Ireland in five days
Quote of the week
“We Irish are too poetical to be poets; we are a nation of brilliant failures, but we are the greatest talkers since the Greeks.”
― Oscar Wilde
Hello,
Long time no see. I have been busy with several trips and being ill so no energy for some time. My last letter on 3 May was about Hans Memling’s The Final Judgement. A reader asked for a photo of it, and I just must have forgotten to add it. So, here it is. Not the best of photos. There always seems to be a lamp at the wrong place in the museums. It is available on line for those of you who are interested in more information and a closer look.
In the meantime I have been to a five day trip to Ireland with the EU pensioners’ club, the Swedish section. It is always fun to be with this group and we had a wonderful time in Ireland.
Galway
We flew to Dublin and a bus took us to Galway where we stayed for a couple of nights. First stop the next day was the amazing Cliffs of Moher. The spectacular cliffs sits at a height of over 700ft in the striking landscape between the Burren and the Wild Atlantic Ocean. The cliffs were formed over 320 million years ago, and is today a special protection area for birds and wildlife. As you arrive you can take a left or right turn. We started to the left by walking along the wild cliffs which give you a great view of the ragged coast.
Going to the right you come to O’Brien’s Tower with views towards both south and north. We did not climb up the tower, but the view was still great. The Tower was built in 1835 by Cornelius O’Brien, a descendant of Brian Born, the first High King of Ireland. He was a local landowner and a forward looking man who foresaw the coming of tourism. He also saw a future for the local, poor people who would benefit from tourism. It is a magical place.
The evening was free so Lena and I exited the bus in Galway city to visit a thrift book shop and have something to eat. Charlie Byrne's Bookshop is said to be Ireland’s best-loved independent bookshop. Here you find over 100,000 books: new, second-hand, bargain and antiquarian. A paradise for me, and I could have spent several hours in there. Around 6-8 different rooms, full of books from ceiling to floor. I grabbed a few and asked if I could leave them on the counter while looking for more. I asked if there was a limit on the number of books you could buy, but unfortunately there was not. I left with ten books. How I would get them into my hand luggage was a later problem. After the visit Lena and I went to a pizzeria for dinner.
Dublin
We were lucky to have a hotel in the heart of the city, Wynn’s Hotel. Before we came to the capital we visited the Kilbeggan Distillery, situated on the river Brosna in the County Westmeath. Its licence to distil dates back to 1757. Today, mostly a museum, but they still have some production here. It was fascinating to walk around the old tools and barrels with which whisky was made in the old days. I guess the process is more or less the same today, although the barrels and troughs are more modern. The enthusiastic tour guide took as around the premises and at the end a whisky tasting took place. I am not a whisky drinker, but the guide said that the first sip is a shock and feels very strong, the second sip is milder and you start thinking that it is possible to drink, the third sip is pure enjoyment.
The second day in the city we visited St Patrick’s Cathedral. An imposing building both from the inside and the outside, it was founded in 1191. Since 1870, the Church of Ireland has designated the Cathedral as the national cathedral for the whole of Ireland and its members of 12 dioceses. The office of the dean has existed since 1219 and the most famous office holder was Jonathan Swift (1667-1745).
He is more famous as an author, satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer and poet with his most famous work being Gulliver’s Travels. It might not come as a surprise that he originally published his works under a pseudonym.
He was buried in the cathedral by the side of Ester Johnson, according to his wishes. Esther Johnson (1681-1728) was an Englishwoman, a close friend of Swift, and known as “Stella” in his writings. Still today it is not for certain whether they were married or not, since it was never made public. Let’s hope that they were happy together.
Farmleigh House
This manor house is situated in the huge Phoenix park in the outskirts of Dublin. It was once the home of the Guinness’ family for many generations. Today it is owned by the state and is used to accommodate visiting dignitaries and other guests of the nation. The house is from the Edwardian period and houses various collections of arts, furnishings, books and manuscripts. The library is a dream for every reader. The orangery is still used today for functions, as well as the beautiful ball room.
In the even we went to an Irish evening where we enjoyed Irish music and river dance. That was the end of an active day.
Oscar Wilde
You can’t talk about Dublin without talking about one of its greatest sons, namely Oscar Wilde. On the next day we were to visit the university where he studied and look at the famous library. Unfortunately, due to demonstrations the visit was cancelled. I decided to walk over to the park, opposite his first home, to look at a statue of him. I was lucky enough that the Monday was a holiday and therefore his home was open to visit.
It is a beautiful house, now the home to the American University. You start by watching a film about his life which was very interesting. Afterwards you walk around the house. Most of the rooms are today lecture rooms, but there are a few rooms with a few furniture to give you an idea how the family lived. His father was Sir William Wilde a oto-ophthalmologic (ear and eye) surgeon. He also wrote books about Irish archaeology and peasant folklore. His mother, Jane, also wrote poetry under the pseudonym “Speranza” and might have influenced him in his future career. Both parents were part of the social life of the city and kept a salon where famous authors like Sheridan Le Fanu, Charles Lever and others participated.
Opposite the house is a park where a statue of Wilde has been erected. While I passed by, there was a visit from an Italian school class. The guide, spoke in English so I presume they were there to improve there English, talked about the statue and asked if anyone knew who it was. There was a total silence. Maybe, I should have spoken up, but I did not want to interfere. It is a lovely, and unusual statue, which very well personifies the man.
Referring to Wilde’s quote above, I must say I do not agree with him on that one. If he had seen all the great Irish writers today, he might have said it differently. Anyway, that was a few things to see in Dublin, but there are much more to enjoy. However, I have to leave something for next time.
Just to finish with some good news. Sweden just won over Finland 2-1 in a very good, exciting game at the World Championship in Ice hockey. Ready for the semi final on Saturday.
Ireland is my absolute favourite country. The people, the countryside, the towns, the villages. Just perfect.
Thanks for letting me take part in your trip.
We're planning to do a few days in Dublin when we head to the UK in October so this is especially interesting to me! It looks like a wonderful tour. Did you see the Book of Kells or go to the Guinness museum?