Half-Remembered Ireland travel Journal part 2
Right, so apparently I ended the first one around Tuesday morning. Shall be continuing from there.
Tuesday:
Hit the Dublin Castle and St Pat's church. Emily remembers them a lot better than I do since she's the Catholic Theology major and I'm the agnostic on this trip. I do recall them all being very pretty and aged, though. Note: Royalty seems to have the same very ostentatious taste as rappers. Lotta gilt, diamonds, etc. I will be further making note of this in my Italy journal, particularly with the Vatican.
Lessee, pic 122... 122-174 appear to be Dublin Castle followed by a whole bunch of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Lotta stained glass, chandeliers, and Em looking vaguely po'd at me for getting candid pics of her.
Hey, 175 is the Guinness brewery. Guinness brewery was particularly designed for the tourist. Much glass, steel, and explanations about how they make beer. Several tasting rooms that I most certainly indulged in. Favorite spot was the section where they showed a goodly chunk of the past Guinness posters/commercials/etc. Amusing to see how selling things to the culture at large as changed. For more modern take, hit Youtube to check out various commercials for mega-corporations in different countries. Anyway, second favorite place is the Gravity Bar. At the very top of the brewery, they've got a bar serving different kinds of Guinness that has a 360 degree panorama of the city. Beautiful.
Afterward we go try to hit St. Michan's (which will eventually be my favorite part of the entire journey), but it's closed.
That evening, we tag up with Stuart. Stuart's a grad student at Trinity who spent time at Rice (and spent time at Valhalla, which is where I know him). He gets a pint of cider, and I follow his lead, since I figure the native knows the brew. Note: I forgot to ask the potency of said brew, which'll be important later. Anyhoo, Emily, Stuart, another gent, and I chat about Ireland, current political things (both in the EU and abroad), and watch a cricket match. After the first round, we all become bored of the match and decide to barhop. I recall the first two bars, but the third is a tad hazy. I recall dancing and a random gal hitting on the three of us and refusing to believe that I actually train astronauts. Lessee, next was the taxi ride taking us back to the hotel, and we hit the sack.
Wednesday.
HUNG OVER. Lemme repeat that. HUNG OVER. Emily doesn't get hangovers, so she's mocking my poor self. I manage to recover from Ireland's DEVIL CIDER by sheer willpower, so we go hit St. Michan's.
St Michan's is a tiny church not far from the Jameson Brewery. Wonderful place. Very casual, very laid-back. Handel wrote the Messiah there. The really fun part is when a very Irish gent (a t-shirt, jeans, and fanny-pack gent), takes you on a tour of the crypts. A gentleman takes you around the side fo the church. I honestly can't give a honest rendition of his accent or spiel in text. He gives a full talk about the history of the crypts, what someone has to do to get into the crypts, etc. While he's doing this, he unlocks a bike chain off of a pipe, removes a key, and unlocks a nearby crypt door. Ever seen the old horror films? This is that sort of door, and that sort of key. Big fucking iron key, big fucking iron door. *Click click click ker-CHUNK* goes the lock. *creeeEEEEAAAAKKK BAM* goes the door. "Alright then, there ya go!" goes the guide as he points down into a PITCH BLACK FUCKING HOLE. He laughs and goes before us to turn on the lights. The lights are four dim bulbs that lead into the blackness that stretches beneath the church. As we walk along, the guide tells us a bit about the history of the family crypts that we see to one side or another. We get to the end of the crypt, and there are FIVE FULL COFFINS that are only separated from us by a bit of chicken wire. The guide proceeds to explain what era the five are from (none less than 300 years dead). "ya see, they're all mummified! The crypt's got three thangs that cause the mummification. Foist, there's the limestone. Thet just SUUCKS eep the moisture. Next is the temperature, that's a constant 12 degrees (or 55 in Celsius), which keeps te bodies frum DEGRADIN. Last, tere's the GROUND. The ground emits methane, which helps preserve the bodies!"
Really, catch me in person, because I do a much better impression of his accent than in text. Anyway, he tells us about the various bodies, why one might be a thief, why he knows two are women, etc. Last one he talks about is 800 years old and was a Crusader. The body was buried in a particular way. The guide mentions that it used to be in fashion to 'shake the hand' (or really touch the finger) of the Crusader for luck. Unfortunately, the guide says, the tourists managed to break off the Crusader's index finger, so that's no longer allowed. The guide then talks about the rest of the crypt for a while (covering why they're not allowed to break into coffins). After he finishes his spiel, we look at each other for a second, then suddenly he leans in close.
"I know what yer lookin' fer!" Emily and I glance at one another. "Ye want to shake the hand of the Crusader... Well... NOW'S YER CHANCE!" With one sweep, the guide moves aside the chickenwire, exposing a thin path between two coffins that'll lead into reaching distance of the Crusader. Emily and I glance at one another, unsure of what to do. Since I was the agnostic, plus hey, how many chances do you get to touch an 800-year-old corpse, I carefully shift my way back to the Crusader(taking careful care not to fall upon the 400 or 300 year old corpses I was between). I then carefully reach out and gently stroke the finger of a dead Crusader. Feels like dusty leather stretched over wood. I can still feel it today. I sidle out and Emily repeats the process. Then the guide replaces the chickenwire and we all walk out.
Emily and I proceed to freak out about touching the corpse while walking five blocks to a restaurant/club that's built within an old church (called "The Church"). Have lunch, go shopping, hit a museum, then hit the sack.
