Vic and I were last in Ireland in 1997 -- 20 years ago at the height of the Celtic Tiger economic boom. The city was awash in money, the pubs were overflowing with people, and the party went on all night long. We know. We inadvertently booked a hotel in Temple Bar and the noise never stopped. We got very little sleep.
Then came the crash in 2008 and things ground to a halt. I was curious to see what Dublin was like now, with the recovery well underway.
I'm happy to report that it's looking good. The skyline is full of cranes, the streets are crowded, the pubs are busy (although that might be a constant), and Dublin now has a "food scene."
I know this because I took the Delicious Dublin Food Tour. It included copious walking, which was a good thing because it also included a lot of food sampling, none of which was notably low calorie, and for lunch the best fish and chips ever. We sampled locally produced cheese, ice cream, whisky (of course!), and chocolate, among other things. We also visited the Fallon & Byrne food hall for an overview of high-end local products -- including this lovely looking seaweed (?) bread.
My two favourite places were Camerino, a "Bakery Cakery" owned by a women from Montreal who visited Dublin after university and never left, and Wigwam, by day a Brazilian cafe, by night a rum bar and live music venue. At Camerino, we tasted lovely scones and admired one of their custom cakes. (Hint: I have a birthday coming would not mind a cake like the one in this photo, which some lucky woman named Linda is getting for her 50th.)
At Wigwam we were introduced to the glories of really expensive, smooth coffee. We also learned that Dublin is in the midst of a donut craze. Their donuts were yummy looking so I can see why.
I also took the Dublin Historical Walking Tour, which was great fun and full of interesting asides and details. I particularly enjoyed seeing the site of the first performance of Handel's Messiah. There's not much left of the building, except for the entry gate. The event is memorialized with a bronze plaque and a nude -- and generously endowed -- statue of Handel, which is mounted on the original organ pipes.
If you are ever in Dublin, I highly recommend both of these tours. The guides were funny and very knowledgeable. I booked them through Viator, but they're offered by independent contractors.
Vic had one free day, so we spent it doing guided tours of both St. Patrick's and Christ Church Cathedrals, conveniently located close to each other. There seems to be a bit of rivalry between the churches, but they have several things in common: both Cathedrals have their roots in 11th century wooden Viking churches that were built on their sites; both church's choirs participated in that famous debut of the Messiah; both are Anglican (I'm always surprised that Dublin has no Catholic cathedral); and both underwent major reconstructions in the 19th century financed by the Irish taste for alcohol. Guinness money restored St. Patrick's and Roe's Whiskey did the same for Christ Church.
Both Cathedrals also have spectacular floor tiles. First, St. Patrick's…
…and Christ Church.
St. Patrick's big claim to fame is that Jonathan Swift was Dean of the cathedral from 1713 and 1745. Swift is buried here as is Richard Boyle, the scientist who discovered Boyle's law. It also contains two statues of St. Patrick that offer a stark contrast between how he is depicted in different eras. The older statue is cobbled together from the remains of three damaged ones and shows the saint in a stiff, traditional pose, with a hand raised in blessing and wearing a bishop's mitre. In the modern version, St. Patrick is youthful, shown in motion, and kind of hot.
St. Patrick's also exhibits the door through which in 1492, two feuding families -- the Butlers and the Fitzgeralds -- shook hands and made peace. It's said to be the source of the Irish expression, "to chance your arm."
Christ Church is the more Gothic and atmospheric of the Cathedrals. Plus I got to climb the tower and ring the bells, which is harder than it looks.
The bell ropes at rest…
…and in use.
Christ Church houses the tomb of Strongbow, whose Anglo-Norman army captured Dublin in 1170. This is a replacement, the original tomb having been destroyed when the roof collapsed in 1562.
Strongbow's face is nearly worn a way because for many years, business deals were finalized over his tomb.
The floor tiles are replicas of the originals and show the image of the "foxy friar". This was an allusion to priests who were more interested in money than prayer. It was intended as an insult, but the image is so popular it has become a symbol of the cathedral.
