Shelby's Travels

Last day in Ireland 😢 I think it was just the right amount of time in Dublin, but I will be back to explore the rest of the country!

We started our day by visiting Glasnevin Cemetery. It was the first Catholic cemetery in Ireland. Ireland was actually a Protestant state because of Englands rule. So the Catholic faith was not supported for a long time. Prior to 1832, Irish Catholics had no cemeteries of their own. Because of the Penal Laws, this places heavy restrictions on the public performance of Catholic services, it had become normal practice for Catholics to conduct a limited version of their own funeral services in Protestant churchyards or graveyards.

We took a self guided audio tour and learned a lot about the people buried there, as well as how Ireland gained its independence, the civil war, and why the North chose to be separate.

There also used to be grave robbers who would steal the fresh bodies for medical research for the local schools.

At the end of our tour, we got to climb the OConnell tower. It is 200 steps up and has views in all directions.

After this, we walked back towards our Airbnb exploring neighborhoods and then grabbing a bite to eat. Little did we know, today was a big day for sports in Ireland. There was a semi final Rugby match for Leinster v Northampton and the whole town was out to watch it!!! While the match didn’t start till 5:30, the pubs were filling up starting at 1.

After lunch, Matt had to head back to work on some final grad school projects for a few hours. I made my way into the city centre, 1. To find a coat (because per usual, Shelby didn’t pack the right clothes and is cold😓) and 2. To watch the match!

Matt was able to join after a few hours, just in time to see the end of the match.

Then comes dinner… which i forgot to take a picture of, but we had fried Irish Brie and Beef and Guinness stew. Soon followed by some drinks!

Followed by a little sweet treat 😋, a crepe with Nutella and marshmallow!