A Very Literary Day in Ireland’s Capital
Day 1 of visiting Dublin
Yes, I’m back in the Emerald Isle! I really can’t keep myself away for long.
(Okay, before I get into things, I have to admit that this is technically an account of my second day, but since I arrived late the day prior — and was utterly exhausted — I didn’t get a chance to do much exploring. So, I’m labeling it as day 1.)
Much to my excitement, I’d booked a room in a Trinity College dorm (I believe this is only possible in the summer when many of the students are gone). So in the morning I simply woke up, got some breakfast at the dining hall, and then came back outside for a guided tour of the campus.
The tour guide, ironically enough, was also American. But, since she was a student at Trinity she still had lots of interesting facts about the school and campus. One that I found especially surprising was that until 1970, Catholics had to have an official note from their bishop giving them permission to attend Trinity (there was apparently concern that they would be converted to Protestantism). I can definitely see this being the case hundreds of years ago, but not so far into the 20th century!
The tour I chose included entrance into the Book of Kells exhibit and the library. The Book of Kells is a section of the bible that was…
