Joyce, Beckett, and lots of coffee

Posted on by
Reply

Today was full of many things that were extremely moving to me. In class we talked about Beckett’s Texts For Nothing which sparked much conversation about why the text was so confusing and what the meaning behind it was. After class we went on the James Joyce tour which is one of my favorite things we have done so far. It really gave me an inside look on his early life and that explained a lot of the themes and stories found in Dubliners. Themes such as leaving Dublin because of his poor experiences with the city itself, and some quirky things such as the jumping over the fence. After the tour we went to the coffee shop and bookstore thats pictured in this post, and I ended up not getting coffee because they said they were out of non-dairy milk :(. I really enjoyed all of the books, and the ones about Irish history were all from authors I knew and understood now. This makes me feel a lot closer to Irish history. After the bookstore we walked across the river and saw the monument of the famine which I found extremely powerful. The statues of the people and the children were almost alien-like which I think was the point of it. It was to relay that the time period, that it was almost portrayed as not being real and the people there were so hungry that they didn’t even look real as well. Afterwards we saw a Beckett portrayal which I found extremely interesting because it didn’t clear up what those texts are actually supposed to mean. But the woman who portrayed this was absolutely incredible. The sound and emotion that was portrayed was something that stood out to me. It made me feel almost connected to the texts, even though you didn’t know what they were supposed to mean. Today made me feel more connected to the Irish history and the authors behind it.

Literary Pub Crawl

Posted on by
Reply

On the Literary Pub Crawl yesterday, the concept of place was so evident and tangible. By being in the

various places that authors and leaders congregated and comingled with their fellow Irishmen, I was able to grasp a better understanding of how their works and actions took shape. The atmosphere contains energized electricity and the slow, calm pull that follows a few beers. This complexity is reflected in the literary work that comes out of Ireland, which the actors so effectively portrayed during the various stops of the pub crawl. While in the pubs, I was able to see the various types of people drinking or simply hanging out with others. There are so many different types of people, but also the same types at every stop along the way. I can understand why some of the pub descriptions can become clichés, but I am also very aware that those characterizations must be from an outsider perspective. The differences in the pubgoers is probably much more evident to those from Ireland, but Dublin specifically. Another great aspect of the pub crawl was being able to experience the various aspects of a Friday night in Dublin. While in the pubs, we saw happy people experiencing and enjoying life. We also were able to see some of the dimmer sides of Dublin, the beggars and those that were a little too drunk. The latter reminded me of the characters from Dubliners, which is interesting since James Joyce wrote in and about many of these pubs. This is probably the most striking reality of the pub crawl, that Dublin is a striking and complex city, with high and low aspects.

A Day in Dublin

Posted on by
Reply

Friday morning, we discussed three texts from Dubliners which I really enjoyed. Our discussion focused on how the stories correlated with each other, and everyone had some really interesting points to bring up. However, the events following were a bit more exciting than class our discussion. Maddy, Karson and I ventured into the city for some shopping. Walking through the streets of Dublin, I really began feeling like I knew the city and what it meant to the people in Joyce’s stories. Later that night, we went to a pub crawl that exposed us to some of the landmarks mentioned throughout Irish literature. It was really interesting to see these places in real life because it gave me something real to relate the stories to. The fact that the bar Davy Byrnes was written about so much in so many pieces of literature made the experience so much better. Aside from the literary element of the pub crawl, the pub part was pretty great as well. I wasn’t really sure what to expect in the first place, but my expectations were definitely exceeded! Each pub was so different and unique, and the people were fun to meet and speak with as well. Everyone I have come in contact with has been incredibly kind and helpful so far, and the scenery is absolutely beautiful. As we explore Dublin and visit the places we are reading about, I gain a continually better understanding of what it meant, and what it now means to be a Dubliner.

Incredible Food, Incredible day

Posted on by
1

Today was an amazing day. Today I really felt like I got to experience Dublin. This picture is of my dinner that I had at Sprouts before the Literary Pub Crawl. This day was especially special because for one it did not rain. The class this morning I found particularly intriguing because we were talking about animal ethics behind the Natural History Museum. As a vegan, I am pretty knowledgable about animal ethics and animal rights. I almost found this concept to be a “place” for me. Even though a discussion topic is not a physical being I find it interesting that even something such as a concept can be a place for me. It becomes a place when it’s something I can relate to and something I feel I connect on an extremely deep level. This picture ties into this as this is the best vegan meal I’ve had since I’ve been here. The pub crawl afterwards was really fun, as I had odd encounters with every bar tender. I really felt like I got the whole Dublin City experience like the boys in Dubliners. I think the difference between my experiences and theirs comes down to the fact that I am older than them and more mature, so I did not end up having this unrealistic magical views, and I also already live in the city. Today was an exceptionally good day, I did a lot of shopping, drank a lot of good beer, and ate the most amazing food.

A Day Full of Adventures!

Posted on by
1

Today was such an amazing day. We started the day by studying James Joyce’s work on “Dubliners”. One of  the stories I enjoyed the most was “An Encounter” . I was able to identify with the narrator’s  adventurous spirit and his strong desire to explore the city, so after class my peers and I decided to head to  Grafton street to explore on our own. Fortunately, our experience was much pleasant that the ones the characters had. We encountered really friendly and talented people that make it easier for us to embrace the Irish culture.

