We made it!! We have just completed Day 2 of our trip. We spent all of Day 1 traveling and arrived in Dublin at 8:00 local time this morning. We are six hours ahead of Houston time. Despite two lost (and then found) passports, we all made it and have learned some lessons in responsibility! (One of those kids may or may not have been my own!)
We love our tour guide, Satyen! He loves to travel and knows a great deal about the area! On our way from the airport into Dublin, we rode along the River Liffey where we saw replicas of ships from the 18th and 19th centuries which carried people from Ireland to the Americas. Specifically, we saw the Jeanie Johnston replica which made 16 trips to the Americas! Surely some of us have ancestors who came over on it!!
We also saw a beautiful bridge made to look like a harp - one of the symbols of Ireland’s Celtic/musical history. After a short free time to walk around and eat a little brunch, we did A LOT of walking. We visited the Carmelite Convent which holds the remains of Saint Valentine. We also visited The National Museum of Ireland where we saw Bog Bodies - people whose bodies have been preserved since the time BEFORE Jesus! It was crazy, disturbing, and amazing - all in one! Check out this link to see what we saw http://www.museum.ie/Archaeolo
Apparently, one of the Bog Bodies is on display at The Natural Science Museum in Houston! A few people recognized the pictures of it!
We didn’t purchase much today because we wanted to experience more before buying the memories, but we did notice quite a few things. There are shamrocks everywhere, which we expected, but they are three-leaf (not four). Satyen told us the three leaves represent the Holy Trinity and that the four-leaf clover is supposed to be lucky. Therefore, it wouldn’t make much sense for it to be everywhere!
After not getting much sleep on the plane, our mantra for the day was “Don’t Fall Asleep”! So, Satyen kept us moving, and the cold air helped us stay awake (along with a trip to Starbucks)! On our way to dinner, we stopped at St. Stephen’s Green which is Dublin’s much smaller version of Central Park. It was very beautiful and nice to see some greenery after realizing how business-like the city of Dublin is.
As we continued our walk, Satyen quizzed us on multiple flags including that of Ireland. Here we learned that the flag is made of only three colors - Orange represents the Protestant faith, Green represents the Catholic faith, and the White between them represents the peace between the two faiths. We have learned a great deal about the split between Ireland and Northern Ireland over theses religious issues.
We had a delicious dinner at a local “bar and grill” where they served us traditional mashed potatoes, chicken, and crusty croissant and green beans. Some of us loved it. Some of us didn’t care for it, and others only cared about sleeping. So, as soon as we finished, we loaded up our bus with 14,000 steps for the day and drove to our “hotel” which is actually the dormitories for a local university. I was a little concerned at first, but it turns out that they are perfect for our group of kids!
Most everyone was in bed before 9:30 p.m., and I am about to go to bed, as well! We have a full day tomorrow and need plenty of rest to make it through!
Sincerely,
Jacqueline Hughes
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