Dublin

Since I just so happened to be in the neighborhood, I decided to go to Dublin for St. Patrick’s weekend. Full disclosure, if you want to go to a crazy parade and big green party, you’ll have better luck in the U.S. i.e. NOLA or Boston. However, if you want to “do it for the culture,” Dublin is very laid back and cool. They use the Euro and the weather was pretty drizzly and a bit cold, but overall decent. They also drive on the left side of the road fyi. I didn’t get a chance to explore Northern Ireland, but look forward to visiting again.

I met up with one of my sister’s international friends. Speaking to a true Irish person, I was a little saddened some of my long held Irish traditions were debunked. One, I never knew the Irish had their own language that they are required to speak in school, I was also saddened that corned beef and cabbage was not in fact a traditional Irish meal. Being an island actually makes seafood a main dish there. I was able to still get a nice “traditional” stew for dinner, so I was happy. I also have never been a fan of Guinness, or other stout dirt tasting beers; however, I’ve found over the years that either my tastes have changed, or I’m jut more accepting than I used to be. I was told that the beer tastes different in Ireland, so I had to at least try a pint of Guinness. Much to my surprise, I enjoyed it, even had seconds and thirds. After our classic Irish meal, we went down the street in search of more fake stereotypical Irish “traditions”- singing in a bar. We were able to come across a group of old men (60+) who apparently just met that night, but brought their instruments for an impromptu jam session singing Irish folk songs and a few American classics (Van Morrison). We were lucky enough to have found seats right next to them as it was pretty much a standing room hall bar, and talked to them during breaks.

Sunday morning I walked over to St. Patrick’s Cathedral for morning mass. If you go there just as a museum/look around capacity, they charge an entrance fee. However, if you go to mass, it is Free to enter the church, then you can look around, gift shop afterwards. The service was surprisingly small, and what seemed like a good portion of tourists/Americans. They were friendly though, and their communion is open to all Christians, not just Catholics. The church itself is beautiful, and there is a lovely park full of flowers behind the church. I was afraid I would not get a good spot for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, but the city seemed pretty sleepy still after mass, so i was able to walk closer to the University and get a front row barrier gate location. While waiting for the parade to start, I popped into a little Italian (I know) cafe and got a calzone and cannoli to snack on while I waited. I also made friends with a couple there from Texas while waiting. The parade did not last very long, less than an hour I believe. It was comprised mostly of American high school bands and these giant medieval looking handmade floats. Everything was operated by hand (pushing) or foot (bicycle). There were no tractors, trucks, trailers pulling these mechanisms. Following the floats would be a group of dancers/walkers wearing costumes of the same theme. After the parade, I walked over to the long library. The tour was pretty small, so I read all of the little blurbs about how they wrote and illustrated bibles years and years ago before going into the actual hall. You can take pictures, just make sure you turn the flash OFF! After taking my graduation selfies, I headed over to the Jameson distillery for my whiskey tasting. We went to this private study office bar and got a little bit of history before trying a few different special blends that can only be found there.