We took a nice dry walk to meet our 10am walking tour. On the way passed some colorful doors of Dublin.
We met Kim, a proud Dubliner at the statue of Archibald Wolfe Tone. She gifted us two and a half hours of the history of Dublin and its thousands of years of history. She captivated us with her knowledge of her city, and shared with us its amazing inhabitants and history.
He was fuelled by the popular grievances of rents, tithes and taxes, driven by martial-law repression, and despairing of reform, the society developed as an insurrectionary movement. When, in the early summer of 1798, it broke into open rebellion, Tone was in exile soliciting assistance from the French Republic. In October 1798, on his second attempt to land in Ireland with French troops and supplies, he was taken prisoner. Sentenced to be hanged, he died from a reportedly self-inflicted wound.
We walked around St Stephen’s while Kim told us history of Irelands quest and battles to gain Independence from the British Empire.
One thing for sure Kim is a great storyteller, she captivated us with Irish history and we thoroughly enjoyed every tidbit of information.
She even told some tales and prefaced them with “don’t let the truth get in the way of a good story.”
We stopped at the residence of the President of Ireland who has held office for 2 terms, 7 years each. You could tell she respected him and even said “isn’t he cute.” Sounded like a good man.
We then walked through Trinity College where we learned undergraduates earn a degree from this prestigious college for a mere three thousand euros a year. Education is not only important to the Irish but extremely affordable. We can learn alot from our Irish friends.
We stopped at the corner where Barack Obama spoke when he returned to Ireland in 2011. Our US President delivered a rousing 20-minute speech to thousands of people at College Green concluding with ‘is féidir linn’ – the Irish version of his 2008 campaign slogan ‘yes we can.
The Obamas then travelled to Moneygall, Co Offaly. This small village is the ancestral home of Mr Obama and, despite the rain, both he and Michelle shook almost every hand in the crowd before drinking a pint of Guinness in the local.
“Never has a nation so small influenced so many”
Watched his speech again on YouTube and sure miss 44 🇺🇸 who speaks of freedom, peace and community. Bringing us together instead of dividing us.
We entered the Temple Bar neighborhood that was bustling with people on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.
She spoke of Michael Collins (Irish: Mícheál Ó Coileáin;[1] 16 October 1890 – 22 August 1922) was an Irish revolutionary, soldier and politician who was a leading figure in the early-20th century struggle for Irish independence.[2] During the War of Independence he was Director of Intelligence of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and a government minister of the self-declared Irish Republic. He was then Chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free Statefrom January 1922 and commander-in-chief of the National Army from July until his death in an ambush in August 1922, during the Civil War.
Ireland finally gained Independence from the British Empire in 1922.
Our tour ended at the Christ Church Cathedral. We learned its history and were set off to explore it on our own.
The cathedral was founded in the early 11th century under the Viking king Sitric Silkenbeard. It was rebuilt in stone in the late 12th century under the Norman potentate Strongbow, and considerably enlarged in the early 13th century, using Somerset stones and craftsmen. A partial collapse in the 16th century left it in poor shape and the building was extensively renovated and rebuilt in the late 19th century, giving it the form it has today, including the tower, flying buttresses, and distinctive covered footbridge.
Amazing tiles in the church
Even had the heart of St Lawrence
Kim recommended we have fish & chips at the oldest bar in Dublin, so of course we did.
We returned to Grafton street for a bit of shopping and a must stop at Hodges Figgis Ireland’s oldest bookshop. First established in 1768, this iconic store is located near the impressive Trinity College. If you’re stopping in Dublin to explore the bustle of this amazing city, you’ll want to devote an entire afternoon to the Hodges Figgis experience.
We devoted an hour because it was extremely toasty inside. I did pick up a book recommended by our walking tour friend.
We had a lovely sunny spell before the downpour arrived…
Walking past this “lil guy” I noticed the sign and the bench. A reminder of good things people do to help those in need.
Mendacity is the oldest charity providing food and support to those that are homeless. It is their mission to disrupt and prevent the cycle of homelessness by empowering individuals to become self sufficient members of their communities.
The blue skies bid goodbye, the clouds arrived and it started to pour so we put on our rain gear and returned to our home away from home…
We loved our great day in Dublin and clocked 6.5 miles and 16,786 steps today.
