I'm not sure if this is a modern leprechaun or a scary fairy
St. Patrick's
Temple Bar: The world famous Bad Ass Cafe. I ate dinner there over 22 years ago.
Temple Bar: The Irish Garda
Temple Bar: Oliver St. John Gogarty’s
Musical Pub Crawl: Dermot, me & Eugene
The River Liffey looking towards the Ha' Penny Bridge
The River Liffey at night
Hill of Tara: Cris at the Lia Fail (Stone of Destiny).
Hill of Tara: Mound of the Hostages
Hill of Tara church
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Newgrange: Crossing over the River Boyne
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Newgrang Mound
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Newgrange "monument makers."
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Newgrange: My next husband and tour guide Sean.
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Newgrange stone circle.
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Newgrange mound wall up close
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Newgrange mound entrance and carved stone.
Dublin Bay prawn salad....yummy!
Kilmainham Gaol: Cell artwork
Kilmainham Gaol: Modern wing.
Kilmainham Gaol: Stone Breaker's Yard
Guinness' 9000 year lease, inlayed into the storehouse floor.
Enjoying Ireland's best in the Gravity Bar at the top of the Storehouse.
Dublin, Ireland May 07
After 22 years I finally had the opportunity to return to Dublin Ireland…and boy has it ever changed! First of all the economy was booming and the streets were full of shoppers. I guess that they don’t call Ireland the “Celtic Tiger” for nothing. There were tons of international restaurants including kebabs, Indian (dots not feathers), and even Malaysian. The biggest change was demographic. I don’t think that there was an Irishman left in Dublin…well except for the musicians. Well, that’s not even true because one of the “Irish” musicians that we met was actually an Englishman from Manchester who had developed a love of Irish music. A huge majority of the service workers were not from Ireland and at one pub we were even served by a bartender with a charming Irish accent and obvious Asian heritage. You can hear Russian or other Slavic languages (I heard that Ireland has a problem with illegals from Poland) being spoken almost everywhere throughout the city and there were also large groups of Asian immigrants and tourist. We also met many eastern European workers in the hotel and in various pubs. The last time I was in Ireland the only foreigners were the American tourist, two decades later Dublin is truly an international city. Now the running joke is that we need make a return trip and get outside of Dublin to see the “real” Ireland. Of course we have met many great Irishmen in all of the Irish pubs that we have visited during our worldwide travels…The Irish are literally everywhere.
We had to drive to Hann airport to board our Ryan Air flight (about a 3 hour drive from our house) but it was worth it as the total cost of both of our tickets was about $100. Can’t beat that! We flew out late Monday night and after a 90 minute flight we arrived in Dublin at 10pm. After landing we had to hike for around ten minutes through a maze of construction and temporary halls and waiting areas. At least the customs portion of our visit was quick and painless and we walked right out to the curb to meet the arriving bus service that took us to our downtown O’Connell Street hotel. We were about a half block from the post office that was the center of the 1916 Easter Uprising and just a few more blocks down was the fabulous Temple Bar district where we spent most of our time.
We went to bed and got up early to enjoy our Irish breakfast which was, of course, much superior to the English breakfast that we had when we stayed in London. An Irish breakfast is almost the same as and English breakfast except that you get “rashers” instead of sickly thin and greasy English bacon. Rashers are thick slices of bacon that are closer to a salty ham than American bacon, but not quite like Canadian bacon. We also had great Irish soda bread rolls and white toast. It’s amazing what you miss when you don’t have it around and we both really enjoyed our plebian white toast!
For our first morning we decided to walk around a bit and explore the area. Our friends Catherine and Alan were going to be arriving later that day so we didn’t want to take off for too long. We made our way past the post office, spotting the stature of Cuchulain, the mythical and “undefeatable” Irish warrior…well undefeated until he was mortally wounded. Can you see the irony in that? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuchulain Then we crossed over the River Liffey into the Temple Bar district. One thing that we both noticed immediately was that the sound of police and ambulance sirens differ from those used in continental Europe and in the U.K. The sirens we heard are the same sound as the ones used in the US. I wonder if all of the Irish cops that we have in the US have anything to do with that? After a short stroll we located the Hard Rock Café which has become a “must do” for us so that Mike can get his fill of Buffalo wings. I have been purchasing the more unique Hard Rock teddy bears that are designed for each country. The Irish Café has a teddy bear in a leprechaun costume, complete with a fake head. We also spotted the bar where we were going to start our “musical pub crawl” later that night.
After an unplanned random tour we circled back and went to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. There was an entrance fee of 5 Euros which we both found to be rather disgusting and since I had already been there twice and Mike had no real interest in visiting, we passed on the opportunity to give the Catholic Church our money. The sad thing is, if the entry had been free we would have both made a donation, so instead of getting some money from us, they got nothing. We then found our way to Dublin castle which looked more like a fancy Georgian/Victorian state apartments than a real castle. We rested a bit there but passed on the opportunity to take the tour. To be quite honest I can only look at so much overstated ugly old furniture ..and I have had my fill since living over here.
We were headed back to our hotel via the Ha’penny Bridge when I spotted the store I had been looking for. I have wanted a high quality Claddagh ring for awhile as the less expensive one that I brought from Sears with my Christmas money 18 years ago just wasn’t cutting it anymore. So into the store I went and I walked right up to the Claddagh rings taking about 30 seconds to find “The One.” The salesman didn’t even have time to say “may I help you?” before I knew which style of ring that I wanted. I pointed at the ring and said “I would like that ring in this size” and handed him my wedding ring. He took out a few cases from behind the counter and then sized my ring. He than began looking through the cases and handed me one ring, which was not “The One.” The second ring was and it turns out that all of the “Celtic” jewelry was fifty percent off, so I had my ring and a bargain too. We were out of the store in less than ten minutes. When we returned to the hotel we had a few drinks in the bar while waiting for our friends. After two hours, a Bulmer’s Irish cider then a Guinness, we left them a note and went to the Hard Rock for lunch. On the way back to our hotel we stopped at a huge bookstore and ended up meeting our friends there. I told them my ring story and Al said that I “shopped like a man.”
