So, I discovered a last-minute flight to Ireland this weekend that I couldn't pass up... the price was right and the place was new... so it was a must. And, it was so rad that two of my great [America>Hungary teacher] friends could join me. Emily, David, and I tore into the capital city Thursday evening and didn't stop going until we got back on the plane for Budapest Sunday night [1].
Unscripted exploration is what I live for! With no time to plan (and, really no desire)... we just ran around the city hitting everything we could. No matter what time we went to bed (after four:am [2]), David was out getting the Irish Independent (the local times) and reading it by seven:am. So, we got an early jump each day and didn't return until everything was closed each night.
Turns out that the people in Dublin love to drink. And, well, I wasn't going to dispute cultural mythos in the few days I had there... so I did my best to 'fit in.' Lucky for me, I love Guinness! What a treat... I could get a proper pint of Guinness anywhere I went, from breakfast to closing-time and from the pub to the brewery! I had my fair share of cappuccino, Irish whisky, and water... but I would bet I drank more Guinness than the other three combined.
Naturally, we made our way to the number one international visitor attraction of the city: The Guinness Storehouse. Ah yes, the finest brewery of the land, located at St. James Gate... seven floors surrounding a glass atrium (in the shape of a Guinness pint)! The place is ridiculous... it's more like Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory than a standard brewery. Oh, and on the seventh floor is the Gravity Bar where we enjoyed a pint of Guinness and the 360 degree views over Dublin City.
I have to say that the Irish kitchen is far superior to that of it's neighbor (Great Brittan) and I was happy to try most of the definitive dishes: Corn beef, Guinness Beef Stew, and Fish and Chips (Burdock's)... but it's still not as good as the Hungarian Cuisine...
On Friday night, we went to the historic Olympia Theatre on Dame Street to see New York's own MGMT. We scored tickets to the second of three sold out shows and had a blast! Now I don't feel so bad about missing them when they played the intimate Hi-Dive in Denver a few years ago (Sherrie got to see that show)... because this hot little venue is still under 1300 people and... well, it's in Dublin.
From the Dublin Castle to the bridges spanning the Liffey River, the city has some pretty remarkable architecutre, old > new. Oh, and we were incredibly fortunate to meet up with Emily's cousin: Isobel, Isobel's husband Shea, and their kids Hugh, Aiofe... they gave us an insider tour and offered local perspective... much appreciated!
Always an important mission of mine, I was able to reach the goal of scoping the contemporary art scene of the city... visiting several galleries and the three largest art museums of Dublin. My favourite was the IMMA (Irish Museum of Modern Art) in the Kilmainham Hospital Building. It was a beautiful campus with compelling work inside and a the refreshing Formal Gardens behind the museum. Additionally, we hit the Dublin City Gallery (Hugh Lane Contemporary Collection was incredible) and the National Gallery of Ireland. The Hugh Lane Gallery is the first public gallery of modern art in the world!
I also found the Exchange Dublin Collective Arts Centre! A space for new ideas, making connections, and taking action, Exchange Dublin creates a common public space for cross-disciplinary awareness and conversation. The space is great and the people there were so kind. In fact, I found the people everywhere in Dublin were very warm and welcoming!
And, perhaps the COOLEST DISCOVERY of the weekend, was stumbling into Biorhythm at the Science Gallery (Trinity College). This exhibition explores music and the body in ways I've never considered; I could've spent the entire day there! The thesis of the exhibit poses the following questions: What makes us dance? Why do we sing the blues? Could there be a formula for the perfect hit? Music is a central part of the human experience, but what is the natural force that drives us to sing, strum, drum and dance? What is the scientific basis of whistling, humming and toe-tapping? From an acoustic bed to sonic tables and experiments on your emotional response to pop music, BIORHYTHM allows one to feel how music moves the body through an interactive bazaar of unique sonic experiences, installations, experiments and performances from musicians, engineers and neuroscientists from around the world. Pretty dope!
And, while I was away, I see that Bryan and Sarah must have helped Luna post an announcement about my birthday on her FaceBook page... so, so much for flying under the radar. I can't even escape it when I'm on the other side of the world. At any cost, I wanted to thank all of my amazing friends and family for the kind wishes and words of support. Please forgive me for not responding to you all yet, but I will... in the meantime, know that I appreciate your love and wish you the very best in return! I also hope the Dowd's will help Luna upload some new photos of herself so we can see what she's up to these days...Footnotes...
[1] After entering the wrong concourse (therefore exiting the one-way out from the terminal), we were forced through immigration, passport check, and security for a second time and reset for an all-out sprint through the entire airport to the gate. Boarding was closed, but they sensed our panic and let us run onto the Tarmac to board as the plane was just about to takeoff... what a break!
[2] I've been told I have an Irish whisper... now I understand what it means. Unfortunately hotel security didn't like my whisper at four:am and kindly asked me to keep it down...
[3] Unassociated Tangent: I haven't missed a beat with the Rockies surge and am loving every second of it! There could be some teams in the postseason that I actually care about this year (completely the opposite of last season; my two least favourite teams in baseball were in the Series). I'd love to see the Big Red Machine make a run... and of course, Minnesota and Colorado go all the way. There's not a more exciting team in September than my hometown Rockies... I really hope they can pull it off! Dublin is repping the Rockies too, dig this sidewalk symbol...
1 comment:
You lead the right life Scaglione. That is all.
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