Greetings from Ireland!
I got so much positive feedback from the last travelogue that I’m hopeful my friends will tolerate yet another friendly long-distance spam, this time from Dublin with my long-time friend, Tony Javoric.
A little Irish history:
Ireland was first inhabited an estimated 9000 years ago by aboriginal hunter fishermen referred to as HYPERLINK "http://www.knivesauction.com/knives/daithi3.html"Larnian. Later migrations came from Northern Europe as growing populations from areas around modern day Germany migrated north and west and south. If any of your ancestors come from Europe, you and I are probably distant cousins traceable to this common source.
Ireland is littered with cairns or megalithic mounds, of which HYPERLINK "http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/HistoricSites/East/BrunaBoinneVistorCentreNewgrangeandKnowthMeath/"New Grange is the world’s largest. Each Winter solstice, (about December 21) the sun shines perfectly through the aligned stones marking the shortest day of the year and that the new year has begun. Counting the days from this point would certainly benefit a farming community whose survival depended on timing the seasons. New Grange took an estimated 40 years to build, requiring 80 men 4 days to move one 6 ton rock 6 miles… and there’s 1600 stones. Wow. Looking at my calendar, I appreciate that it’s not so heavy. =)
HYPERLINK "http://www.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/Countries/Ireland/castles.html"Castles were first built in Ireland in 1170 after Anglo-Norman Knights (Metal covered French conquering dudes from Britain) paid the Irish a friendly visit and setup shop. Cruising around the island over the last couple of years, we’ve visited several HYPERLINK "http://www.ireland-now.com/castles/"on the long list of Irish castles and a few stand out:
Dublin Castle, stands out ‘cuz there’s no castle. It’s a wall connected to some more modern government buildings. If you’re hoping to be castle-impressed, you can skip this one. (but don’t tell the Irish Bureau of Tourism I said that)
Malahide Castle is well restored and sits on a 250 acre estate and provides guided tours and is less than an hour public bus ride from Dublin city center. The grounds are like something out of postcard.
County Tipperary hosts the Rock of Cashel. Cashel is possibly the most visually stunning ruin I’ve ever seen. But as you know, HYPERLINK "http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/itsalongwaytotipperary.htm"it’s a long way to Tipperary. (am I dating myself?!).
Officially, Dublin was staked out by HYPERLINK "http://www.dublinuncovered.net/history.html"Norman Vikings in 988 AD, but there’s evidence of communities in the location for almost a thousand years before. It’s the capital city of Ireland but more relevant to my story, it’s where I’m writing from now.
Dublin is one of the most visited cities in Europe, has a booming economy and is rich with sights and attractions. Some of the more memorable include:
Pubs. Though I don’t have much taste for the drink, the Irish sure do. I’ve been told there are over 2000 pubs in Dublin, the most famous of which is HYPERLINK "http://www.hosteldublin.com/cityinfo/entertainment.php"Temple Bar. The exchange rate from Dollars to Euros hasn’t been very American-friendly, and that’s been the case for well over a year now. Combine that with trendy Temple Bar prices and you get some pretty expensive cocktails. In November Malissa and I had occasion to stop in, we ordered a single drink and spent over $14.00 US.
The world’s largest stout beer brewer is located in downtown Dublin and offers tours and a free brew at the end of the tour. Tony and I bought tickets on the ‘Dublin City Tour’, a guided and narrated open-top bus tour to 19 key sights & stops. Passengers can hop on and off at any stop. As we approached the Guinness Factory (stop 13) I got the distinct impression the driver was angling to keep passengers on his bus (for tips at the end of the tour?) because he must’ve said three times, “There’s plenty of time… it’s open till 8… you can come back…” When we stopped, it all made sense: over half the passengers bee-lined for the exit off the bus, bound for a brew.
The world famous HYPERLINK "http://www.riverdance.com/home.htm"Riverdance show calls Dublin home and was nearly sold out, but Tony and I were able to score a couple seats. There’s good reason why this show sells out. It features several crescendos including a tap-off between traditional tall, straight Irish tap and modern loose, relaxed African-American tap. It was so engaging that at one point I seemed to discover my feet were tapping as if by remote control from the stage. I bought the DVD. Malissa, hunny, buy an Irish cookbook and get the big screen and surround sound ready, cuz we’re having a Riverdance party when I get home!
2003 added the most recent attraction, the world’s tallest sculpture, HYPERLINK "http://www.irish-architecture.com/buildings_ireland/dublin/northcity/oconnell_street/spire.html"The Spire of Dublin. It’s is located right in the heart of Dublin on O’Connell Street, which intersects with the River Liffey that runs through the middle of the city. It’s entirely stainless steel, about 10 feet across at the base and about 5” at the tip. Local Dubliners refer to it as ‘The Stiletto In The Ghetto’ or ‘The Erection at the Intersection’. …I know what you’re thinking… but this is a Fodor’s quality, G-Rated travelogue, so use a little more imagination ;-)
Shopping in the heart of Dublin just south of the Liffy on Grafton Street is lively and engaging with street performers spaced about every 100 feet. We took progressive pictures of a Sidewalk chalk fresco as it was being drawn over a 4 day period. The art was fantastic. The artist was Dave, a Brit that had been in Ireland for over 20 years and made his living with street and sidewalk art donations. The art was such quality that if you believed in reincarnation, you might think he was ‘the Artist formerly known as Michelangelo’.
Transportation is quick in Dublin. Tony and I have had an average wait time of less than a minute to catch a bus. The trip to town is about 5 minutes and a week’s unlimited pass is less than 18 Euro, but don’t expect much conversation…
The people of Dublin are generally friendly, but I got an education on my first trip to Dublin and the experience has been consistent ever since. A couple of years ago, I was on a mission to pickup a water purifier from a shop located about an hour by bus south of Dublin. It was a long trip and I’m a friendly guy so I sparked a conversation with the pretty Irish girl that was standing next to me. I talk about the weather, about Oregon, has she been to America, etc, only I’m asking all the questions. Finally I asked her, “so what do you think of Americans?” to which she smiles, as if to herself, and replies, “very friendly, and chatty… very chatty.” “ahh… umm…” Her stop comes up and still smiling to herself, she hops off the bus. I watch for her to turn and waive. So take a wild guess, did she waive? Nope, she didn’t even turn around! Brrr! Chilleey!
When I got home I told the story to Tony and later to a friendly call center agent over the phone who said she had spent 15 years in the US, so I asked, “I’m not looking, but I’m just curious, if this is typical, how do Irish girls meet Irish guys?” True story, she said, “They go to the pub, Irish guys get drunk, fall on them, and ask them out.”
Now, I’m looking forward to making a little Irish history myself by getting on a plane to see my sweetheart and my friendly, chatty American friends. The Irish native tongue is Gaelic where to toast they say Silanta! (sp?)
Love and best regards,
Todd
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