For those of you not enlightened enough to know what a Claddagh ring is, let me explain. The design of the ring is two hands holding a heart with a crown above the heart. The different images stand for friendship (hands), love (heart), and loyalty (crown). The ring can be solid silver or gold and it can be decorated with diamonds on the crown or a ruby for the heart and so on. My ring is gold, with gold hands and a gold crown. The crown is decorated with some small diamonds…VERY small..and the “heart” is a heart shaped “emerald.” No the emerald is not real, as I cannot afford real emeralds yet. The significance of the ring is in how it is worn. If you are single you wear the ring on your right hand with the crown towards your hand. If you are “attached” but not married you wear the ring with the crown facing outwards towards your fingers, closing the access to the heart with the crown to show that your heart is loyal and then when placed on your left hand it becomes your wedding ring (with the crown outwards of course.) I usually wear mine on my right hand simply because my wedding band is already on my left hand.
After another short rest we all headed back to the Temple Bar area for some shopping, beer, and munchies. As we were going on a pub crawl later we went to the pub next door from the starting point where we met our Asian-Irish barkeep. Nice guy, but I wasn’t expecting the accent when I first looked at him. When the time came near for our tour we moseyed next door to Oliver St. John Gogarty’s. Which is a real mouthful. It was even more difficult to find the meeting point for the tour as the place had no less than three entrances, a multitude of stairs, bar rooms, and floors, and it was already packed with customers. The best thing about Ireland is the no smoking laws. We were able to go from room to room looking for the correct location without gagging on thick clouds of smoke. Also, based on the number of people packed into the different pubs on a Tuesday night…the law absolutely was not hurting business.
We finally found the correct bar on the right floor and awaited our guides while enjoying a frosty pint of Ireland’s best contribution to man…. (Guinness….if you HAVE to ask). The tour was led by two musicians, Eugene from Dublin and Dermot from Manchester. Dermot cracked a few jokes about being a foreigner, but he knew his stuff. The guys took turns playing and explaining about the origins and instruments of Irish music. It was very interesting to discover the American influence on the music as the banjo originally came from the US, but is now heavily used in “traditional” songs. The Irish banjo had a few differences as it’s smaller and had only 4 strings verse the American 5 string. Also, Eugene informed us that it was impossible to play the “Deliverance” theme on an Irish banjo. Another interesting note is that many “Irish” songs that we know in the US are from Irish-American tradition and are not known in Ireland. “Danny Boy” happens to be one of the songs that originally came from the US and is often requested of Irish musicians. Of course many of them play it now simply because of the heavy requesting of it.
After about 40 minutes we moved over to the Ha’penny Bridge Pub for more brew, music, and information. At this time our little group of four established ourselves as comedians and we often piped in with commentary that earned appreciated chuckles from the people who were there to have fun. What was amazing was the number of people in our group of about 40 who simply were not having fun. I don’t really understand what was wrong with them. Why bother to do a pub crawl if you weren’t going to drink, listen and enjoy. After the “session” there we schlepped a few block to our last pub which was outside of Temple bar and on the other side of the Liffey and O’Connell Street. We ended up sitting next to a group of women who were taking their yearly “girls’ trip” and had fun cracking jokes, drinking, and loving the music. The musicians informed us of many Irish “session” traditions, which I will divulge now so that you will have the skill to “blend in” the next time you are in a pub.
A “session” is when a group of musicians get together to play informally, similar to a “jam.” They will usually take over a corner of the pub and sit facing each other so that they can hear one another and take non-verbal clues on the direction of the music. They DO NOT take request, so don’t ask. They are playing for each others and their own enjoyment, not yours. Do not ask for “Danny Boy” (read a few paragraphs above). After the pub is supposed to close and if a session is hot the barkeep might lock the door and pull the shades down. They can legally serve as long as they don’t take in new customers. You have to be pretty much “in” with the musicians, the barkeep, or have made one hell of a good impression to be invited to stay. We were advised that these traditional sessions are still very commonplace in the small village pubs outside of Dublin (remember, where the Irish people live?). Also, while it is highly encouraged to tap your feet to a jaunty reel or jig, don’t clap your hands. The reason is threefold, first, many of the songs blend together (that’s why the musicians face each other) and it’s very tiring to keep clapping through all of the songs. Second, you can’t drink your Guinness (or Bulmer’s Irish cider) when you’re clapping. Third, the musicians pick up and really feel good when the crowd is clapping and according to Eugene it is a real downer when you stop because it indicates that you think that the music has gone down in quality. It was also recommended that you stay away from any traditional dancing as once you start it is considered bad form to stop at the wrong time. So you can either die of a heart attack on the floor, insult the dancers by leaving in the middle of a tune, and you will get very thirsty (see reason two above).
At the end of the session we had a chance to purchase the “official” pub crawl cd and the cd that Eugene’s band, Lad Lane, produced. We walked back to Temple Bar with our new group of friends with the intention of finding another pub. After a quick stop into a convenience store we decided that we were much too tired and hungry to press on much further. Our new friends headed back to the hotel and the four of us trudged back up O’Connell Street in the rain seeking out a good meal. We spotted a Malaysian place that looked open and after a quick “why the heck not” made a bee-line for the restaurant. At first the owner didn’t want to let us in as it was almost midnight, but lucky for us he relented. I think that we looked hungry and able to pay. The food was served quickly and it was simply delicious! The flavors were a mix of Thai, Indonesian and Chinese. I had an amazing sweet and sour shrimp on basmati rice….YUM!! Then we were off to bed.
The next morning after another wonderful breakfast of eggs, rashers and toast we had to bid adieu to our friends (they were heading off on their own driving tour) and we boarded our tour bus to the Hill of Tara and Newgrange (traditionally known as Bru na Boinne). The tour started of well as it was on a large bus but we had less than 20 people. We also found out from our guide and company owner, Mary Gibbons, that her groups were one of the few tour companies that were still allowed into Newgrange due to environmental damage that I’ll write about later.
Our first stop was at one of the higher places of elevation in the Emerald Isle, the Hill of Tara. On a clear day you can view half of the counties in Ireland. Needless to say, that due to the atmospheric conditions I barely got to see the county that I was in. Tara’s importance actually comes from pre-historic times where at least 142 kings were said to have reigned from the hill and Irish mythology says that the hill is the entrance to the otherworld and a sacred dwelling place for the gods. In the early 20th century a group of nutty Israelites thought that the Lost Tribe had buried the Ark of the Covenant there. Take that Indiana Jones! It is currently believed that Tara was actually the lost capital of Atlantis. Lets face it kiddies, it’s old and well worn.