Christ Church has a lovely spooky crypt, the highlight of which are the mummified remains of the rat who ran into the organ pipe and the cat who chased it. They were found in the 1860's but no one is sure exactly how long they'd been there.
One of the drawbacks of having extensive renovations done in the 19th century, is that the architects have to deal with the Victorian affection for all things Gothic, including unnecessary buttresses. Christ Church has quite a few.
Dublin is an old city, but it's got some modern sights, too. The Spire of Dublin, opened in 2003, towers over O'Connell Street in shiny, stainless steel glory. It's located on the site of Nelson's Pillar, which was destroyed by an IRA bomb in 1966.
Most of you know my weakness for European shop signs. Here's my favourite from Dublin. Note the dangling shamrock.
Dublin is known for it's Georgian architecture, especially the doors, which you'll find in tourist shops on posters, dishtowels, and pretty much any other surface they'll fit on. Here's one on acid:
I'll leave Dublin with a few random images I enjoyed:
A particularly literal take on a sea horse:
A charming coffee shop sign:
Wicklow
This trip I wanted to get out of the city and booked a tour of Wicklow and the 6th century monastery at Glendalough. (Another highly recommended tour. I booked through Viator again, but the company offering it is Wild Wicklow Tours.)
Wicklow was a surprise. I had this idea that Ireland was a tidy, cultivated country, lived in for a long time and thus very domesticated. Wicklow wasn't like that at all. It had mountains, peat bogs, sweeping vistas, and amazing views. I took way too many photos.
We passed a lovely stone bridge, which our guide assured us, was where the kissing scene in a movie called "PS, I Love You" was shot. I've not seen it but judging from the mob of teenage girls getting their pictures taken on the bridge, the film must have been very popular with a specific demographic.
One of the highlights was the Guinness estate, which we saw from high above the valley it sits in. The story is that when Lady Guinness was married in 1937, she was given the valley -- 1 mile wide and 3 miles long -- as a wedding present. Except for the area right around the house, it's been left pretty much untouched and has been used in many films. Most recently, the shore of the lake is where parts of the TV series The Vikings was shot.
A view of the lake…
…and another view further down the valley. As you can see, the sun came and went all day.
Glendalough Monastery was founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century. Not a lot is actually known about St. Kevin, but there are many good, if dubious stories. His birth date is given as 498 and he's said to have died in 618 -- which would have made him 120 -- so one wonders. The best story is that while he was praying, a blackbird laid an egg in his outstretched hand. St. Kevin held the egg in the same position until it hatched. A good story is so much better than the boring facts.
I can take photos of ancient stonework more or less indefinitely. Here are a few shots of the ruins of the "cathedral". A nice overview…
…a particularly enticing doorway…
And a close up to show how thick the walls were. No wonder they've lasted so long.
Glendalough was a centre for learning, care of the sick, and manuscript illumination and was active for over 600 years. Over that time it was repeatedly attacked by Viking raiders. The monks survived by climbing into the tower and pulling the ladder in after themselves. The tower is 110 feet high, with five stories, each with a window facing in a different direction -- the better to keep an eye on the Vikings. It had a water source at ground level and food storage on the top floor.
In this shot, you can see the door and some of the windows.
The Tower is quite striking in its environment and I kept seeing it from different perspectives, Here are two:
Another interesting building is St. Kevin's kitchen, which has a steeple similar in style to the tower. It was never a kitchen, but because the steeple looks a bit like a chimney, the name stuck.
Here are the Tower, Cathedral, and Kitchen together.
Very little is actually known for sure about this site because the cemetery it contains is still used for burials. According to our guide, there are two people left who have the hereditary right to be buried here. Five years after they've died and been interred, archaeological explorations can begin.
The monastery is conveniently surrounded by the Glendalough Nature Preserve. It was gorgeous and showed exactly why Ireland is called the Emerald Isle. So many shades of green!
A view down the lake…
The boardwalk…
Very green hills…
The hiking trail…
…and an eerily green field.
Altogether a great trip.
