I discovered last night that the location of our hotel is a bit of a double-edged sword. The great location right in the heart of things guarantees a lot of action, accessibility, and a lively night life. It also guarantees a lot of noise late into the night. I’m trying to figure out how things can be so busy on a Wednesday night?! I would have expected it on a Friday or Saturday night, but having activity outside our window until almost 3AM last night came as a bit of a surprise.
Everyone had different agendas for sightseeing today, so the girls went their separate ways and Will and I decided to do a walking tour of the city. With so much so close to the hotel, it was easy to do. One of the nearby streets was once home to the local music hall where George Frederic Handel first performed the Messiah in 1742 to a packed house of 700. Ladies that attended the performance were urged to attend without wearing “hoop” skirts and gentlemen were urged to attend without their swords so there would be more room. It made me glad that I don’t have to maneuver down streets with hoop skirts and I think Will would be thrilled not to have to lug a sword around on his belt loop all day long!
We started our tour at Dublin Castle, just a few blocks away. I was a bit surprised to see that in order to access the castle you need to walk through a few parking lots – not quite what I imagined. Once on the castle grounds, we were treated to a beautifully preserved castle. The gardens were in an inner courtyard and at the very center was a low circular area of lawn which had a swirled pattern of brick work. It looked a bit like a labyrinth or prayer path, but was freeform and not at all symmetrical. Today, Dublin Castle is surrounded by government buildings and is used for government functions. Built in 1204, it has been beautifully preserved.
An interesting story related to Dublin Castle has to do with the Irish Crown Jewels which were stolen from the castle in 1907. The Crown Jewels included a royal set of the Order of St. Patrick from 1783 and included rubies, emeralds, and Brazilian diamonds. The mystery begins in 1903 when the jewels were transferred to a safe which was to be placed in a newly constructed vault. There was a slight problem though – the new safe was too large to fit through the doorway of the vault! The commanding officer of Dublin Castle, a man by the name of Arthur Vicars, decided to store the jewels in his office instead(!). Seven keys were made to the office and two for the safe. Vicars was known to regularly get drunk on overnight duty and he once woke to find the jewels around his neck! The jewels were discovered missing on July 6, 1907. Vicars claimed innocence and refused to resign his position. He publicly accused his second in command, Francis Shackleton of the theft (Francis was the brother of explorer Ernest Shackleton). In a public inquiry Shackleton was exonerated and Vicars was found guilty of “not exercising due vigilance”. He did not serve any jail time, but was shot dead by the IRA on April 14, 1921 in an unrelated incident. The case remains unsolved to this day.
Next we walked a short distance to St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
The cathedral was once the residence of Jonathan Swift, author of “Gulliver’s Travels” and Dean of the cathedral from 1713-1745. St. Patrick’s Cathedral stands next to the site of the famous well where tradition has it that St. Patrick baptized converts on his way to Dublin. A small stone memorial marks the site of the well. The cathedral continues to be used as a place of worship to this day.
We continued our tour with a visit to St. Stephen’s Green – my absolute favorite part of our walk! St. Stephens is a 22 acre park in the heart of Dublin. It was opened in 1664, but was privately owned by upper class residents in the area. It wasn’t until 1877 that the park was redesigned and opened to everyone. Arthur Guinness, of Guinness beer fame, funded the purchase and redesign.
The park has tons of flowerbeds, trees, a fountain and a lake, and is dotted with memorials to famous Dubliners such as James Joyce, WB Yeats, and Arthur Guinness.
In one corner of the park there is a bronze statue to Theobald Wolfe Tone, leader of the 1798 rebellion. On either side of his statue a number monoliths are erected which has given way to the nickname “Tonehenge”. There is also a monument dedicated to the victims of the Great Famine of 1845-1850. 
Another corner of the park has a statue representing the Three Fates which was a gift from the German people in thanks for Irish help to refugees after World War II.
One of my favorite spots in the park was just inside the gate where a small cottage was situated. It looked like something out of a storybook, but was obviously in use.
From St. Stephen’s Green we took a walking tour of the Georgian area of Dublin then headed back to our hotel via Trinity College and Grafton Street. Later in the afternoon I met up with Meghan and Molly and we did a little last-minute shopping on Grafton Street before heading back to the hotel to meet up with Will and Tom at the Library Bar.
On a tip from our hotel concierge we headed out to dinner at O’Neills – a popular and traditional Irish pub for our last meal in Ireland. It was so popular in fact we weren’t able to find an empty table! Although disappointed, we headed back out along Grafton Street and came upon what looked to be a small café called Bewleys. Turns out it was much larger than it looked and we were able to get a table right away. The food was delicious and we had a wonderful time visiting. We decided to do a last call at the Library before heading off to bed. It’s hard to believe we head home tomorrow. It’s been the trip of a lifetime.
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