Dublin diary

Monday 26th
We left for Torp airport after school around 4pm. A bus ride that took about an hour and a half, filled with singing and instruments. When we arrived at the airport, some went shopping in the Duty Free others sat down for a meal, I was already tired, and we were not even half way. The plane left at 19.30 and was very crowded, but somehow Nora and I managed to fight our way through the crowd and get a whole row by ourselves. We fell asleep instantly. We stayed at a Temple Bar Hotel which is located on the south side of the River Liffey in central Dublin. The Temple Bar area is often referred as “Dublin’s cultural quarter” with shopping and lively nightlife nearby. The hotel was very nice, but we struggled a bit every time we went in and out of the room because everything looked similar. I shared room with Julie and Nina, whom I was in York with last year. It was good to catch up on things in similar environment. We unpacked our bags and went for a walk down the main street before I headed off to eat with some of the other people in a nice Italian restaurant.

Tuesday 27th
Woke up quite early to eat breakfast in subways and get ready for a long day. At 10am everyone met in the hotel lobby and went to Trinity College for a hop-on sightseeing bus! This was a great opportunity to get to see more of Dublin and get a wider perspective. First stop was Kilmainham gaol where a guide was waiting for us. The Kilmainham gaol is a former jail and it was built in 1796. Mainly Irish leaders of rebellions like the Easer Rising in 1916 for instance were imprisoned here, and some executed. It was very emotional to see the cells and the condition of the jail. No windows or heat, but cold concrete walls and dirt. The guide showed us some of the cells where famous former prisoners such as Thomas Clarke in 1916. Our guide told us that several movies and music videos have been recorded in the jail i.e. “In The Name of The Father” and “The Italian Job”. After the tour some of the pupils went to fine the bus stop, but ended up walking in circle for about an hour, so we did not have time to see any other sights, but we passed the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin Zoo, National museum and St. Patrick’s Cathed ral and many other famous landmarks. At 2 pm everyone met outside Trinity College for a historical guided walk through the centre of Dublin. The guide was extremely talented and told some interesting stories. We stopped at the Bank of Ireland, wall of fame, city Hall and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. In the evening we got an insight of Irish pub- and culturelife when we went out for a musical pub crawl starting off at a pub called Oliver St. John Goarty’s in Temple bar.



Wednesday 28th
Headed off to Belfast in Northern Ireland way too early in the morning, and it was cold and windy. The trip took about 2 ½ hours, so there was plenty of time to sleep. First we visited the Milltown Cemetery which is a catholic graveyard with over 250.000 people buried. The place is associated with Irish republicanism and Bobby Sands is one many IRA volunteers that is buried here. We also got to see Giuseppe Conlon of the Guildford Four’s grave. The volunteer guide who showed us around was a former IRA member and had spent several years in jail. Next we went further down the street to see the painted walls. Republicans have painted these great pieces of art. They show several events that have occurred during the conflict. After spending much time outside and a lot of walking, it was time for lunch.
Before we went back to Dublin, we visited the Northern Ireland Assembly where we got a lecture on how the political system works and a guided tour around the building. The place was spectacular, almost like the castle in Oslo, just much bigger. Everyone fell asleep on the journey back and went straight to bed.


Thursday 29th
Last day in Dublin! Everyone walked to the Viking Adventure museum and the Christchurch cathedral before we visited the statue of Oscar Wilde. For lunch we ate at a nice pub near the park. Rest of the day there was time for shopping before the big meal at an Italian restaurant.


Friday 30th
Packed our bags and checked out of the hotel before the bus took us back to the airport. It has been a fantastic week with many things going on constantly. I have enjoyed visiting a city and country I have never been to before, and it makes me long for England even more.

Ida