On the hill there are many important ancient monuments and even some more modern ones. Of course as you walk around you should be very concerned about all of the little modern “monuments” left behind by the hundreds of sheep that graze on the hill. The Stone of Destiny is the top of the area known as the King’s Seat and is perhaps the most famous, but it is still outshined by the much newer and touristy Blarney Stone. The “Lia Fail” is said to roar when touched by the rightful King of Ireland. So I tried touching it and didn’t hear much. Damn! Another monument there was the “Mound of the Hostages” which is a tomb from 2,500 B.C. is similar to Newgrange in design, but much, much smaller. Its’ passageway is aligned with dates in February and March when the sun shines directly into the center at sunrise. Finally we saw the ancient “Standing Stones” that will only give way for the rightful King of the Isle. For more information go to: http://www.mythicalireland.com/ancientsites/tara/ I took all of my detailed information about Tara from this site.
The drive to the “park” was very beautiful and we even got to see Slane Castle where the heirs lease out the land once each year for big concert events to pay their taxes and expenses. The big concert this year is the Rolling Stones. However I recommend the DVD of U2 playing at the castle grounds. We followed the road along the River Boyne “Boinne” which is in a very scenic valley and the location of the Battle of the Boyne which is a historic event in Irish history. You can read the Wikipedia site if you want to know more. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Boyne
As we got closer to Newgrange I began to get really excited. I was going to go into a place that people used over five thousand years ago! It can blow your mind when you start thinking about it. The bus pulled into the lot and we had to walk on a beautiful stone pathway that was covered with trellises and growing plants. The visitors’ center is on government land while Newgrange and its little sister “Knowth” are actually on private land. So, the only way to officially get there it through the visitors’ center and then by their coaches. The walk to the visitors’ center really helped to set the mood of our visit. It had stopped misting, but it was still overcast and the greens of Irish nature were almost blindingly bright. At the center we watched a short film and then ate a wonderful lunch of Irish stew (made with fresh Irishmen too I’ll bet) and fresh baked bread.
To begin our tour we had to walk a few minutes along another beautiful path and take a footbridge across the River Boyne. There were four busses, two heading to each of the mounds. We boarded our bus as the rain started up again. After a short drive through farmland and past cottages we arrived at the mound. Our guide, Sean, was worth the effort of making the trip! He was very knowledgeable about the mounds, their history, the recent history of how people have reacted to the mounds, and he was an Irish hottie to boot! We stood in the rain a bit while my next husband explained the history of Bru na Boinne and all of the surrounding mounds. Then it was our chance to go inside.
To understand why I was so jazzed, you must first understand what Bru na Boinne is. For starters it makes the pyramids in Egypt seem “new” as it was constructed around 3200 BC and while no one really knows the actual purpose of the “tomb”, it was built so that during the five days surrounding the Winter Solstice, right at sunrise, a single shaft of light shines through the tiny entrance and goes all the way down the nineteen meter long passageway and shines there for about seventeen minutes. Other than that shaft of light there is no natural light source for the center chamber. At the winter solstice there is a lottery so that 100 people get a chance to witness sunrise from inside the center chamber. I hope that we win a place for the 2007 Winter Solstice!
To enter the passage way you had to cross over a carved perimeter stone. To protect the stone from damage there was actually a small stairway that went over it. The passageway was tiny and I fit in it about shoulder to stone wall and I had to keep my head down at a few of the sections. It is not a place for claustrophobics. The walls were decorated with circular patterns and parallel line patters along with about 5 thousand years of carved graffiti. Once inside the center chamber it was easy to stand up as the roof was at least 20 feet up, however with 19 of my best friends and Sean it was packed in tits to elbow. Just imagine all of these people entering and exiting the tomb, bringing with them their humid breath which brings up the humidity in the center chamber and Tah Dah, you get mold growing on the ceiling. That is the “environmental damage” that I wrote about earlier. So now the number of visitors has been limited and there is even a push to reduce the allowed number of visitors.
After explaining about the three alcoves off of the central chamber, the lights were turned off and we got to watch a mock Solstice sunrise courtesy of a sun lamp. I had thought that the chamber would light up completely, the heavens would open, and angles would sing. It wasn’t quite like that. We could see the beam of light glowing from down the tunnel, like someone was walking in shinning a flashlight on the floor. Then at the peak, the shaft of light ended precisely in the center of the tomb. New Grange is thought to be a giant calendar with a lot of ancient religious significance. The light penetration the tunnel can symbolize many things one theory is that it represents man joining into woman to bring forth life as the Winder Solstice is followed by the life giving season of spring. Pretty cool huh? Go here for some more info: http://www.knowth.com/newgrange.htm
Sadly I had to leave Sean behind and return to Dublin. We decided to have dinner at Oliver St. John Gogarty’s, where our pub crawl had originated the night before. This place, while spendy, is just plain fun! We stared off with the Dublin Bay Prawn cocktail in Jameson Whiskey cocktail sauce…YUM! The appetizer came “decorated” with one head-on unpeeled prawn that looked like a miniature lobster. They were quite delightful to play with and tasty too! I had the orange-apple-honey duck, made from a recipe dating from 1820 and Mike had the fillet. The meal was topped off with a wonderful chocolate concoction and did you know that Guinness and chocolate are the perfect compliment to each other?
Our final day in Dublin was another historical one, but we were visiting sites from a more recent history. Our fist stop was Kilmainham Gaol which was once a very notorious prison and played a significant roll in Irish history for around 150 years. It was built in different sections over the so the architectural difference and designs between the wings reflects the philosophy of incarceration of that time period and was also referred to as the Irish Bastille. The first and perhaps most sinister section comes from the Victoria era. At this time it was believe that in order to reform inmates had to be isolated and silent in order to reflect on their crimes and to contemplate their relationship with God. The result was a prison where each inmate was practically in solitary confinement for their entire sentence. Prison reformers quickly learned that the isolation tended to create more mental issues than correcting moral issues. So another wing was built with small cells that surround a large naturally lit common dayroom. This section was actually used to film some of the prison scenes in the movie “In the Name of the Father.”
