Today was filled with Irish history, classmate bonding, and assimilating into the Irish culture. One example of how we’re trying to fit into the Dublin lifestyle is by investing in Claddaugh rings. Meredith, who’s one of my good friends on the trip, and I bought the rings at a local gift shop for around 10 euros. Although when we went to slip our new silver rings on, we noticed that they were actually just made of really hard plastic…. So we now refer to them as cracker jack rings, but we are still sporting them with pride.
This morning I woke up feeling much more rejuvenated than yesterday; 12 hours of sleep can really work wonders. But, to be honest, the best part of the morning was Aerial House breakfast. Aerial House defines “continental breakfast” much differently than most hotels in the states. Instead of cereal and cinnamon rolls, I enjoyed scrambled eggs, smoked salmon, and scones. It was so delicious I almost cried.
Around 10:30 a.m. we embarked on a 3 hour tour (cue Gilligan’s Island theme song) around Dublin led by a very entertaining tour guide named Garbhan, who our professor described as having “hollywood movie good looks.” We began our tour at a statue that pays homage to Irish native Oscar Wilde – who, ironically, became on of the most popular british playwrights in the early 1890s.
Then while strolling past the Taoiseach’s (Ireland’s Prime Minister) residence, we heard some of the more popular theories about why all the doors are different colors in Dublin. 
The first theory is that when Queen Victoria died all of her subjects were required to paint their doors black to show their mourning, but because the Irish blame Queen Victoria for the terrible famine they endured they paid their respects by painting their doors a variety of different colors. The second theory is that two neighbors lived in almost identical homes, and one neighbor would come home very late incredibly inebriated on almost every night of the week. Then he would pound loudly on the door to be let in, rudely waking up the residents of the home. So the frustrated neighbor painted his door a bright color to direct the neighbor who “liked to have a good time” towards his own home.
Afterwards we ambled through St. Stephen’s Green and learned more about the Irish revolution and the Irish Potato Famine that ravaged the country. I was speechless when listening to the acts of desperation people performed in hopes to just survive. Families piled onto cargo ships bound for anywhere but here. These ships gained the reputation of being known as “floating coffins” because most of the passengers died on the journey to a new world due to disease or starvation. However, most families boarded these ships anyways because they knew they had a better chance of survival on the “floating coffins” than they did by staying in Ireland. Ireland’s history is dark, but seeing how they overcame the oppression and struggle shows just how resilient the Irish are.
Trinity College Dublin
Then we ventured over to Trinity College located in the heart of Dublin. Founded in 1592, it has witnessed Ireland’s transformation and, like most universities, has it’s share of quirky superstitions. Trinity College’s Old Library is home to the Book of Kells and, perhaps more interestingly, is the real-life Jedi Library. The Jedi Library that appears in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones is modelled after The Old Library’s Long Room. Notable TC graduates include Oscar Wilde, Bram Stoker, and, unfortunately, Samuel Beckett – author of Happy Days, the worst play I had to read in British Literature, and possibly ever.
Garbhan then led our group down O’Connell street where was saw the most famous statue in Dublin, The Spire. Although on O’Connell street I was more intrigued by something that was happening outside of the tour. 
Targan’s speech was interrupted by a small group of protesters who were marching down busy O’Connell street with signs protesting Ireland’s new tax on water. The street is incredibly busy with numerous double-decker buses, taxi cabs, and commuter cars thus this small bold group was the cause of major slow-moving traffic. Much to my surprise there was no honking or people yelling at them to “move along.” They just drove passively behind the group. This was the second time today I was left speechless.
Then we convened in the Temple Bar area for a traditional Irish lunch at The Boxty House. I enjoyed a fantastic Atlantic Chowder for a starter and Cornbeef and Cabbage for my main dish. During this time I enjoyed getting to know my classmates a little bit more. Somehow during the meal the topic turned to ghost stories, which turned out to be one of the most entertaining ways we learned more about each other since almost everyone had something to contribute about a place they visited/wanted to visit/or their hometown.
After lunch we meandered around the infamous temple bar area for a bit and stopped in perhaps the biggest tourist trap of them all, THE Temple Bar. 
We were lucky to find a few empty seats in the crowded bar, and like a true tourist the first thing I ordered was a half pint of Guinness. During our short stay at Temple Bar we had the pleasure of meeting a backpacker from London, a few Irish locals, and a young man named Paul. Paul was an Irish gym teacher and one of the most interesting locals we’ve met thus far. When we told him we were from Texas he asked us if we were Aggies, and of course, out of habit we scoffed at his comment. We clarified that we were students from The University of Texas and then forgave the lad after he informed us that he had stayed in Austin for a bit and even owned a “Keep Austin Weird” shirt. Paul gave us a hard time for being cliche tourists at Temple Bar because “90% of people in the bar were tourists.” We said there was no way that was true, but our case was weakened when he turned around and asked the first person he saw where they were from and their response was “Ohio.”
We returned to Aerial House around 7 p.m. and then stayed in the drawing room chatting as a class until about 9:30 p.m. In my opinion this was the most enjoyable part of the day because it served as an impromptu class lecture. Brad began the conversation by asking us what has stood out to us so far in Dublin. I mentioned a few things I took note of over the past two days:
- The locals talk to you like they’ve known you for years. Irish hospitality is not overstated.
- Ireland recently voted on a referendum of whether or not to allow gay marriage. Private businesses have posters, signs, or artwork in their windows that publicize their stance on the issue. This was interesting to me because in America if a private business takes a stance on a political issue, it’s a media frenzy that normally leads to backlash.
- Things are much more efficient here. Buses only stop if you wave them down, showers and toilettes are built to conserve water, and the servers are much more hospitable since they have a salary instead of working for tips.
Tonight we watched a bit of the Byron Nelson at Slattery’s and then a small group of us wondered over to Paddy Cullens. Paddy Cullens reminded me of MacLaren’s Pub from How I Met Your Mother, and it was sitting in that pub when I really felt like I was in Dublin.
Although I struggled to find a comprehensive packing list on Pinterest, I did find a few helpful tips on 
RocknRove 
