Well, today started off bright and early at 5:30 am (the sun was already up, which was surprising). I needed a few things from Lidl (this will be a recurring theme in this blog), so I put on some Kesha, Charli XCX, and went down the street. No old lady to get mad at me for not getting cleaning supplies, but I did have to wait 20 minutes to get in. I got back at 8:30ish, put on some fancier pants, and Alex, Paula, Ash, and I departed for our lecture. We had the amazing opportunity to get a lecture from Rodrick Flynn, who has studied media in Ireland for longer than I have been around. We learned about RTE and the difference between state-run and national media broadcasts, plus some of the trouble that face Irish film industry might face with incoming tariffs, plus trouble with censorship throughout the years and how that has affected media literacy and bias in the Republic of Ireland. Afterward, Sean recommended Il Valentino close to the canal. A good lunch spot, I got the pizza!
Our lunch at Il Valentino
Afterwards, we linked up with a larger group and walked over and around Beggars Bush. We saw St Mary’s Chruch, which was one of the beautiful cathedrals I’ve stepped into so far.
Some of the marvelous stained glass in St Mary’s church!
After seeing that beautiful church, we went to a gas works complex. Which, while it was definitely redone, I wonder what its original purpose was before it became apartments. Afterward, we found our way to the print museums. Which interesting that the machinery was a little bit too much, and I preferred to step out got some cool pictures of the printing stamps though!
Printing stamps for writing and mass production after the era of scribes!
Moving on, we took a scenic walk down the canal to this place called The Barge (which Sean also recommended, very thankful he’s our guide). It said it had a no under-21 policy, but after the bouncer said, “If anyone asks ya, I let ya in.” I felt better, I had my second Guinness so far and had a lovely chat with an Australian brother and sister who were doing a week in each major country in Europe! They were quite great to chat with for the brief time we were there. However, the pub ran out and we left shortly after. (Not because the pub ran out, we wanted to go to the mass at Christ Chruch at 6).
My second Guinness!
I got home, had a quick bite to eat, then went over to Mass. Now Christ Chruch (Less commonly called the Cathedral of the Chruch of the Holy Trinity) had an amazing evening choir mass, also featuring many different architectural styles, with the founding in 1038, with a wooden Viking Chruch, to 1240, when the stone medieval structure was completed, and while many significant events took place there (both for the Chruch and the world as a whole) between the 14th century and 16th century it fell into disrepair leading to the rebuilding of the Chruch in 1871 which gave us the “modern” Victoria era style of Chruch we know today. The biggest part was that I walked in without a Pope and exited the Chruch with Pope Leo XIV, and regardless of the politics of it all, I thought that was pretty cool. I also briefly explored the catacombs beneath the Chruch, which had a gift shop and a few cool historical articles around. I would like to go back tomorrow morning and see them all! ◝(ᵔᗜᵔ)◜
Some of the gorgeous, stained-glass work in Christ Chruch!
Overall, a solid day. I am going to Grafton tomorrow to indulge in some retail therapy and see if I can go out to Wicklow maybe this weekend (Sunday or Monday). Stay tuned!