Five Feet, Nine Inches Above Ground

Monday August 12 2024

Exploring Dublin was an ongoing experience of visiting the usual historic sites, museums, libraries and exhibitions. Sussing out it’s character, it’s loves, it’s tragedies, it’s secrets, now that’s a different kettle of fish. Someone once said, the Irish always discuss things; sometimes very loudly, sometimes violently. I didn’t witness any violence, thankfully and the loudest things got was at night when the pints were flowing freely. Dublin is a nerve centre of music, art, theatre, and the fascinating dramas of daily life in a modern city. I was sad to leave the bucolic peace of the countryside and exchange it for the hustle and bustle of city life. It turned out to be an easy exchange: I explored as much of the city as I could entirely on foot.

In Kilkenny, I walked from the car rental agency through town to the train station dragging my suitcase behind me. The train to Dublin was comfortable and relaxing and I met a family from Québec happily exploring their Irish roots. Arriving in Dublin in mid afternoon, I hoofed it to the hotel on Dame Lane – in the heart of the city – checked in and set out for my current favourite spot in town:St-Stephen’s Green. It was a warm sunny day, the Irish Olympic Team had arrived home that morning to an official welcome and everyone seemed to be in a holiday frame of mind. The park was full of people enjoying the ambiance. I followed the walk that explains the events of the 1916 uprising and commemorates some of the participants. It is difficult to imagine those events on a joyful Monday afternoon and rather sobering to realize that the Republic of Ireland would likely not exist today without that seminal event. There was more to it than the park; there were other points in the city involved such as the General Post Office (GPO). So, I sat on a park bench in front of the James Joyce statue and simply contemplated the here and now. How this park, was, in some small way, becoming part of me. And then it was time for dinner! Codfish!

The food was delicious as was the drink – a mojito followed by a glass of crisp white wine. Dessert was another bit of a wander around the area. There are incredible street musicians from allover Europe and other parts of the world constantly performing in Dublin at all hours of the day and night. This fellow is from Spain.