After starting off the day with a lovely discussion of three stories from Dubliners by James Joyce, ending it with the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl really topped off a wonderful day. While it was (obviously) great to grab a drink and hang out with everyone, I really loved our two excellent hosts and actors. Their scenes – my favorite being the opening one from Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett – were absolutely mesmerizing to watch and I couldn’t have wished for anyone better to host the evening. The quotes and quips from and about Ulysses almost made me want to read the rest of it – almost. I loved how the pub crawl connected to many of the things we have been or will be discussing, even including the films we watched back at GSU. This crawl really exceeded my expectations.

In terms of the pubs, I loved them all – especially the one pictured above, O’Neill’s. Though I wasn’t in there long – hot and stuffy and busy on a Friday night – I absolutely adored it for its Victorian feel. I could tell that if it were not as busy, I could spend quite a bit of time in there – likely requesting to eat and drink in the Writer’s Room. Once again, of course, these pubs got me thinking about place – what have these pubs meant to other people? Did certain writers always sit in the exact same seats? How did the bartenders feel about being there? I’m excited for the Musical Pub Crawl we’ll be going on later in the trip to get another side of the pub life in Dublin.