One of the biggest problems with the jail is that it almost always had more prisoners than cells, so most people had to double and triple up. During the height of the potato famine, when the jail population was at it’s highest, people were sleeping on straw in the hallways of the different wings. Poor and desperate Irish were committing crimes to get into jail because at least that way they would be fed. This became such an issue that rations in the prison were actually cut in order to deter crime. The grand design of Victorian thought had become nothing more than a holding tank for the hungry and homeless. The youngest prisoner was only seven and many occupants were sent to penal colonies in Australia. Those transportation boats often sat in the harbour for months already loaded with their “cargo” before setting sail. This obviously resulted in many horrific deaths and just added to the notoriety of the prison. Many executions were also help over the years.
More recently, members of the 1916 Easter Uprising were imprisoned in the Victorian section until most of them were executed on the grounds in an area know as the Stone Breaker’s Yard. This older section was chosen because there were no prison windows that faced the area. One interesting fact is that the last prisoner from 1924 went on to become one of the presidents of the Irish Republic. He was American born but had lived in Ireland since the age of two. It is believed that he was not executed with the other members of the uprising because of his heritage and that the government was concerned about how the US would react. So if you’re going to get involved in a revolution, hang on to those American passports!
Kilmainham Gaol is a must see for anyone interested in Irish history. In fact, I would say just go see it if you are interested in the human condition. The three story museum is filled with tremendous amounts of artifacts from the prisons history and there is a whole section dedicated to the Easter Uprising. There is also a great section explaining the history of incarceration and the different philosophies behind imprisonment. It was a relief to leave the goal’s stone walls behind me and walk back out into the sun.
Our next visit was much more uplifting and probably just as spiritual. We were going to the world famous St James Gate Brewery to check out the Guinness Storehouse. This is another “must-do” while in Dublin and I will go there again if I can. I’m going to skip writing about the history of Guinness, but the storehouse really explains and shows the history and development of “the black stuff” very well. However it is important to remember that you MUST pour a Guinness correctly and since it’s loaded with antioxidants, it’s really a health drink.
Our visit started off perfectly by receiving a discount from the young lad running the register. It was a little past 11 when we walked up and I commented that it was OK to drink because it was “past noon at home.” The employee kind of looked at me funny and I explained that we lived in Germany which was of course a time zone ahead of Ireland. This lead to a discussion of where did we live in Germany and why were we there. I usually get a little nervous discussing our military ties with other non-military Europeans. But this guy was awesome; he thanked Mike for his service, spoke highly of the military in general and gave us his “special military discount.” It actually rang up under a “student discount” but hey, I’m not complaining. What a great cheerful start to our tour.
The architectural design of the Storehouse is really amazing. The main part of the building is a cylinder that goes up over seven generously tall floors and is enclose in glass. The shape represents a Guinness pint glass. As you move up through the different floors you learn about the history of Guinness, what makes it so special and superior, and you are treated too some amazing displays of Guinness memorabilia. Once you reach the top, you receive a complementary Guinness and get to sit and enjoy it while being treated to fantastic panoramic view of Dublin. Unlike our first two days, the sun was shining and I didn’t want to leave. In order to keep the crowds moving you cannot order additional drinks at the bar, but must go down two floors to the brewery bar where we dined on beef and Guinness stew while consuming a few more Guinness’s.
The only real disappointment of the place was reading the menu and seeing that the bar also serves Budweiser and Smirnoff Ice. Yes, I’m a beer snob and if people want to drink crappy beer or a malt beverage they shouldn’t be at the Guinness brewery. There were some other Irish options such as Harp’s and Kilkenny which did have my “approval.” (GRIN). Actually, Guinness is owned by Diageo, which is a HUGE global beverage corporation that also owns Heineken, Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker, Baileys, J&B, Captain Morgan, José Cuervo, Tanqueray, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines, and Bushmills Irish whiskey just to name a few. (http://www.diageo.com/en-row/AboutDiageo/Diageoataglance/) In Ireland, St James Gate (Guinness) owns the brewing rights to Budweiser so tragically in many of the pubs you will now see Bud taps along side the Irish greats.
Sadly, our visit was coming to an end…but wait, I have one last tale to tell. Our day’s transportation was courtesy of the Dublin bus system. The busses are a mixture of the more modern big windowed variety to the double-decker monstrosities. The frequent braking would throw you forward a foot and the starts would put you back in your original spot. The turning method of the drivers made sitting in your seatmates lap a viable option at times. I was impressed by the number of elderly people who were out and about and I was even more impressed by their abilities to stay in their seats while I was struggling to stay in one general location.
On our trip to the gaol Mike and I had to stand near the staircase so we could make our exit when needed. The bus kept filling up with passengers and it was quite crowded. After a stop I had to step back to let someone up the stairs and I heard a lovely Irish woman say “sit here luv.” This lady must have been just a knock-out in her prime. She was petit, as many elderly Irish are. I think it has to do with the lack of good nutrition during their youth as I have noticed this with Germans who were children during the war. She was wearing a dark blue quilted coat and a pink kerchief (bandana) over her hair and had it tied under her chin. The hair that peaked out was generously threaded with grey, but it must have been raven black years ago and she has the kindest, biggest most stunning blue eyes that I have ever seen. She really reminded me of an older blue eyed Sinead O’Connor (Who I think is just stunning once you get past the hair….well, lack of hair). Let me tell you, this lady was still beautiful.
On our bus trip to the Storehouse I was treated to what I can only describe as “old world charm.” Every time we passed a church many of the people would cross themselves, which is not something that I had really been exposed to before. I found the tradition to be quite charming and it really made me feel reminiscent and very reflective about the overpowering history of the Catholic Church in Ireland. The Faith is still very strong even as Dublin grows to become one of the most prosperous cities in Europe.
My last experience was on our ride back to O’Connell Street and our hotel. I had sat next to an elderly man who had what I can only describe as a weepy glaucoma eye. I was honestly trying to not make eye contact with him because it was freaking me out a bit. A few seats up from us was a teeny, tiny elderly Irish woman who sat sideways in her seat with her feet dangling. She was wearing a dark wool coat and a burgundy knit cap. Next to here was her shopping bag on wheels and it was obviously that she had gone to market that day. She was just precious! Then the man next to me introduced himself. In just a few short minutes I found out that Paddy was from County Cork and has a brother that moved to Maine in his twenties. My God the Irish are a friendly lot! I almost felt like hugging him good-bye when we had arrived at our stop.
