Our trip to Dublin took place from 2nd May to 6th May. There were seven main sights we visited: The Church restaurant, Howth, National Museum, Trinity College (Book of Kells, The Old Library), Kilmainham Gaol, Enniskerry and Christ Church Cathedral.
But our very first destination was the Kinlay House hostel. We went there to leave our luggage and a few people in our group were given their rooms already.
Then to the sights…
The Church
The Church is a bar, restaurant and café. Before restoring it to a restaurant it was St. Mary’s Church of Ireland. We had a nice lunch there which included appetizer, main course and dessert. The food was delicious and as we ate our lunch, we were able to see the beautiful architecture of the building.
Howth
Howth is a fishing village on the east coast of Ireland. As our train arrived there, the very first thing we saw was the harbor and the seashore. The landscape was very beautiful and after climbing the hill we were able to see the ocean. It was really nice to walk around and watch the landscapes. The weather was warm and sunny and we were feeling happy, although our feet were hurting a little bit, but it didn’t matter. Before we left the village, some of us ate fish & chips.
National Museum of Ireland
National Museum was founded in 1877. There were two main areas in the museum: Ireland’s war history and art history. We did not have a guide during our visit and therefore we were able to walk and look around freely. It was a little different than we expected because we thought that there would be for example more paintings in the art history area but there wasn’t any of them. Or maybe there was but we didn’t find them because we didn’t have a guide. Also it was kind of difficult to understand the meanings behind the historical artifacts because they were about Ireland’s history and we weren’t really familiar with it yet. But it was still an interesting experience!
Trinity College
A student from Trinity College showed us around the whole campus area. On the tour we were able to see students and different parts of the campus. The area was wide and there were old university buildings, football fields, parks, but also quite modern buildings. Our guide told us what it is like to be a university student in Trinity college in general. It was fascinating to see what studying abroad would look like.
Book of Kells, The Old Library
Book of Kells and The Old Library were a part of the Trinity College. The Old Library has statues of great philosophers and writers like Socrates and William Shakespeare. It also has over 250 000 books. As we arrived there, we were surprised by how many tourists there were. It was like an ant hill. Everyone was taking photos and it was quite difficult to walk around there. Since we spent a lot of time there, it would have been interesting to see those books from a closer perspective. It was quite understandable but still a little disappointing that we were not able take a closer look at the books. After visiting The Old Library, we spent time in the gift shop and bought souvenirs like books, magnets and fudge.
Kilmainham Gaol
Kilmainham Gaol is a former prison, opened in 1796. As an architectural perspective, the building was very interesting and well-designed, but the backstory behind it was not so great. For example, the window on the ceiling showed the light to the prisoners who were not able to enjoy that light outside of the prison anymore. We also visited places where some of the prisoners were executed. It was cold and dark in some of the rooms which had its own influence on the atmosphere.
Enniskerry
Enniskerry is a village in Ireland’s countryside. The landscape and forests there were very idyllic, just like from a storybook. We went there by bus and the trip took about an hour. When we arrived there, we went hiking on a nature trail. After hiking in nature, we got an opportunity to decide where we would like to go to eat lunch. Enniskerry was a very beautiful little village where people seemed happy and carefree.
Christ Church Cathedral
Christ Church Cathedral was found in 1030 which means that it is almost 1000 years old! It was very near to our hostel and when we got there, we had a self-guided tour with audio guides. The audio guides were helpful because you were able to walk through the places by yourself. There were many beautiful details in the design of the church, for example the arches were very elegant.
The trip gave us new experiences and friendships which we are really grateful for. Our whole group was really nice and it was fun to get to know new people. We learned what it is like to travel abroad and take responsibility for yourself while travelling. We would recommend you to participate in this kind of trip if you ever get the chance!