DAY 9
DUBLIN CITY TOUR
OVERNIGHT IN DUBLIN
2011 Tour Members Meet the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Gerry Breen
©2011 Photo by Michael Reed ~ Creative World Travel
Enjoy a sightseeing tour of the capital with a local guide, who will bring the
city's history alive.
The 18th century was
Dublin's Age of Elegance when the Irish gentry set about
remodeling the city into one of the most elegant in Europe. Terraced town houses
were built, forming handsome new streets and squares. Merrion and Fitzwilliam
Squares have survived, with some of Dublin's finest architecture.
Leinster House is a stately mansion which houses the Dáil and the Seanad, the
two chambers of the Irish Parliament. It was originally built for the Duke of
Leinster in 1745.
Once the seat of the Royal Exchange, the Georgian municipal building today
houses the city authority, called the Dublin Corporation. Twelve columns circle
the domed central rotunda, which has a fine mosaic floor and 12 frescoes
depicting Dublin legends and ancient Irish historical scenes.
Saint Patrick's Cathedral , Ireland's largest church, was founded beside
a sacred well where St. Patrick is said to have baptized converts around 450 AD.
Christ Church Cathedral, one of two Protestant cathedrals in Dublin, was built
in 1172 by a Norman,
Strongbow (Richard Fitzgilbert de Clare), whose remains
are buried in the cathedral, beneath an impressive effigy. It was restored to
its former splendour in the late 19th- century. The crypt is Dublin's oldest
surviving architecture.
Portrait of William Butler Yeats
by John Butler Yeats (1900)
National Gallery of Ireland
If you are of a literary bent, Dublin will be a treat. It is the only European
city to be the birthplace of three writers who received the Nobel Prize for
literature in the 20th century -
William Butler Yeats,
George Bernard Shaw and
Samuel Beckett.
The Dublin Writers Museum , housed in two restored 18th-century buildings, has
exhibits which focus on these great authors, as well as James Joyce, Jonathan
Swift, Brendan Behan and Oscar Wilde.
Ireland Past and Present at the National Gallery of Ireland
©2012 Photo by Michael Reed ~ Creative World Travel
Afternoon Free to Enjoy as You Please
Many have enjoyed an afternoon visit to the famed
Guinness Brewery. There are four floors of exhibitions and cafés.
The "Gravity Bar" on the top of the building provides visitors with a
commanding 360-degree view of Dublin.
The admission is 14 Euros (12.60 Euros, if booked online), which includes an audiovisual
presentation, a tour of the
Hopstore (admission to the brewery itself is not allowed) and
a drink of the dark brew.
The
National Gallery of Ireland displays not only Irish artists, but virtually every school of
European painting.
The collection is considered one of Europe's finest, with more than 2,400 paintings, as well as
sculpture, drawings and prints. One could easily spend an entire afternoon here
(and then want more time for the excellent gift shop with its superb selection of
books, prints and cards.)
The National Museum of Ireland,
opened in 1890, displays artifacts through
the ages, including the
Tara Brooch and the
Ardagh Chalice.
The Natural History Museum focuses on the zooligical aspect of Ireland's history,
with collections on wildlife.
Nearby Leinster House is the meeting place of Ireland's government. The office of the
Prime Minister is there.
The LSU Tiger Band Dazzled Spectators at the 2014 Saint Patrick's Day Parade
©2014 Photo by Michael Reed ~ Creative World Travel
