DUBLIN II

June 25, 2004

The next day we decide to return to Dublin to visit the Museum of Modern Art and the Kilmainham Gaol.  I was determined to undo my mistakes of the previous day, so we reverse-engineered the trip from Dunboyne to Lucan and then on to Dublin.  I noted several landmarks, but did not put down any breadcrumbs to mark our way.

We drove right into town and found the Museum of Modern Art, which is housed in the Royal Hospital.  The Royal Hospital was originally built to house old, retired or hospitalized soldiers who fought in 17^th century battles.  After being abandoned for many years it has now become the Museum of Modern Art.

I am not sure why we continue to go to Modern Art museums.  Every time we do we come away asking each other, “Who in the world would pay for something like that!?”  That is the same question we were asking each other upon leaving this museum too.

We strolled down the long driveway to visit the old jail, not expecting much and thinking about what else we might do with the day.  To our surprise the Kilmainham Gaol was a really interesting historical lesson, which we enjoyed immensely.

So far every site we have visited has had a guided tour.  This has made every visit quite interesting.  The tour of the Kilmainham Gaol was a real treat and a lesson in Irish history.  We didn’t realize that we know nothing of Irish history.  I have read Trinity, by Leon Uris and that is the extent of my knowledge of Irish history.

The prisoners at the Gaol were primarily the Irish rebels who were agitating for home rule, starting in 1594 and continuing for about 300 years.  We were able to see the cells in which famous rebels were held and learned all about the horrible life the prisoners lead in the prison.

There was an excellent display of artifacts, documents and equipment illustrating the history of this ongoing struggle.  Don and I came away with a new respect for the Irish and their plight.

Our trip home went pretty well.  We stopped at the big SuperQuinn supermarket on the way home to get more supplies.  When we headed out we found out why we missed the turning yesterday—it was impossible to find!  You had to first make a completely illogical right turn and then, after about ½ mile, you had to make a sharp left and angle back across the river.  In the end we did find the back road into Dunboyne and felt pretty good when we got home so smoothly.