My highlights of this week were the Irish Museum of Modern Art, the farmer’s market, and Kilmainham Gaol. I also saw three castles, ate shepherd’s pie, and ran 28 miles!
Our weekend trip was to County Cork and County Tipperary. The villages that we visited were surrounded by miles and miles of green hills and cows. The towns had local coffee shops, with a delicious lemon cake and cappuccino. We saw the Rock of Cashel, the Blarney Castle, and the Cahir Castle. The Rock of Cashel has a dorm, a church, and a graveyard, all built out of cobblestone. The church had carvings and flying buttress ceilings. The Blarney Castle and Blarney Stone was our next stop. We stood in line for two hours on a very tight spiral staircase and precariously stacked stone tower. I did not overly enjoy kissing the Blarney Stone, because I was horizontal and upside down, so an individual was grasping onto the tourists to ensure they do not slip down.
I took the bus with a friend to the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA). The IMMA is a lovely castle with video installations, sculptures, and tapestries by Irish artists. I learned about the history of women in Ireland. In particular, I loved Hilary Heron’s sculpture works in the Garden Gallery. She primarily worked in brass, walnut, welding, wires and stone. I observe that she took influence from Picasso and African art to make abstracted figures out of simple shapes.
My favorite part of this week was the Farmer’s Market, perhaps because the weather was absolutely gorgeous. There was a lively buzz from all the shops, sellers, and customers. There was an extensive assortment of fresh baked goods, garden grown produce, aromatic food trucks, and handmade jewelry. I thoroughly enjoyed my Mediterranean lamb and falafel wrap in the shade with a friend.
Lastly, we visited Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin. This prison was an important location for Irish history, due to the Easter Rising. Irish republicans were protesting British rule on them, so they rebelled in 1798. Almost 500 civilians died and most of the leaders were executed. The inside of the jail was limestone and the cells were overcrowded, so many people got sick. The museum also had an exhibit with prisoner’s personal belongings, including heartbreaking letters, a lock of hair, jewelry, and religious texts. After our visit to this location, I explored around the deer-filled Phoenix Park, which is the largest park in Europe. I also ate the most delicious ice cream ever, it was Biscoff flavored from Cloud Nine – highly recommend!