So our adventure was winding down or so we thought. We took another stroll through down town Dublin even checking out what they considered to be a shopping mall. Then we had to grab our bags and plunged headfirst into the chaos of Dublin International Airport. We faced the same 10 minute hike out to our “holding area” and waited. The flight back to Germany wasn’t bad and the wait for our luggage wasn’t bad, but our drive out of the airport was filled with unplanned random tours. Because we were arriving so late in the evening our intention was to drive to the USAF base Spangdahlem and overnight there since it’s only about 45 minutes from the airport. Unfortunately for us, part of that drive was over the Eiffel Mountains, on country back roads after dark and in a thick fog. As one point we had to descend down the other side making a series of hairpin turns. The Autobahn section of the road was under repair and our exit was closed. So we followed the detour signs for miles and since street light are not very common, even on autobahns, we must have missed a sign in the darkness and fog. We did get to drive through a really picturesque German village before finding the correct exit and then heading in the opposite direction of where we wanted to be. When driving on the autobahn, discovering your error too late is a bad thing as exits are few and far between. We did prevail and found an exit to turn around at to make our way to the base in almost the same time as it would have taken to just drive home. What can I say? After such a memorable trip, it was all worth it!
We had to drive to Hann airport to board our Ryan Air flight (about a 3 hour drive from our house) but it was worth it as the total cost of both of our tickets was about $100. Can’t beat that! We flew out late Monday night and after a 90 minute flight we arrived in Dublin at 10pm. After landing we had to hike for around ten minutes through a maze of construction and temporary halls and waiting areas. At least the customs portion of our visit was quick and painless and we walked right out to the curb to meet the arriving bus service that took us to our downtown O’Connell Street hotel. We were about a half block from the post office that was the center of the 1916 Easter Uprising and just a few more blocks down was the fabulous Temple Bar district where we spent most of our time.
We went to bed and got up early to enjoy our Irish breakfast which was, of course, much superior to the English breakfast that we had when we stayed in London. An Irish breakfast is almost the same as and English breakfast except that you get “rashers” instead of sickly thin and greasy English bacon. Rashers are thick slices of bacon that are closer to a salty ham than American bacon, but not quite like Canadian bacon. We also had great Irish soda bread rolls and white toast. It’s amazing what you miss when you don’t have it around and we both really enjoyed our plebian white toast!
For our first morning we decided to walk around a bit and explore the area. Our friends Catherine and Alan were going to be arriving later that day so we didn’t want to take off for too long. We made our way past the post office, spotting the stature of Cuchulain, the mythical and “undefeatable” Irish warrior…well undefeated until he was mortally wounded. Can you see the irony in that? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuchulain Then we crossed over the River Liffey into the Temple Bar district. One thing that we both noticed immediately was that the sound of police and ambulance sirens differ from those used in continental Europe and in the U.K. The sirens we heard are the same sound as the ones used in the US. I wonder if all of the Irish cops that we have in the US have anything to do with that? After a short stroll we located the Hard Rock Café which has become a “must do” for us so that Mike can get his fill of Buffalo wings. I have been purchasing the more unique Hard Rock teddy bears that are designed for each country. The Irish Café has a teddy bear in a leprechaun costume, complete with a fake head. We also spotted the bar where we were going to start our “musical pub crawl” later that night.
After an unplanned random tour we circled back and went to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. There was an entrance fee of 5 Euros which we both found to be rather disgusting and since I had already been there twice and Mike had no real interest in visiting, we passed on the opportunity to give the Catholic Church our money. The sad thing is, if the entry had been free we would have both made a donation, so instead of getting some money from us, they got nothing. We then found our way to Dublin castle which looked more like a fancy Georgian/Victorian state apartments than a real castle. We rested a bit there but passed on the opportunity to take the tour. To be quite honest I can only look at so much overstated ugly old furniture ..and I have had my fill since living over here.
We were headed back to our hotel via the Ha’penny Bridge when I spotted the store I had been looking for. I have wanted a high quality Claddagh ring for awhile as the less expensive one that I brought from Sears with my Christmas money 18 years ago just wasn’t cutting it anymore. So into the store I went and I walked right up to the Claddagh rings taking about 30 seconds to find “The One.” The salesman didn’t even have time to say “may I help you?” before I knew which style of ring that I wanted. I pointed at the ring and said “I would like that ring in this size” and handed him my wedding ring. He took out a few cases from behind the counter and then sized my ring. He than began looking through the cases and handed me one ring, which was not “The One.” The second ring was and it turns out that all of the “Celtic” jewelry was fifty percent off, so I had my ring and a bargain too. We were out of the store in less than ten minutes. When we returned to the hotel we had a few drinks in the bar while waiting for our friends. After two hours, a Bulmer’s Irish cider then a Guinness, we left them a note and went to the Hard Rock for lunch. On the way back to our hotel we stopped at a huge bookstore and ended up meeting our friends there. I told them my ring story and Al said that I “shopped like a man.”
For those of you not enlightened enough to know what a Claddagh ring is, let me explain. The design of the ring is two hands holding a heart with a crown above the heart. The different images stand for friendship (hands), love (heart), and loyalty (crown). The ring can be solid silver or gold and it can be decorated with diamonds on the crown or a ruby for the heart and so on. My ring is gold, with gold hands and a gold crown. The crown is decorated with some small diamonds…VERY small..and the “heart” is a heart shaped “emerald.” No the emerald is not real, as I cannot afford real emeralds yet. The significance of the ring is in how it is worn. If you are single you wear the ring on your right hand with the crown towards your hand. If you are “attached” but not married you wear the ring with the crown facing outwards towards your fingers, closing the access to the heart with the crown to show that your heart is loyal and then when placed on your left hand it becomes your wedding ring (with the crown outwards of course.) I usually wear mine on my right hand simply because my wedding band is already on my left hand.
After another short rest we all headed back to the Temple Bar area for some shopping, beer, and munchies. As we were going on a pub crawl later we went to the pub next door from the starting point where we met our Asian-Irish barkeep. Nice guy, but I wasn’t expecting the accent when I first looked at him. When the time came near for our tour we moseyed next door to Oliver St. John Gogarty’s. Which is a real mouthful. It was even more difficult to find the meeting point for the tour as the place had no less than three entrances, a multitude of stairs, bar rooms, and floors, and it was already packed with customers. The best thing about Ireland is the no smoking laws. We were able to go from room to room looking for the correct location without gagging on thick clouds of smoke. Also, based on the number of people packed into the different pubs on a Tuesday night…the law absolutely was not hurting business.
