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Dublin II

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We were excited to begin our tour. First we dropped our bags at the Harding Hotel, the tour hotel. We had coffee and scones at the Queen of Tarts, a super little place down the street. Then we bought tickets for the Hop on - Hop off City Tour.

We hopped off of the bus at the Kilmainham Gaol and took the tour. The guide was very good, and there is an excellent museum. We got back on the bus and rode to the National Gallery where we had lunch. Our guided tour at the National Gallery covered some of the major pieces including the work of Jack B. Yeats. We did some more sight-seeing both on foot and from the bus before returning to the Harding Hotel to meet our fellow tour members.

James Connolly and other leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916 were executed in the Kilmainham Gaol.

We had our get-acquainted meeting and a meal at the Harding Hotel. Then Stephen led a tour through Temple Bar, over the Liffey, and down to O'Connell Street. We walked north along O'Connell Street and saw the General Post Office, Millennium Spire, the Parnell monument, and O'Connell statue and bridge.

O'Connell Street Bridge looking south.

The General Post Office still has bullet marks on the front from the Easter Rising of 1916.

Several people on the tour went to The Celt to hear music. It was crowded because Dublin had played an Irish football game. The light blue and dark blue shirts are the jerseys worn by the Dublin Irish football team. Their cheer is "Up the Dubs."

Monday Tommy Graham led a historical walking tour of Dublin. He has a Samuel Beckett hair-cut and a Ph. D. in history from Trinity College. We learned about Dublin's Viking past and the Irish struggle with Britain, plus a lot more. We started at Christ Church Cathedral and then went to Dublin Castle, the old parliament building, and Trinity College. After the tour we saw the Book of Kells in the library of Trinity College.

This is our group in the original chamber of the Irish House of Lords in the old parliament building. The parliament building was completed in 1739 but is now the Bank of Ireland. The room is still grandly appointed with a 1,233 piece crystal chandelier and huge tapestries depicting the Battle of the Boyne and the Siege of Londonderry.

As we arrived at the Trinity College Library we saw several police officers and were told that President Jimmy Carter and his wife were viewing the Book of Kells. We saw the Book of Kells and explored the grand Trinity College Library. The ancient harp in the library is said to be the oldest harp in existence.

Christ Church Cathedral is located on the site of a Viking church built about 1000. Later, about 1200, the Anglo-Norman conquerors built a church here. The present structure was built in the 1870's. The Harding Hotel is across the street from the cathedral.

During the noon hour we went to a William B. Yeats poetry reading at the National Library. We enjoyed a late lunch at Wagamama noodle bar. The remainder of the afternoon we spent at the Chester Beatty Library and St. Patrick's Cathedral. The group had a delightful meal at Luigi Malones. After our meal we went to the Knightsbridge Bar in the Arlington Hotel for music and Irish dancing.

The Record Tower, State Apartments, and Chapel Royal of Dublin Castle can be seen from the front of the Chester Beatty Library. The Chester Beatty Library is a unique and fascinating little museum.