We arrived in Dublin, capital of Ireland on a bright sunny day.
Even the mail boxes are green in the Emerald Isle...
A stately, Georgian, city with attractive doorways..
To my delight, our hotel was in the vicinity of Merrion Square, and the childhood home of that wonderfully amusing Irish playwright, poet and author Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
His memorial statue, suitably irreverent..
surrounded by some of his amusing epigrams.
That night we dined at Oscar's, and amused ourselves reading more of them:
High on our list was a visit to Trinity College Library, and the Book of Kells:
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| Google Image |
It is thought to have been produced in the early 9th century by monks on the island of Iona, off the coast of Scotland, who later moved to County Meath in Ireland when Iona was attacked in a Viking raid.
The main chamber of the Old Library of Trinity College, built between 1712 and 1732, is the Long Room:
Here are shelved around 200,000 of the Library's oldest books.
It is spectacular...
Experts work constantly on conservation of the ancient texts..
Marble busts of famous writers line each side of the room, and in the centre is the oldest surviving Irish harp, probably from the 15th century:
It is made from oak and willow with brass strings, and is truly beautiful.
The harp is a National Symbol and is used on the Irish coinage.
The gallery shop is excellent, and in the spirit of excitement, I purchased not one, but two silk scarves. Celtic designs in various shades of my favourite colour pink entranced me, and not until I returned to Australia and removed the packaging, did I notice that they are all snakes!!! Look at all those nasty little faces.
Just in time for Snaking Season here in the tropics, hmmmm
Undeterred, I will wear my pink scarf when the occasion calls for a touch of pinkness...
Scarf No 2 features shamrocks, that humble little weed made famous by St. Patrick as an example of the Holy Trinity.
We made our way to St. Stephen's Green, a beautiful park in the city.
One hundred years ago, the 1916 Easter Rising began in this park, leading eventually to the establishment of the independent Irish Republic.
This summer house was used as a field kitchen for over 100 people who made up the garrison during the uprising, as well as overnight shelter on one night.
It is hard to imagine this peaceful and beautiful park being a location for gunfire and danger - but it was.
At an entrance to the park is a reminder of another tragic event in Ireland's past, the Great Famine of 1845-1852. Approximately one million people died and another million emigrated from Ireland as a result of the failure of the potato crops due to a disease known as potato blight.
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| William Leech, Dublin 1881-1968, 'The Sunshade' c. 1913 |
I enjoyed a visit to the nearby National Gallery of Ireland, and this beautiful, post-impressionist style painting by Irish artist William Leech. Lovely tones of green, just right for the Emerald Isle...
Till we meet again....
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It looks like you had a wonderful time exploring Dublin, Patricia. It's such a great city, and such a wonderful country. I think the scarf with the snakes is perfect. The story about the snakes in Ireland being driven out by St. Patrick seems like a good one to claim Down Under. :-)
ReplyDeleteHa, yes, we can say our snakes all were driven Down Under, hence we have so many!
DeleteIt really was a beautiful country, and we only saw a small portion of Ireland.
Dear Patricia - so pleased that you enjoyed Dublin, it is a lovely vibrant city. Isn't the Old Library of Trinity College wonderful? I must admit that did not notice that the post boxes are green when I visited.
ReplyDeleteThe serpent in celtic art represents creation, rebirth, fertility and healing, and strangely there are no snakes at all in Ireland.
Yes, we did enjoy Dublin, and found the city easy to walk around and find points of interest. Perhaps you know that there are also no snakes in New Zealand - so curious, and one legend says St Patrick struck the ground so hard when he chased the snakes from Ireland that the vibration went through to New Zealand at the same time :)
DeleteWhat a great post packed full of wonderful photo's. A visit to the library would be worth the trip for me.
ReplyDeleteThe library impressed me greatly too. So many ancient books touched by the distant past.
DeleteI'm really enjoying your trip to Ireland, Trish. Thanks for sharing such lovliness, as well as, the spirit!
ReplyDeleteThank you Debra, glad you enjoyed. I might do one more post on the trip.
DeleteMore beautiful photos and wonderful history!! Love living and learning through your travels Trish! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteAnd I LOVE your new scarves - so pretty!! (snakes and all) ;)
xoxo
Another fan for the pink snakes:). Glad you are liking my trip pics. I am a history tragic! Xx
DeleteDUBLIN, HOW WONDERFUL! That park is so green and beautiful. Nel would absolutely be amazed with this library. She is a book lover. Oh, those Irish are such jolly people. I hope to someday visit there. :)
ReplyDeletelove, ~Sheri
The great library is a joy for book lovers, Sheri. Nel would certainly enjoy seeing it. Yes, many Irish seem to be jolly and high-spirited!
DeleteWhat a wonderful time you had - I don't know how you packed it all in, given you had a family wedding as well (and no doubt some sort of socialising with family). Certainly you saw the highlights of Dublin in your short time. Next time you must go out and see some of the countryside - also beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWe certainly did pack it in, Sarah Liz. And yes, there was socialising and an afternoon tea to meet the clan. Although we could not go west, we did spend a day in Wicklow and Wexford, and I will post some photos of the beautiful countryside and sites.
DeleteMy word, you did see a lot while you were there! I have only been to Dublin once and even then, only spent an afternoon there. It was enough to know that I liked it very much and would love to go back. Your post here has given me plenty of reasons to do so. I just loved that Trinity College library, and of course, dear Oscar. What a gem for Ireland! A lovely post, Patricia!
ReplyDeleteHello Val, I do hope you go back to Dublin one day, an afternoon is not enough! I loved encountering Oscar up there on his rock :) Lots of fun in Dublin.
DeleteOh, I have enjoyed the sites and lesson, Trish! Very beautiful city! How funny about the snakes.:) To tell you the truth, I still don't see them. How slow I am! Certainly, I see the shamrocks -- very pretty scarf, and it will be a lovely reminder of Emerald Isle.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed it Debbie. To see the snakes, maybe click on it to enlarge, and look for their faces, particularly in the centre section. I enjoy wearing both scarves, but soon it will be Summer and too hot.
DeleteHope you go to Ireland some time, it is only about 5 hours flying from you :)
By enlarging the photo of the pink scarf, I see the snakes! Still funny! And yes, I must go the Ireland one day! I would love it!
DeleteI've been reading back (catching up!) on your tours overseas Patricia, but unable to comment on every post. My mother was of Irish descent and had a great affection for the Book of Kells. Loved the shots of the library! What an amazing place.
ReplyDeleteWendy
Hello Wendy, I'm glad you enjoyed the Irish pictures, and that you also, like me, are of Irish descent. The library was more amazing than the Book of Kells!
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