History!

History! History! History!

Coming to Ireland I was incredibly excited about the rich history that can be found around every corner. Lucky for me two of my classes center themselves around the history of Ireland at large and more specifically the history of Dublin. This week I was fortunate enough to participate in two history centric activities, a walking tour of old viking Dublin, and a trip to the National Museum of Archeology. Both experiences were “grand” as they say in Dublin. The walking tour featured sites used for viking defense, cathedrals where early settlers worshiped, and other important artifacts known to be connected to the cities viking history. Each of the students on the tour were given a place to research and then subsequently share with the group on our tour. I was really excited to do some of my own research on Isolde’s tower which was used as the first line of defense for vikings against invaders from the river Liffey. Equally as exciting was the trip to the National Museum of Archeology. Among the many incredible artifacts, the bronze age jewels and the historical books were my highlights. It is so cool to imagine those pieces being worn by important people of that era, or those books being read by religious leaders.

While my week was full of exciting historical ventures, I also made time to hang out with friends. We made a trip to Murphys ice cream, when I say it was the best ice cream I have ever had I am not exaggerating. We also took a trip out to a close coastal town Howth and did a beautiful cliff walk. It was great to get out of the city center and explore the beautiful landscape.

All in all it was a great week, I am excited to dive deeper into my courses and visit more new areas of Dublin!