Right, that's about all I'm good for tonight, so more for the next entry.
Tuesday:
Hit the Dublin Castle and St Pat's church. Emily remembers them a lot better than I do since she's the Catholic Theology major and I'm the agnostic on this trip. I do recall them all being very pretty and aged, though. Note: Royalty seems to have the same very ostentatious taste as rappers. Lotta gilt, diamonds, etc. I will be further making note of this in my Italy journal, particularly with the Vatican.
Lessee, pic 122... 122-174 appear to be Dublin Castle followed by a whole bunch of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Lotta stained glass, chandeliers, and Em looking vaguely po'd at me for getting candid pics of her.
Hey, 175 is the Guinness brewery. Guinness brewery was particularly designed for the tourist. Much glass, steel, and explanations about how they make beer. Several tasting rooms that I most certainly indulged in. Favorite spot was the section where they showed a goodly chunk of the past Guinness posters/commercials/etc. Amusing to see how selling things to the culture at large as changed. For more modern take, hit Youtube to check out various commercials for mega-corporations in different countries. Anyway, second favorite place is the Gravity Bar. At the very top of the brewery, they've got a bar serving different kinds of Guinness that has a 360 degree panorama of the city. Beautiful.
Afterward we go try to hit St. Michan's (which will eventually be my favorite part of the entire journey), but it's closed.
That evening, we tag up with Stuart. Stuart's a grad student at Trinity who spent time at Rice (and spent time at Valhalla, which is where I know him). He gets a pint of cider, and I follow his lead, since I figure the native knows the brew. Note: I forgot to ask the potency of said brew, which'll be important later. Anyhoo, Emily, Stuart, another gent, and I chat about Ireland, current political things (both in the EU and abroad), and watch a cricket match. After the first round, we all become bored of the match and decide to barhop. I recall the first two bars, but the third is a tad hazy. I recall dancing and a random gal hitting on the three of us and refusing to believe that I actually train astronauts. Lessee, next was the taxi ride taking us back to the hotel, and we hit the sack.
Wednesday.
HUNG OVER. Lemme repeat that. HUNG OVER. Emily doesn't get hangovers, so she's mocking my poor self. I manage to recover from Ireland's DEVIL CIDER by sheer willpower, so we go hit St. Michan's.
St Michan's is a tiny church not far from the Jameson Brewery. Wonderful place. Very casual, very laid-back. Handel wrote the Messiah there. The really fun part is when a very Irish gent (a t-shirt, jeans, and fanny-pack gent), takes you on a tour of the crypts. A gentleman takes you around the side fo the church. I honestly can't give a honest rendition of his accent or spiel in text. He gives a full talk about the history of the crypts, what someone has to do to get into the crypts, etc. While he's doing this, he unlocks a bike chain off of a pipe, removes a key, and unlocks a nearby crypt door. Ever seen the old horror films? This is that sort of door, and that sort of key. Big fucking iron key, big fucking iron door. *Click click click ker-CHUNK* goes the lock. *creeeEEEEAAAAKKK BAM* goes the door. "Alright then, there ya go!" goes the guide as he points down into a PITCH BLACK FUCKING HOLE. He laughs and goes before us to turn on the lights. The lights are four dim bulbs that lead into the blackness that stretches beneath the church. As we walk along, the guide tells us a bit about the history of the family crypts that we see to one side or another. We get to the end of the crypt, and there are FIVE FULL COFFINS that are only separated from us by a bit of chicken wire. The guide proceeds to explain what era the five are from (none less than 300 years dead). "ya see, they're all mummified! The crypt's got three thangs that cause the mummification. Foist, there's the limestone. Thet just SUUCKS eep the moisture. Next is the temperature, that's a constant 12 degrees (or 55 in Celsius), which keeps te bodies frum DEGRADIN. Last, tere's the GROUND. The ground emits methane, which helps preserve the bodies!"
Really, catch me in person, because I do a much better impression of his accent than in text. Anyway, he tells us about the various bodies, why one might be a thief, why he knows two are women, etc. Last one he talks about is 800 years old and was a Crusader. The body was buried in a particular way. The guide mentions that it used to be in fashion to 'shake the hand' (or really touch the finger) of the Crusader for luck. Unfortunately, the guide says, the tourists managed to break off the Crusader's index finger, so that's no longer allowed. The guide then talks about the rest of the crypt for a while (covering why they're not allowed to break into coffins). After he finishes his spiel, we look at each other for a second, then suddenly he leans in close.
"I know what yer lookin' fer!" Emily and I glance at one another. "Ye want to shake the hand of the Crusader... Well... NOW'S YER CHANCE!" With one sweep, the guide moves aside the chickenwire, exposing a thin path between two coffins that'll lead into reaching distance of the Crusader. Emily and I glance at one another, unsure of what to do. Since I was the agnostic, plus hey, how many chances do you get to touch an 800-year-old corpse, I carefully shift my way back to the Crusader(taking careful care not to fall upon the 400 or 300 year old corpses I was between). I then carefully reach out and gently stroke the finger of a dead Crusader. Feels like dusty leather stretched over wood. I can still feel it today. I sidle out and Emily repeats the process. Then the guide replaces the chickenwire and we all walk out.
Emily and I proceed to freak out about touching the corpse while walking five blocks to a restaurant/club that's built within an old church (called "The Church"). Have lunch, go shopping, hit a museum, then hit the sack.
Right, that's about all I'm good for tonight, so more for the next entry.