'll be going back to Sligo:o( Glendalough is a monastic site that was established by St. Kevin in the 6th century. To learn more about St. Kevin's Glendalough and the most popular sites with in this monastic site click HERE.
Left: St. Kevin's Kitchen
Beyond his Kitchen you can see a tiny gate which is where we entered the site. Jolanta was really upset that we didn't enter through the remains of the Gatehouse (the original entrance to Glendalough) I was disappointed as well. However, if we would've walked through the front we would've missed running into some Radford students that Alicia actually knew. Small world! If I ever come back to Glendalough I'm going to hike to the upper Lake to see St. Kevin's Cell.
Left:
I believe this picture was taken standing inside the Cathedral. (Correct me if
I'm wrong)
Left: Me standing below the Round Tower.
These towers were a good source of protection from invaders. They don't have an entrance so in order to get into them someone would have to throw you a rope ladder (Kind of Repunzel like). The tower was also good for targeting enemies for attack.
Below: A picture looking down into Glendalough on the way back from our hike to the Lower Lake.
Left: Keith pulling away in Dublin after our trip to Glendalough. Goodbyes were sad...We couldn't have asked for better tour guides!
Right: Trinity College. Home of the Book of Kells.
We weren't allowed to take pictures in the exhibit containing the Book of Kells. I did however pick up a book on the Book of Kells and some post cards of the Old Library.( I want to scan these items to add to my website but until I get my information together from our visit to the exhibit you can click HERE to learn more about it).
Journal Entry: May 27, 2003
Today we hopped on the Dublin City Tour double decker bus. It took us all over Dublin. We went to the James Joyce Centre, the Writes Museum, the Guinness Storehouse, the Garden of Remembrance, Belvedere College, up and down O'Connell Street and the National Library. I feel like I've seen everything...very busy day. The bus was a good idea because even if you didn't stop off at each stop you still got to hear the driver talk about it as well as see it (for example the zoo, and Dublin Castle). It was definitely worth the money and of course Jolanta got us on for a special rate. Some of the sites along O'Connell street were hard to see, there's a lot of construction going on.
Left: I found this humorous poster of James Joyce hanging in the James Joyce Center.
Not only are the displays really neat in the center the whole building itself is very well restored Georgian town house. The plaster work is truly incredible. I enjoyed listening to the recording of Joyce reading from Finnegans Wake in the Paul Leon Room. The furniture from this particular room are authentic from the Paris apartment of Paul Leon. You can picture James Joyce and Paul Leon discussing Joyce's' writing when you walk into the exhibit room.
Right: Me in front of Belvedere College.
This is where Joyce attended school between 1893 and 1898. His unhappy memories of learning here are captured by his work entitled A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (Ireland).
Above: Garden of Remembrance
We walked to the Garden Of Remembrance after eating lunch in the Writer's Museum. At the end of the Garden there is a sculpture of the Children of Lir who were changed into swans by their stepmother. The Garden is dedicated to the men and women who have died for Irish freedom. Click HERE to read the old Irish tale of the Children of Lir.
Left: This picture is dedicated to Jolanta because this is her favorite spot in Dublin. (Joyce and I would make a lovely couple...don't you think?) This statue of Joyce sits just off of the very busy O'Connell Street on Earl Street North.
Right: Me with the Ha' penny Bridge in the background. This bridge connects Liffey Street to the Temple Bar Area. Which is where we stayed. Temple Bar is the heart of Dublin's night life. The reason the bridge is called Ha' penny is because it had a half penny toll to cross it up until 1919 (Ireland).
Left: One of the sculptures that makes up the Potato Famine Monument. You can't really tell in this picture but the man is carrying the body of a child on his back. It's a really intense monument. The faces look so depressed and scared.
Right: Standing among what is left of the famine survivors. Even the dog is starving.
Left: Alison and I enjoying our very first pints of Guinness after taking the self guided tour through the storehouse. CHEERS!
The most important thing you learn on the tour is that Guinness is made with four main ingredients: barely, hops, yeast, and water. I enjoyed the view from the top of the storehouse and the extensive exhibit of advertisement collectables the best.
Left: This is the view of Dublin from the top of the Guinness Storehouse.
Journal Entry: May 28, 2003
Today is our last day in Ireland. I'm going to miss the soup! I ran out of time to see the things that I wanted to see in Dublin. I really wanted to go to St. Stephens Green and I never made it. I suppose it will give me one more reason to come back in the future. Now that I've been to Dublin I have to say that I liked the smaller cities that we visited better. Dublin is a lot like an American city. At times I forgot that we were in a whole other country just because of the similar environments. We even ate at TGI Fridays one night and just as you would see in a big American city a lot of the staff was foreign. It was really odd to be served "American" food, in Ireland, by Chinese people. I've enjoyed Ireland so much though that I'm afraid Italy has high expectations to uphold.