Dublin – Day 1 can be found here.
After a quick breakfast at the hotel we were off to meet up with our private guide for a tour of Trinity College and the Book of Kells. After recommendations from family we decided to use Context Travel for our tour and they were fantastic!
The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript that was created by monks on the Isle of Iona and was completed around 800 CE. It’s made it through the centuries almost entirely intact despite being made of vellum and the pigments remains incredibly vibrant.
Our guide was able to explain the process of making the book in a way that engaged and fascinated the kids. They especially liked learning about the all the steps that went into making the pigments used to illustrate the manuscript.
Next up we saw the actual manuscript. We were fortunate it’s still available to be seen as it’s scheduled to go off display for a few months while they upgrade the area.
Photo from the Trinity College Digital Collections
The majority of books from the old Trinity College library are also being removed. Apparently after the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral the decision was made to upgrade the fire protection systems and rethink how these books are stored.
After the Book of Kells we had a chance to explore more of Trinity College (there’s some great fossils) and we happened to stumble upon a graduation ceremony. It was lovely seeing all the proud graduates in their gowns surrounded by their beaming families.
Then it was off to the National Gallery of Ireland where there was a scavenger hunt put together by our guide to keep the kids engaged.
After a lot of walking it was time to head back to our hotel for afternoon tea. It had taken some back and forth but I’d been able to confirm that The Westin Dublin does indeed offer a children’s tea as well as a more adult-focused tea. The menu is subject to change but I’ve included an example of what’s offered.
Photos courtesy of the Atrium
After tea we headed back out to Grafton Street where we allowed the children to each make a souvenir Lego minifigure at the Lego store as a way to remember this trip. Then we headed back to St Stephen’s Green for a stroll through the gardens and another trip to the playground. This time there appeared to be a school field trip at the park and it was absolutely jammed with kids.
No one was feeling particularly hungry and everyone was tired so we just ordered pizza and ate in our hotel room for a break from all the noise and busyness. And after repeatedly checking the weather report it looks like the rain will hold off, at least for the morning, so we went ahead and bought Dublin Zoo tickets for tomorrow. We also decided to try and squeeze in a self-guided tour of Dublin castle as an adventure for the afternoon. The castle tickets are for timed entry and there are only limited numbers sold so we did some time estimates. Hopefully we’ve calculated how long zoo, lunch and taxis will take so we can do both excursions tomorrow.
Then it was off to bed as tomorrow is likely to involved at least as much walking as today.
Continue reading Dublin – Day 3.