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.

Today was an absolute blast for me because I absolutely love museums. No matter where I go I try and go into at least two, so I’ve accomplished that for this trip! The National Archaeology Museum and the National History Museum were both smaller than I’m used to but that made no difference on the quality of material. At the Archaeology Museum, I was particularly fascinated with the perfectly preserved seals and stamps – I have become increasingly interested in wax seals and it was a treat to see some fully intact. Also of note would have to be the beautiful pottery pieces and some of the clothing we looked at. In reference to the bog bodies – I wish I would have seen them in person! The preservation is absolutely incredible, especially the bright red hair! Seeing it in person might have creeped me out a bit, but it would have absolutely been worth it; I might swing back during our free day.

The National History Museum was small and quaint, but wonderful! I loved the Victorian feel (of course) and Shana, Nicole, and I particularly enjoyed the inventive names of the moths in that section of the museum. Especially after today’s class, I found myself thinking about the animals’ places and where they came from, what their life might have been like, since they were from all over the world. I thought the same thing at the National Archaeology Museum – what history do these pieces on exhibition have? We know what the jewelry is made out of – who were they on? What is their story? What were their “places” and “spaces”? I wish we could know – I’d never get out of a museum if we had all that information to learn.

Afterwards, the dinner at Foyle’s and some shopping was fabulous… until the absolute downpour! (Shana, thank you for saving my delicious tart!) We certainly had a typical Irish experience with that rain!