Dublin

This morning eight from our group of 20 rode the train into Dublin.  Most of the others were headed home, flying out of Cork.  It was a very crowded train for the three hours it took to get to Dublin. The scenery was so pretty along the way.  I'll never get tired of the green hill sides lined with rock walls and dotted with sheep and cows.

We are staying in a converted schoolhouse that was built in 1861 as St. Stephen's Parochial school. It closed in 1969 but was re-opened in 1998 as The Schoolhouse Hotel, restaurant and bar.  Our rooms are actually in the basement but they are very nice.

The eight of us started out together after settling in from the train ride and had a nice lunch before walking to Trinity College and visiting its library where the Book of Kells is located.  This is an illustrated (colorfully decorated) book of the Gospels - Mathew, Mark, Luke and John.  It is written in Latin and richly decorated, most likely produced in the early 9th century by the monks of Iona, an island off the coast of Scotland. The book was sent to Dublin around 1653 for security reasons and came to Trinity College in 1661.

The library where the Book of Kells is located was built between 1712 and 1732. One floor that is open to the public is called The Long Room.  It is 65 meters in length and houses 200,000 of the library's oldest books.

From here the Floyd's and us grabbed a taxi and went to the Guinness Storehouse where we learned all about how Ireland's famous beer is brewed.  John got to pour a pint and we tasted a couple as we toured the building and walked up to the Gravity Bar for a spectacular view of the city.  It's too bad it was so busy and so noisy!!