We tried our very best to do St. Patrick's Day in Dublin right. By doing it right we meant to do as much as we could physically handle. Dublin, it turns out, throws quite a shindig for Paddy's Day, and while we weren't able to do everything, we were able to turn it into a fun-filled, memory-packed 72 hours. Come with us on a little photo essay of our big weekend.
Follow the jump for the full photo gallery.
We began on Saturday, walking into City Centre to participate in the Dublin City Council Treasure Hunt. The flowers are coming into full bloom here in Ireland, and the parks were beautiful and not yet crowded early on Saturday morning.
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| Daffodils at St. Stephens Green |
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| Stop Looking At Me, Swan! |
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| Tulip Alert! |
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| Makes the Heron the back of my neck stand up! |
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| I Said, Stop Looking At Me! |
The registration for the Treasure Hunt was at Dublin City Hall, wherein the great heroes of Ireland are memorialized in white statues ringing the main room. These modern founding fathers are wearing their period suits and shoes, but have classical Greek togas draped over their work clothes. Standing in particular Greek style is Mr. O'Connell, the largest statue of the bunch.
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| Daniel O'Connell |
We signed up for the hunt, made our plan of attack, and off we went into the bustling city with our green swag bag (pictured later). Our team name, appropriately, was Dublin Hawkeyes.
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| Treasure Hunt List |
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| Da List |
Our first target was the nearby Chester Beatty Library. We had visited the Beatty several times before, and knew a quick way to the entrance. At each destination, we had to find the answer to a clue and receive a stamp from a festival volunteer. At Beatty, we got our answer from the back of the museum pamphlet with a little nudge from the festival volunteer.
The next stop was Tailor's Hall, listed (and I'm not kidding) on Back Lane. Sadly, Dublin's free tourist maps aren't comprehensive, especially when dealing with the kind of streets that might be named Back Lane. After a few wrong turns (and passing several times within a hundred feet of this unmarked building) we found our target.
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| Tailor's Hall Dublin |
Next we had to check in the Temple Bar Gallery of Photography. The current show featured the classic art of a famous Irish photographer. We counted the number of photos featuring giraffes (yep), got our stamp, and continued.
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| Dublin Gallery of Photography |
On our way to the General Post Office, we snapped a photo of a Shamrock Shake ad in its ancestral home, the O'Connell Street McDonald's. Mickey-Dees, the most classic of Irish eating establishments.
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| Shamrock Shake Sign |
Another new site for us was the Royal Hibernian Academy. In the academy there is a gallery, in the gallery there is a painting, beneath that painting is a painter. We recorded the painter's name, got our stamp, and fought the crowds to the final leg of our tour.
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| Royal Hibernian Academy Dublin |
Not pictured are our stops in the National Archaeological Museum and National Gallery. Both of these we had visited before and it was getting close to lunch time.
The last stop was the Little Museum of Dublin. This aptly named small showroom normally charges admission, but waived the entrance fee in honor of The Hunt. We had to find the full-size human sculpture in the U2 room and identify him/her. The U2 room? Yes, a whole museum room full of U2. Just full of it. I couldn't handle all the U2 in my face and ears.
The full size figure turned out to be Bono in some clown makeup and devil horns. Apparently he goes by some strange alter-ego stage name Mr. MacPhisto? Maybe he can join Insane Clown Posse, I'm sure Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J would accept him into their weird Juggalo family. Here I am suggesting to Bono that he might be the original Juggalo.
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| Listing off, "What is a Juggalo?" |
We got our final stamp after positively identifying I.C.P. Bono, and were off back to City Hall!
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| Finished Treasure Hunt List and Swag Bag |
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| Cory and Sara With Treasure Hunt Completion Certificate |
After the Treasure Hunt, we turned in our form, recorded our time, and were ready for a break. Tune in next post for the continuing adventures of St. Patrick's Day weekend 2014.
It's mad how sometimes we don't realise there are so many places to visit in Dublin. I haven't been to half the sites you mentioned,so it gives me ideas for when friends will come to visit !
ReplyDeleteThe treasure hunt was a great opportunity to see some of the lesser-visited sights. Also saved us a few Euro on entry fees at places like the Little Museum. Glad to have been a help!
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