Again we let the weather decide our fate today. With the rain falling, and the forecast for a better day tomorrow, we chose to explore the city today, leaving our drive deeper into the country for tomorrow.
It was clear early on, that Dublin was not a large thriving metropolis so we would not need any bus service. While we could have seen Dublin Castle, St Patrick’s Cathedral, Trinity College and the Book of Kels, with it raining we thought we would be better staying local and so settled on our first stop being Dublinia, a historical museum on the Viking and Medieval history of the city.
After walking the 4 blocks huddled under our 2 small umbrellas, we arrived at the entrance of the building which was attached to St Michael’s Tower and in turn to Christ Church Cathedral by an old, enclosed stone bridge over the road. We bought a ticket which allowed us to explore all 3 landmarks.
The first floor documented the Viking history of Dublin with static, multimedia and interactive displays. The boys were surprised to learn, that although they did pillage and destroy villages, taking slaves back to Norway, the Vikings were not necessarily the merciless warriors that they are often portrayed to be. Rather they were farmers who only sailed during the Winter months when crops weren’t grown and worked on the element of surprise carrying crude weapons to pillage villages of valuables like religious artefacts.
The display gave us insight into the Viking reigns over Dublin, how they lived, their weapons and boats and their pagan religion. The boys played Hnefatafl, a strategy board game similar to chess, against a man in character as a Viking and he seemed genuinely surprised when they pants him at his own game. Audrey enjoyed the dress ups and they all were amused by the model demonstrating how peat was used as poo tickets.
The next floor documented the medieval history of Dublin, obviously starting with the fall of the Vikings. The static displays became even more elaborate with the centrepiece being a large scale model of Medieval Dublin which showed how the city has changed through an audio commentary with lights spotlighting the changes. Shooting off from the model were rooms that recreated significant elements of medieval Dublin life, like disease, working on the docks (the centre of Dublin life), religion, food, crime/punishment and entertainment.
We went upstairs and the kids were able to complete multimedia quizzes and archaeological experiments which they loved. After some important souvenir purchases, including a Viking drinking horn, we climbed the 96 stairs of St Michael’s Tower for a view over the city and my first glimpse of the afternoon’s destination at St James’ Gate. We also had a bird’s eye view of the floor plan of a Viking home that had been carved into the pavement below.
Our final part of the tour took us across the old stone bridge and a walk through Christ Church Cathedral. The kids weren’t initially excited to be entering another church but were handed a sheep trail when we arrived. The challenge of finding the names of all of the hidden crocheted sheep kept them entertained while we admired the intricate detail of the church’s interior. We were even able to explore the 11th Century crypt (the oldest intact building in Dublin) that housed some remarkably old tombs and other ancient treasures including a book of sheet music composed by Handel which he himself conducted a performance of in the Cathedral.
Originally our plan for the afternoon consisted of me at the Guinness Brewhouse and Yvette taking the kids somewhere of interest to them, but with it raining they decided to join me at the brewhouse for lunch at least. We had planned to eat first, but it was too close to my scheduled booking for the Guinness Academy to be certified in the famous 6-step perfect pint pulling process. Instead, Yvette and the kids explored the incredible information centre while I completed my training.
After pulling the perfect pint, and drinking it, I worked out a way for Yvette to complete the training also so the kids sat with me while Yvette worked through her certification. The instructor for Yvette’s group offered an additional free pint to the best pint in her group so she went into competitive study mode, asking for the criteria like a good student. The questions and attention to detail paid off though because she secured me another pint.
Next, we ventured to the eateries for Guinness inspired meals. We enjoyed the standard Beef and Guinness stew and a Guinness marinated beef burger with chips and a Guinness dipping sauce. They were unbelievably tasty and filling.
After our late lunch it was time for the main event. I was taken into a private bar with a small group for a connoisseur experience. The experience was facilitated by the head beer educator and involved tasting the entire Guinness range including beers unavailable back home. During the experience I matched Yvette’s earlier feats by winning a free bottle of my choice (Dublin Porter) for correctly identifying that the bottled Guinness Extra Stout is the same recipe as the draught Guinness with the only difference being the bottle is carbonated and the draught uses nitrogen.
A number of pints and bottles, and lots of beer Geek conversation later, I emerged from the bar with a pint of freshly squeezed Guinness draught to drink at the famed Gravity Bar which provides the highest and best views of Dublin. It was a cracking afternoon. I couldn’t leave without a visit to the gift shop where I was surprised to find the rest of the gang who had been totally entertained by the displays through the visitors centre. With some purchases in hand we headed home via the supermarket to gather supplies for dinner.
Mark (on behalf of the wandering winrows)
wanderingwinrows 