We finally found the correct bar on the right floor and awaited our guides while enjoying a frosty pint of Ireland’s best contribution to man…. (Guinness….if you HAVE to ask). The tour was led by two musicians, Eugene from Dublin and Dermot from Manchester. Dermot cracked a few jokes about being a foreigner, but he knew his stuff. The guys took turns playing and explaining about the origins and instruments of Irish music. It was very interesting to discover the American influence on the music as the banjo originally came from the US, but is now heavily used in “traditional” songs. The Irish banjo had a few differences as it’s smaller and had only 4 strings verse the American 5 string. Also, Eugene informed us that it was impossible to play the “Deliverance” theme on an Irish banjo. Another interesting note is that many “Irish” songs that we know in the US are from Irish-American tradition and are not known in Ireland. “Danny Boy” happens to be one of the songs that originally came from the US and is often requested of Irish musicians. Of course many of them play it now simply because of the heavy requesting of it.
After about 40 minutes we moved over to the Ha’penny Bridge Pub for more brew, music, and information. At this time our little group of four established ourselves as comedians and we often piped in with commentary that earned appreciated chuckles from the people who were there to have fun. What was amazing was the number of people in our group of about 40 who simply were not having fun. I don’t really understand what was wrong with them. Why bother to do a pub crawl if you weren’t going to drink, listen and enjoy. After the “session” there we schlepped a few block to our last pub which was outside of Temple bar and on the other side of the Liffey and O’Connell Street. We ended up sitting next to a group of women who were taking their yearly “girls’ trip” and had fun cracking jokes, drinking, and loving the music. The musicians informed us of many Irish “session” traditions, which I will divulge now so that you will have the skill to “blend in” the next time you are in a pub.
A “session” is when a group of musicians get together to play informally, similar to a “jam.” They will usually take over a corner of the pub and sit facing each other so that they can hear one another and take non-verbal clues on the direction of the music. They DO NOT take request, so don’t ask. They are playing for each others and their own enjoyment, not yours. Do not ask for “Danny Boy” (read a few paragraphs above). After the pub is supposed to close and if a session is hot the barkeep might lock the door and pull the shades down. They can legally serve as long as they don’t take in new customers. You have to be pretty much “in” with the musicians, the barkeep, or have made one hell of a good impression to be invited to stay. We were advised that these traditional sessions are still very commonplace in the small village pubs outside of Dublin (remember, where the Irish people live?). Also, while it is highly encouraged to tap your feet to a jaunty reel or jig, don’t clap your hands. The reason is threefold, first, many of the songs blend together (that’s why the musicians face each other) and it’s very tiring to keep clapping through all of the songs. Second, you can’t drink your Guinness (or Bulmer’s Irish cider) when you’re clapping. Third, the musicians pick up and really feel good when the crowd is clapping and according to Eugene it is a real downer when you stop because it indicates that you think that the music has gone down in quality. It was also recommended that you stay away from any traditional dancing as once you start it is considered bad form to stop at the wrong time. So you can either die of a heart attack on the floor, insult the dancers by leaving in the middle of a tune, and you will get very thirsty (see reason two above).
At the end of the session we had a chance to purchase the “official” pub crawl cd and the cd that Eugene’s band, Lad Lane, produced. We walked back to Temple Bar with our new group of friends with the intention of finding another pub. After a quick stop into a convenience store we decided that we were much too tired and hungry to press on much further. Our new friends headed back to the hotel and the four of us trudged back up O’Connell Street in the rain seeking out a good meal. We spotted a Malaysian place that looked open and after a quick “why the heck not” made a bee-line for the restaurant. At first the owner didn’t want to let us in as it was almost midnight, but lucky for us he relented. I think that we looked hungry and able to pay. The food was served quickly and it was simply delicious! The flavors were a mix of Thai, Indonesian and Chinese. I had an amazing sweet and sour shrimp on basmati rice….YUM!! Then we were off to bed.
The next morning after another wonderful breakfast of eggs, rashers and toast we had to bid adieu to our friends (they were heading off on their own driving tour) and we boarded our tour bus to the Hill of Tara and Newgrange (traditionally known as Bru na Boinne). The tour started of well as it was on a large bus but we had less than 20 people. We also found out from our guide and company owner, Mary Gibbons, that her groups were one of the few tour companies that were still allowed into Newgrange due to environmental damage that I’ll write about later.
Our first stop was at one of the higher places of elevation in the Emerald Isle, the Hill of Tara. On a clear day you can view half of the counties in Ireland. Needless to say, that due to the atmospheric conditions I barely got to see the county that I was in. Tara’s importance actually comes from pre-historic times where at least 142 kings were said to have reigned from the hill and Irish mythology says that the hill is the entrance to the otherworld and a sacred dwelling place for the gods. In the early 20th century a group of nutty Israelites thought that the Lost Tribe had buried the Ark of the Covenant there. Take that Indiana Jones! It is currently believed that Tara was actually the lost capital of Atlantis. Lets face it kiddies, it’s old and well worn.
On the hill there are many important ancient monuments and even some more modern ones. Of course as you walk around you should be very concerned about all of the little modern “monuments” left behind by the hundreds of sheep that graze on the hill. The Stone of Destiny is the top of the area known as the King’s Seat and is perhaps the most famous, but it is still outshined by the much newer and touristy Blarney Stone. The “Lia Fail” is said to roar when touched by the rightful King of Ireland. So I tried touching it and didn’t hear much. Damn! Another monument there was the “Mound of the Hostages” which is a tomb from 2,500 B.C. is similar to Newgrange in design, but much, much smaller. Its’ passageway is aligned with dates in February and March when the sun shines directly into the center at sunrise. Finally we saw the ancient “Standing Stones” that will only give way for the rightful King of the Isle. For more information go to: http://www.mythicalireland.com/ancientsites/tara/ I took all of my detailed information about Tara from this site.