Grafton Street is probably  one the most  beautiful and popular streets in Dublin, if not the most popular one. It’s filled with a comprehensive selection of clothing stores, coffee shops , and of course pubs. When we were walking in Grafton Street, my heart filled with joy. It was then , when I realized that I  was really in Dublin, Ireland. The architecture of this place was very European and classic. One of the things that  I found very interesting and  cool is the fact that almost every store had an Irish flag in display. I think that is such an amazing thing to see how this community has manage to create such a strong sense of national identity, and how positive the outcome of this has been. People take such a pride of their origins , and of their country and I think this has definitely has helped to shaped their character. This is someway similar to the theory presented by Cresswell on Environmental Determinism.

Now that I’ve purchased a raincoat… I can embrace Dublin and its rain!

Posted on by
1

 

As you can see in the photo above, I’m beginning to embrace the rain that has shown itself multiple times this journey (and I’m sure will continue to). And while this photo is a bit silly, I think it develops our answer to the question a bunch of us asked on the first day of class: when does a place become yours? While Dublin is not by any means my place, my becoming familiar with it (slowly buts surely) and not being surprised by its habits, I think, is bringing me closer to becoming one with this place.

Growing up in a tourist area, living near New York City and along the busy Jersey Shore, I became used to the presence of tourists in my places. Their influence is critical to these places, whether their effects are negative or positive. Tourism dictates the economy and infrastructure of a place. From what we’ve seen of Dublin, I’ve noticed the influence we–as tourists–have had on this place. Take the literary pub tour: the effort to preserve an authentic Ireland and memorialize Ireland’s most impressive names is, in part, for its people, but appears to mostly be constructed and maintained for tourists.

However, tourism may perpetuate the Dubliner’s idleness that was described in the texts we read this morning, begging the question: what is the effect of Dubliners having a major part of its economy dependent on its history being encapsulated? I’m hopeful to see examples of history being written for Dublin. What will tour guides be saying about Dublin 50 years from now about 2017 Dublin?

City Strolling

Posted on by
Reply

Most of today was beautiful and dry! Exploring the city of Dublin felt so surreal, especially because I’m just now forming my own memories and have the opportunity to create my own experiences. My favorite event was the pub crawl. I learned so many fun facts about James Joyce! It was very interesting to me to be able to actually be in the same pubs that are in his literary works. We begin our journey at Dukes, a hot crowded, but overall exciting pub. During the pub crawl, we made a stop at Trinity College, which is extremely beautiful and I just adore the fact that it was built in the 1500’s.

Wandering about the streets of Dublin gave me the opportunity to connect what I was seeing to the beginning stories in James Joyce’s “Dubliners”. Just like the young boys in the first three stories, I was able to grasp the meaning of the “real Dublin” experience. I’ve never really had the chance to explore any other city aside from Atlanta, which is my home city and because  I was born and raised in Atlanta, I know it like the back of my hand. Walking up and down the streets of Dublin is shaping the person that I am already, and I can not wait to see the person that I become by the end of this trip.

“Embrace me!”

Posted on by
Reply

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.

Class this morning

Posted on by
Reply

This morning, during class we discussed animal rights since we had visited the Dead Zoo the day before and we discussed the ethics of taxidermy. We discussed how the powerful and wealthy are usually the ones to be the people who poach and are not generally thinking about animal rights or human rights for that matter. I began to think about how people in third world countries think about animal rights. Most of the time people in third world countries can not think about animal rights because they do not have the resources to take care of their own lives/rights much less the rights of animals. So, socio economics has a lot to do with animal rights or lack thereof. In most third world countries, it is pretty common for animal abuse to occur because there are many stray animals and most “domestic” animals live outside. Many of the animals are poisoned to try to keep the population s down. So even when people from third world countries move to a first world country it can be difficult to change their views on animal rights due to the way they grew up and diet changes like becoming a vegan or vegetarian can be difficult because food is rooted in culture and living without meat or dairy is sometimes not an option. This makes the morals and ethics of animal rights even muddier than it is for people whio live in first world countries.

 

 

 

 

Garden Access

Posted on by
Reply

One of the first things I noticed about Dublin was the abundance of flowers. On our walk to Blackrock yesterday there were so many front gardens that had rose bushes and trees. Even the weeds lining the transit tracks were beautiful. Earlier that day we visited the Clinton Center at University College Dublin, which was treasure trove of picture opportunities with flowers set against the stone wall background. Then, as we were exploring Dublin, we discovered a book store, which was hosting a book launch. The new book, The Open Gardens of Ireland, literally delves into the gardens around Ireland. After reading a bit of the book last night, it is very obvious that a large portion of this book is about the people behind the gardens. The gardens themselves represent an area of intimacy and power for the gardener, and they have allowed the author and reader to access this space. Through this book, I am becoming an insider in the garden, rather than an outsider looking in. In fact, the author even thanked the owners of the gardens for allowing her access to their gardens, because they are such an intimate space. By entering this space, I now feel a deeper connection to the gardens I will continue to see. There is always a story behind a garden, because they take time and commitment to upkeep, they rarely just occur by happenstance. So, by having a better understanding of some of the gardens, I will be able to appreciate future garden observations even more. And I am so, so thankful that happened upon the book launch. I was just in the really right place at the exact right time.