June 20 Dublin
The Little Museum of Dublin by Glenn
On the second day of our journey through Ireland and the capital city of Dublin, we visited the Little Museum of Dublin. The Museum is a single-room building decorated with posters and items donated to it, holding pieces of Dublin's history. Our tour guide, who for us was a lovely person named Seán, is a local Dubliner who lived there all his life. With the skills of an orator and passion for his topic dashed with a sense of humor, he taught us the history of Dublin one decade at a time.
The General Post Office by Max
Following our wonderful experience at the Little Museum of Dublin, the group found their way through the dense inner city, passing Trinity College, and eventually crossing the River Liffey by way of the O’Connell Bridge.We meandered north, taking a moment then and there to appreciate the wealth of eye-candy architecture and, of course, the statue of Daniel O’Connell himself, looming over us as we gathered low at the base for Professor Glennon to give a swift history lesson. We then moved on once again, curving across the road to glance down Abbey Street, an allure present with the road guarded by near-matching ornately layered and carved Portland stone corner buildings, their green oxidized copper-gilded roofs indicating a rich memory of sights for which these structures were present to witness. The group moved a block north on O’Connell before we looked left to gaze upon the towering General Post Office of Dublin, now home to the GPO museum and a still-functioning post office. The General Post Office opened its doors in 1818 on Sackville Street—now O’Connell Street—which held a pivotal role in being the impromptu bastion in which the Irish Citizen Army and Irish Volunteers, led notably by Patrick Pearse, garrisoned their fighting men inside of on the afternoon of the 24th of April 1916. It was Patrick Pearse who on that same Easter Monday stood out front of the General Post Office to read the Proclamation of the Irish Republic. The events of this Irish people's rebellion would later be known as the Easter Rising.
The Portal & Ha’penny by Fionn
After the General Post Office of Dublin, on O'Connell Street, we went to the New York-Dublin Portal, a new art installation in Dublin to connect these cities through a large live video call. At the portal, Felix got to hold a Landmark College flag and show the others in New York City our college pride. We continued our walk-through Dublin and crossed the Ha’penny bridge. The Ha’penny Bridge, built in May 1816, is the first pedestrian foot bridge over the famous river Liffey that divides Dublin. While crossing the wide, flat river, we started to head towards Temple Bar.
Temple Bar by Glenn
Most buildings don’t have space in-between them, so alleyways can be rare. The temple bar alleyway started at its Liffey-side entrance with an arched gate. Walking through it made it feel like we were passing into a portion of a castle. The streets themselves were alive with food and music shops. The alley held a small square connected to other alleyways where we could separate and reunite.
We were let loose to find things to do there and eat for an hour, which students used to socialize and explore the city independently.
