Day 12: Dublin

We begin our day a little early by leaving at 8am to head to Dublin. Most of us slept on the way there to make up for lost sleep from getting up early. When we arrived, we met a man named Finton. Finton is from Dublin, but teaches Gaelic in the US in Minnesota. Annie and Ryan had actually taken a few of his Gaelic classes. Finton gave us a short tour of the city and then we went to the visitor’s station. Upon arriving there, we got tickets for one of the “Hop on, hop off Dublin Tour Buses.”

(Saint Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin)

The first place we hopped off was at the National Cathedral and Collegiate Church of Saint Patrick. This claims to be the burial location for Saint Patrick, but we know that, that is not true and it’s really in Downpatrick. While there, we took a look around at the different stained glass windows and statues. We also visited the gift shop and I got a small gift for someone. I didn’t have any Euros with me yet, but they actually took US Dollars. Then one of the volunteer tour guides approached us and asked if we’d like a tour of the parts that are closed off to the public and only available for small groups. We said that we would love to, so we toured where some of the knights and choir sat. When the tour guide asked us why we were there, we explained and he even acknowledged that Downpatrick was the location of the real burial of Saint Patrick.

(Inside the Kilmanham jail, showing how a prisoner could be watched at all times)

After the cathedral, we hopped back on the bus and headed to see the Kilmanham Jail. We went on a tour of the jail and learned a little bit about the politics that resulted in several of the imprisonments and death sentences. We also learned that the last prisoner to be released from the jail went on to be the President of the Republic of Ireland. It was very interesting to see the old cells and how the jail had been built to make it feel like the prisoners were being watched at all times.

Following our tour of the jail, we hopped back on the bus and finished our bus tour of Dublin. We had a few spare minutes before our 4pm meeting, so we stopped and did a quick tour of Trinity College. Finton had graduated from there, so he was able to share a few things about each of the buildings. Then it was about 4pm and we headed to the Irish Parliament House to meet with the Minister of Social Development. We spoke with the Minister for a little while and then were given a tour of the Parliament House and were able to see the two chambers.


(One of the buildings at Trinity College)

After our tour of the Irish Parliament House, we headed back to the bus, but first we stopped to get a quick bite to eat. We drove back to Dundrum and changed into different clothes since we had been in our khakis and polos and then we headed to laughter therapy. We met a retired psychologist named Stan, and he gave us Indian food and spoke a little about the therapy that he provides. Then we played a few instruments and then did our laughter therapy, which basically consisted of lying on the floor and just laughing. It sounds kind of bizarre, and it was a little, but it was mainly for relaxation. Well, that’s all for today, until next time!