The drive to the “park” was very beautiful and we even got to see Slane Castle where the heirs lease out the land once each year for big concert events to pay their taxes and expenses. The big concert this year is the Rolling Stones. However I recommend the DVD of U2 playing at the castle grounds. We followed the road along the River Boyne “Boinne” which is in a very scenic valley and the location of the Battle of the Boyne which is a historic event in Irish history. You can read the Wikipedia site if you want to know more. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Boyne
As we got closer to Newgrange I began to get really excited. I was going to go into a place that people used over five thousand years ago! It can blow your mind when you start thinking about it. The bus pulled into the lot and we had to walk on a beautiful stone pathway that was covered with trellises and growing plants. The visitors’ center is on government land while Newgrange and its little sister “Knowth” are actually on private land. So, the only way to officially get there it through the visitors’ center and then by their coaches. The walk to the visitors’ center really helped to set the mood of our visit. It had stopped misting, but it was still overcast and the greens of Irish nature were almost blindingly bright. At the center we watched a short film and then ate a wonderful lunch of Irish stew (made with fresh Irishmen too I’ll bet) and fresh baked bread.
To begin our tour we had to walk a few minutes along another beautiful path and take a footbridge across the River Boyne. There were four busses, two heading to each of the mounds. We boarded our bus as the rain started up again. After a short drive through farmland and past cottages we arrived at the mound. Our guide, Sean, was worth the effort of making the trip! He was very knowledgeable about the mounds, their history, the recent history of how people have reacted to the mounds, and he was an Irish hottie to boot! We stood in the rain a bit while my next husband explained the history of Bru na Boinne and all of the surrounding mounds. Then it was our chance to go inside.
To understand why I was so jazzed, you must first understand what Bru na Boinne is. For starters it makes the pyramids in Egypt seem “new” as it was constructed around 3200 BC and while no one really knows the actual purpose of the “tomb”, it was built so that during the five days surrounding the Winter Solstice, right at sunrise, a single shaft of light shines through the tiny entrance and goes all the way down the nineteen meter long passageway and shines there for about seventeen minutes. Other than that shaft of light there is no natural light source for the center chamber. At the winter solstice there is a lottery so that 100 people get a chance to witness sunrise from inside the center chamber. I hope that we win a place for the 2007 Winter Solstice!
To enter the passage way you had to cross over a carved perimeter stone. To protect the stone from damage there was actually a small stairway that went over it. The passageway was tiny and I fit in it about shoulder to stone wall and I had to keep my head down at a few of the sections. It is not a place for claustrophobics. The walls were decorated with circular patterns and parallel line patters along with about 5 thousand years of carved graffiti. Once inside the center chamber it was easy to stand up as the roof was at least 20 feet up, however with 19 of my best friends and Sean it was packed in tits to elbow. Just imagine all of these people entering and exiting the tomb, bringing with them their humid breath which brings up the humidity in the center chamber and Tah Dah, you get mold growing on the ceiling. That is the “environmental damage” that I wrote about earlier. So now the number of visitors has been limited and there is even a push to reduce the allowed number of visitors.
After explaining about the three alcoves off of the central chamber, the lights were turned off and we got to watch a mock Solstice sunrise courtesy of a sun lamp. I had thought that the chamber would light up completely, the heavens would open, and angles would sing. It wasn’t quite like that. We could see the beam of light glowing from down the tunnel, like someone was walking in shinning a flashlight on the floor. Then at the peak, the shaft of light ended precisely in the center of the tomb. New Grange is thought to be a giant calendar with a lot of ancient religious significance. The light penetration the tunnel can symbolize many things one theory is that it represents man joining into woman to bring forth life as the Winder Solstice is followed by the life giving season of spring. Pretty cool huh? Go here for some more info: http://www.knowth.com/newgrange.htm
Sadly I had to leave Sean behind and return to Dublin. We decided to have dinner at Oliver St. John Gogarty’s, where our pub crawl had originated the night before. This place, while spendy, is just plain fun! We stared off with the Dublin Bay Prawn cocktail in Jameson Whiskey cocktail sauce…YUM! The appetizer came “decorated” with one head-on unpeeled prawn that looked like a miniature lobster. They were quite delightful to play with and tasty too! I had the orange-apple-honey duck, made from a recipe dating from 1820 and Mike had the fillet. The meal was topped off with a wonderful chocolate concoction and did you know that Guinness and chocolate are the perfect compliment to each other?
Our final day in Dublin was another historical one, but we were visiting sites from a more recent history. Our fist stop was Kilmainham Gaol which was once a very notorious prison and played a significant roll in Irish history for around 150 years. It was built in different sections over the so the architectural difference and designs between the wings reflects the philosophy of incarceration of that time period and was also referred to as the Irish Bastille. The first and perhaps most sinister section comes from the Victoria era. At this time it was believe that in order to reform inmates had to be isolated and silent in order to reflect on their crimes and to contemplate their relationship with God. The result was a prison where each inmate was practically in solitary confinement for their entire sentence. Prison reformers quickly learned that the isolation tended to create more mental issues than correcting moral issues. So another wing was built with small cells that surround a large naturally lit common dayroom. This section was actually used to film some of the prison scenes in the movie “In the Name of the Father.”
One of the biggest problems with the jail is that it almost always had more prisoners than cells, so most people had to double and triple up. During the height of the potato famine, when the jail population was at it’s highest, people were sleeping on straw in the hallways of the different wings. Poor and desperate Irish were committing crimes to get into jail because at least that way they would be fed. This became such an issue that rations in the prison were actually cut in order to deter crime. The grand design of Victorian thought had become nothing more than a holding tank for the hungry and homeless. The youngest prisoner was only seven and many occupants were sent to penal colonies in Australia. Those transportation boats often sat in the harbour for months already loaded with their “cargo” before setting sail. This obviously resulted in many horrific deaths and just added to the notoriety of the prison. Many executions were also help over the years.
More recently, members of the 1916 Easter Uprising were imprisoned in the Victorian section until most of them were executed on the grounds in an area know as the Stone Breaker’s Yard. This older section was chosen because there were no prison windows that faced the area. One interesting fact is that the last prisoner from 1924 went on to become one of the presidents of the Irish Republic. He was American born but had lived in Ireland since the age of two. It is believed that he was not executed with the other members of the uprising because of his heritage and that the government was concerned about how the US would react. So if you’re going to get involved in a revolution, hang on to those American passports!
