Day 4: Dublin

Today we spent the day in downtown Dublin. We started out by going to see the Book of Kells in Trinity College. This is a book made in 500 AD comprising of the four gospels. The book was given to Trinity College in the 1200's. I found this amazing not just because they've had it for so many years, but that the college has existed for that long! The book has been beautifully preserved and the colors are still vibrant on the pages. Today the book was turned to a page in the Bible where Jesus describes the tree of life. After that, we went to this library area with lots of old books, statues of philosophers and scholars, and other museum items. It was a breathtaking room!

After we were done at Trinity College, we were free to explore Dublin for the rest of the day. I branched off with Bonnie and Sarah, and we ate lunch from food we got a grocery store. I've decided that I need to buy more food at grocery stores because it supplied me with both lunch and dinner for a price cheaper than any other meal I've had on this trip. On top of that, I really think I will be happy eating a baguette for every meal on this trip.

Then we wandered around the city and went into random shops in Dublin. I bought my one souvenir from Ireland--a thin leather watch from a vintage clothing store. We went back to our hostel to drop things off, and ended up taking a two hour nap instead of going back out. Eventually, we did though. I spent the last of my euros at Penny's--a store similar to Forever 21 with cheap clothes. I could have spend so much more money there so it was good that I only 10 euros left to spend.

We had to spend some time today doing homework--which consisted of interviewing locals about Gaelic and Irish dialects. We talked to this old man named Cirean who was very friendly and eager to talk to us. I've said this before, but one of things I loved the most about Ireland are the old men here. They may all love their cigarettes and alcohol, but they are the funniest, friendliest people in the world.

My conclusion about Dublin is that it is a dirty, crowded city. I loved seeing the country much more than I've loved the city. But Dublin has good shopping and food--just like any other city which is always great. I find it interesting that the city isn't very vertical like cities are in America--meaning that Dublin doesn't really have any skyscrapers or large buildings. It has very old and beautiful architecture though, which is fun to look at as you walk by. And just like all the other towns we've seen in Ireland, it has lots of beautiful bright colors.

Tomorrow we head to Wales. I'm sad to leave Ireland, but I'm excited to see Wales, too!