Week Two Blog

Week two was full of rolling hills, Murphy’s ice cream, and 28 miles of running! This week we explored Glengalough, Kilkenny Castle, and the Natural History Museum of Ireland. In the sixth century, Glendalough was founded as a small settlement between two lakes, Lower Lake and the Upper Lake. The architecture from this small village includes a Gateway, the Round Tower, the Priests’ House, The Deer Stone, St. Kevin’s Cell, St. Kevin’s Bed, The “Caher”, and several churches. This small village several places of worship and other buildings to accommodate daily life (workshops, an infirmary, and farm buildings). This settlement is significant because it provides information about Ireland’s history with religion. Kilkenny Castle is a beautiful stone structure, with ornate carvings throughout the inside, like on the handrails. The inside is highly decorated with large tapestries and oil paintings hanging on the walls. The castle is significant because it survived the war against Northern Ireland and houses old relics like antlers from the Giant Irish Deer. The Natural History Museum of Ireland has artifacts from the Irish Bronze Age, where wealthy individuals wore large, blingy gold earrings and jewelry. There were four bog bodies, that were preserved by nature (they were a little scary but definitely notable!).

I recommend that visitors to Dublin should walk around the Temple Bar area and get ice cream at Murphy’s. The Temple Bar is an iconic landmark in Dublin, with its firetruck red exterior and expansive shopping area in the square. I am particularly drawn to the upbeat energy emanating from the Bar and the unique vintage shops nearby. Murphy’s is a delicious ice cream store; they make interesting flavors that I was hesitant to try at first, like Brown Bread and Sea Salt. However, they are actually delicious! My personal order is Butterscotch and Kieran’s Cookies.

This week I ate at a Michelin restaurant! The meal came with two or three courses, which is very different from the United States. Back home, the norm is to order items ala carte, but here there was no option for just an entrée. The appetizer and dessert were discounted because they were part of a multi-course meal. The restaurant is called Ristorante Rinuccini in Kilkenny, and it was a lovely, relaxing experience overall. I got arancini as my appetizer, others got calamari or charcuterie. For my entrée, I got duck l’orange and it was not what I expected, but very delicious. I loved how the duck was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside, the carrots were perfectly cooked, the sauce was exciting to try, and the potatoes came in an adorable, miniature pan on the side. I ate tiramisu for dessert, and it was amazing! Another cultural difference I noticed while at the restaurant was that the waiters did not seem to pressure us to leave soon, unlike in America. I am used to waiters returning to the table repeatedly to get our desires met quickly and even leaving the bill on the table before everyone is finished dining. Here, the waiters were very patient and did not have that American haste; the waiters were chatting with us and wanted to hear about our experiences in Dublin thus far.

I am very excited for this upcoming week, where we will travel to the West Coast!