Kilmainham Gaol is a must see for anyone interested in Irish history. In fact, I would say just go see it if you are interested in the human condition. The three story museum is filled with tremendous amounts of artifacts from the prisons history and there is a whole section dedicated to the Easter Uprising. There is also a great section explaining the history of incarceration and the different philosophies behind imprisonment. It was a relief to leave the goal’s stone walls behind me and walk back out into the sun.
Our next visit was much more uplifting and probably just as spiritual. We were going to the world famous St James Gate Brewery to check out the Guinness Storehouse. This is another “must-do” while in Dublin and I will go there again if I can. I’m going to skip writing about the history of Guinness, but the storehouse really explains and shows the history and development of “the black stuff” very well. However it is important to remember that you MUST pour a Guinness correctly and since it’s loaded with antioxidants, it’s really a health drink.
Our visit started off perfectly by receiving a discount from the young lad running the register. It was a little past 11 when we walked up and I commented that it was OK to drink because it was “past noon at home.” The employee kind of looked at me funny and I explained that we lived in Germany which was of course a time zone ahead of Ireland. This lead to a discussion of where did we live in Germany and why were we there. I usually get a little nervous discussing our military ties with other non-military Europeans. But this guy was awesome; he thanked Mike for his service, spoke highly of the military in general and gave us his “special military discount.” It actually rang up under a “student discount” but hey, I’m not complaining. What a great cheerful start to our tour.
The architectural design of the Storehouse is really amazing. The main part of the building is a cylinder that goes up over seven generously tall floors and is enclose in glass. The shape represents a Guinness pint glass. As you move up through the different floors you learn about the history of Guinness, what makes it so special and superior, and you are treated too some amazing displays of Guinness memorabilia. Once you reach the top, you receive a complementary Guinness and get to sit and enjoy it while being treated to fantastic panoramic view of Dublin. Unlike our first two days, the sun was shining and I didn’t want to leave. In order to keep the crowds moving you cannot order additional drinks at the bar, but must go down two floors to the brewery bar where we dined on beef and Guinness stew while consuming a few more Guinness’s.
The only real disappointment of the place was reading the menu and seeing that the bar also serves Budweiser and Smirnoff Ice. Yes, I’m a beer snob and if people want to drink crappy beer or a malt beverage they shouldn’t be at the Guinness brewery. There were some other Irish options such as Harp’s and Kilkenny which did have my “approval.” (GRIN). Actually, Guinness is owned by Diageo, which is a HUGE global beverage corporation that also owns Heineken, Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker, Baileys, J&B, Captain Morgan, José Cuervo, Tanqueray, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines, and Bushmills Irish whiskey just to name a few. (http://www.diageo.com/en-row/AboutDiageo/Diageoataglance/) In Ireland, St James Gate (Guinness) owns the brewing rights to Budweiser so tragically in many of the pubs you will now see Bud taps along side the Irish greats.
Sadly, our visit was coming to an end…but wait, I have one last tale to tell. Our day’s transportation was courtesy of the Dublin bus system. The busses are a mixture of the more modern big windowed variety to the double-decker monstrosities. The frequent braking would throw you forward a foot and the starts would put you back in your original spot. The turning method of the drivers made sitting in your seatmates lap a viable option at times. I was impressed by the number of elderly people who were out and about and I was even more impressed by their abilities to stay in their seats while I was struggling to stay in one general location.
On our trip to the gaol Mike and I had to stand near the staircase so we could make our exit when needed. The bus kept filling up with passengers and it was quite crowded. After a stop I had to step back to let someone up the stairs and I heard a lovely Irish woman say “sit here luv.” This lady must have been just a knock-out in her prime. She was petit, as many elderly Irish are. I think it has to do with the lack of good nutrition during their youth as I have noticed this with Germans who were children during the war. She was wearing a dark blue quilted coat and a pink kerchief (bandana) over her hair and had it tied under her chin. The hair that peaked out was generously threaded with grey, but it must have been raven black years ago and she has the kindest, biggest most stunning blue eyes that I have ever seen. She really reminded me of an older blue eyed Sinead O’Connor (Who I think is just stunning once you get past the hair….well, lack of hair). Let me tell you, this lady was still beautiful.
On our bus trip to the Storehouse I was treated to what I can only describe as “old world charm.” Every time we passed a church many of the people would cross themselves, which is not something that I had really been exposed to before. I found the tradition to be quite charming and it really made me feel reminiscent and very reflective about the overpowering history of the Catholic Church in Ireland. The Faith is still very strong even as Dublin grows to become one of the most prosperous cities in Europe.
My last experience was on our ride back to O’Connell Street and our hotel. I had sat next to an elderly man who had what I can only describe as a weepy glaucoma eye. I was honestly trying to not make eye contact with him because it was freaking me out a bit. A few seats up from us was a teeny, tiny elderly Irish woman who sat sideways in her seat with her feet dangling. She was wearing a dark wool coat and a burgundy knit cap. Next to here was her shopping bag on wheels and it was obviously that she had gone to market that day. She was just precious! Then the man next to me introduced himself. In just a few short minutes I found out that Paddy was from County Cork and has a brother that moved to Maine in his twenties. My God the Irish are a friendly lot! I almost felt like hugging him good-bye when we had arrived at our stop.
So our adventure was winding down or so we thought. We took another stroll through down town Dublin even checking out what they considered to be a shopping mall. Then we had to grab our bags and plunged headfirst into the chaos of Dublin International Airport. We faced the same 10 minute hike out to our “holding area” and waited. The flight back to Germany wasn’t bad and the wait for our luggage wasn’t bad, but our drive out of the airport was filled with unplanned random tours. Because we were arriving so late in the evening our intention was to drive to the USAF base Spangdahlem and overnight there since it’s only about 45 minutes from the airport. Unfortunately for us, part of that drive was over the Eiffel Mountains, on country back roads after dark and in a thick fog. As one point we had to descend down the other side making a series of hairpin turns. The Autobahn section of the road was under repair and our exit was closed. So we followed the detour signs for miles and since street light are not very common, even on autobahns, we must have missed a sign in the darkness and fog. We did get to drive through a really picturesque German village before finding the correct exit and then heading in the opposite direction of where we wanted to be. When driving on the autobahn, discovering your error too late is a bad thing as exits are few and far between. We did prevail and found an exit to turn around at to make our way to the base in almost the same time as it would have taken to just drive home. What can I say? After such a memorable trip, it was all worth it!
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