Right where they belong

The Consummate Tourist

Steve with his arm around the invisible naked man on Grafton Street

Kilmainham Gaol Museum

This was a jail tour that was truly worth the fee.  The jail itself has been used in films such as In the Name of the Father and The Italian Job. 

 The tour starts in their museum with lots of information regarding how prisoners were housed, the changes made to try to make them more likely to effectuate rehabilitation, info about the prisoners themselves, many of whom were there for stealing bread or potatoes or other food items during the famine years, and many of whom were women and children.  

At this jail they implemented the process of "mug shots" so they could keep records and pictures that would allow them to track repeat offenders.  The benefit for us being that you could see the info and mug shots of people who truly should not have been imprisoned.  

The history of the jail also shows how they moved from placing several prisoners togther in one big room into segregating the prison population into smaller, separate rooms.  The attempt to give each prisoner their own cell was a fairly new and modern idea that would better allow for keeping non-violent criminals protected from the violent population.  Though separate cells were the goal, they often housed 5 persons per cell and only allowed one candle per cell which had to last for 2 weeks.  The jail was made  of porous lime stone so it was cold, it was damp, there was very little light and some had to sleep on straw on the cold,  damp, hard floors.  They also apparently attempted to implement a better diet for prisoners which in turn made it sometimes a (slightly) better alternative to starving during the famine years.

 Thus, the museum points out the ideas of prison reform that were broached, but the place is a cold, dark, forbidding fortress that leaves one a bit shaken during the tour.  

The jail was opened in 1796 and closed in 1924.  It housed political prisoners of the numerous rebellions, the last being the Easter Rising of 1916 which resulted in incarceration for Eamon de Valera.  He was, along with numerous others, sentenced to death but it was later changed to life in prison.  

There were many executions carried out at the prison, initailly by hanging, and later, by firing squad.  One of the youngest to be executed was James Fisher who was only 18 years old.

One leader of the Easter Rising, Joseph Plunkett, married Grace Gifford, another prisoner, the night before his execution.  They were married before a wooden altar in the chapel, which was built by a 17 year old prisoner who was incarcerated for 7  years for removing a wagon wheel.  Grace was also imprisoned, and in her cell she painted a picture which is still  there.  She became an artist and political cartoonist, still suportiing the ideals of Irish freedom for which she and her husband were incarcerated.  

James Connolly was executed while sitting down because  he was unable to stand due to wounds received in the uprising.  He was not housed in the jail, as he was in the hospital where  he would   surely die of his wounds, yet they transported him to the jail for execution there anyway.  Unable to sit up on his own they tied him to his chair for the firing squad.  

This action, along with the 16 executions of the Easter Rising, pushed public opinion towards greater sympathy in the call for freedom from English rule.  

This picture shows  an archway in the jail which says:

Beware of the Risen People

That have harried and held,

Ye that have bullied and bribed

The Bewleys Hotel

Holy Water on Tap

Entrance to Dublin Castle Courtyard

Waiting for our Tour

Views from the bar at the top of the Guinness Factory

Medieval Tower of Dublin Castle

Guinness factory in Dublin

Drove to Dublin Friday night.  It takes about 1-1/2 hours to get there. Stayed at Bewleys Hotel in Dublin - a little further  out but a lot cheaper!  It was about a 20 minute walk to Grafton Street, which is the walking plaza in downtown Dublin.  The plaza is a lot like downtown Boulder being all cobblestones and shops.  There are street performers - lots of singers, people preaching, people trying to help those who are having alcohol issues, homeless people, and lots of tourists.  There are a lot of bicyclers and you have to be wary because they tend to go VERY FAST!

We walked around Friday night, and then did some tours on Saturday and Sunday.

First up was the historical tour where we walked around and listened to a lot of history of Ireland.  Interestingly they told us that recent DNA research indicates that the Irish are  NOT descendants of the Celts.  Still, the Irish have certainly embraced a lot of Celtic traditions and such regardless of ancestry.

To start our tour, we had to meet at Trinity University which is large and lovely.  We bought our tour tickets online and didn't bring our receipt but the guide said "No problem, you're great!"  Gotta love it here - they are so easy to work with!

On our tour of the city we visited a Catholic Church that was very large but essentially hidden from the street, as was required under English rule, when Catholics faced large scale discrimination and persecution.  The church survived, both physically and metaphorically, and  mass was being said while we were learning about it.  We also went to Dublin Castle which is also,very old.  There is a tower still standing that was built in medieval times.

We dined at a pub where we chatted with  a man from Limerick who identified himself as an amateur historian.  (emphasis was his)  His wife and grandkids were at the zoo and he was taking a respite. He was interesting to talk to and told about how he had actually met Bill Clinton!  My experience thus  far tells me a lot of folks here have met our former president.

After lunch we took a bus tour and ended at the Guinness Factory.   Tickets were a bit pricey but you get free pints (or water or soda or whatever you want to drink) at the end.   We were pretty tired after that (well,  Steve and I  were anyway) but we ate at an Italian restaurant and then found a cab to  take us back to the hotel. It was a lovely day!

So Ireland really IS at the end of the rainbow!  Okay, lots of rainbows here, which means, you guessed it - rain!   But the rain is usually fairly short-lived so far, and a day that starts cloudy may end up quite sunny.  It also still stays fairly warm even if it's raining.  Dogs seem to love the weather since it doesn't get too hot for them.  They also like my sabbatical as they get more walks and attention when I am not working!

Tonight we are going to board the dogs and drive to Dublin for the weekend.  It should be a fun trip, and we have scheduled a walking tour that will cover historical info and sites.  The tours are given by  graduate students from the University.

Will try to get a lot of good photos of Dublin and the family there.

I am getting better at this.  My mantra to the kids used to be "I can make memories, or I can preserve memories, but I can't do both!"

This kept me from feeling a need to keep up with the photo albums - but blogging is easy!

It is the end of the Rainbow

This is along the path we take to go from the movie theater to the mall (park) which is part of the leisure center.  It runs along the creek which goes all through Longford, through the mall, and out past Abbott and behind our house.  A lot so people fish in it, but we haven't figured out what exactly they catch there...

Juice Boxer in Longford

Taking a walk with the dogs after dinner.

Again Clearly American

A view of Downtown Longford

Yesterday we went to a movie at the Omni Theater in Longford.  Movies were about 6 euro, which is about $9 so comparable to prices back home.  There was no AC so we didn't freeze in the theater.  They do not have Junior Mints which was a bummer - as we all know they are very refreshing!  But they had other candies which they keep refrigerated so they don't melt.  Theater seats were very comfortable and they had stadium seating.

We walked around Longford, ate at a pub, chatted with the owner, and walked home.  Weather was fine, a little rain, then sun, then rain, then sun, it changes frequently.

Fridge is working fine now and we were able to shop for a good supply of groceries and I guess this means I get to cook.  Yippie......

We currently have a loaner car (the one Abbott provides has to go in for a "check-up") and the loaner is a manual.  I can drive a manual BUT this would mean shifting with my left hand so neither I nor the kids is interested in seeing if I can handle it!  I have managed roundabouts, finding my way around (with more than a little help) and driving on the left so let's stay successful and not push it with a manual....

This morning I took advantage of the morning sunshine and after walking Steve to work the dogs and I went to the leisure center and walked the mall  (which is apparently the term for a park).  When we got home there was a letter delivered which the mail carrier puts through the door slot.  It was for Zach from Kirstin!  It was a lovely morning and now it is clouding over.  It will rain, but it might be brief, who knows?!

Siblings and Pals

Clearly American

Ireland is at the end of the Rainbow

Rosses Point, County Sligo