Dublin Day 6: Museums of the Future and Times Long Gone

At 3:30 AM I arose this morning, groggy but excited, if not a little sad. Manchester had been wonderful, and I was sad to leave so soon, but also excited to get back to Dublin. I took an Uber to the airport, where I speedily made my way through security, since they use a train-like turnstile system to feed passengers through(no TSA agent cross checking your boarding pass with your identification). Interestingly enough though, when you purchase items within the airport, you must show your boarding pass to the store clerk. I was very early for my flight, so I read some more and perused the British tabloids(yikes). I got on my flight without a hitch, and arrived in Dublin this morning around 9. The weather is currently very nice; sunny with luscious clouds(but freezing). I took a quick break within the city for yet another Hot Angel(white hot chocolate), and then went over to the hostel to check in.

After dropping off by larger backpack, I took my camera, book, and umbrella south across the river, with my sights set on the Science Gallery and National Galleries of Ireland. On my way to the Science Gallery, which is run by Trinity College Dublin, I had the good luck of walking through their campus, which was alive with students and filled with intricate stone work. The entire campus is walled off from the rest of the city, and makes you feel like you have been transported onto the grounds of an ancient castle complex somewhere in the distant Irish countryside(if you can get past the pigeons and seagulls). After admiring the campus, I made my way to the Science Gallery, which is located within a modern glass building a bit south of the main campus. Once there I was free to roam the galleries, which boast themselves to be at the forefront of the intersection of science and art, which they proved themselves to be. My favorite instillation was on the second floor, and consisted of a central unit comprised of 100 ‘neurons’, that were controlling several different outlets that circled the main unit at about a 2 meter radius. Each one was different; one was an XY plotter with a pencil, another was an oscilloscope. Essentially, as the neurons processed information, the extremities would react in some way. It was really cool and made me think about other variations this project could have, such as an array of lights that could move up and down to create a 3D terrain type of thing, that responded to some form of input, like ambient noise or motion. Besides this exhibit, there were also ones concerning how to spoof your geographic location, a wall of spinning Christmas tree saplings, and how artists used weather balloons to stitch together images of borders. It was all super neat stuff, and certainly inspired me to examine my knowledge of the sciences through a more creative lens.

After the Science Gallery, I made my way over to the National Galleries of Ireland, which houses your usual types of romantic art, along with a couple modern pieces and sculptures mixed in. For me, this museum was more fun to walk around and look at the architecture and how the art was arranged throughout the museum. There were many long hallways connecting series of rooms that have very detailed woodwork framing the doors, which was cool. Along with this, there were really ornate rooms throughout the museum, some with large chandeliers and some with grand ornate stair cases. Overall it was a good experience.

From the National Galleries, I went back to the hostel, to relax and get ready for the trip home tomorrow. I’ve had a great time in Ireland and the UK, and feel refreshed and ready to finish my last semester of high school.

Manchester Day 2: University, Art, Books, Oh My!

Today I woke up earlier than I had on most other days, neglecting when I needed to catch a flight: 8:30 AM. After getting a start to my day, I walked from my hostel to the University of Manchester, beginning along a series of paths along a canal that were beautiful. It was incredibly serene, and I was the only one out. From there, I headed down Oxford Road, rather ironically, to the University of Manchester, where I stopped at Greggs and had some standard British take away fare. From there, I went to the Manchester Museum, which is a small natural history museum that relates to Manchester and is run by the university. It was nice to walk through, and see their modernized take on a natural history museum, with neon light headings and striking arrays of items.

After the Manchester Museum, I hung around and read my new book about Kevin Mitnick that I had picked up yesterday. I accompanied it with a Crunchie Mini McFlurry, which was exactly like how you think it was. After that, I walked over to the Manchester Art Gallery, which had stunning displays of art, old and new, across mediums. One of my favorite exhibits was one centered around Halima Cassel, a Pakistani artist who hand carves stunning geometric patterns in stone. The exhibit on design was also cool, and reminded me of the Cooper Hewitt in NYC. After looking at the art, I took another break in the cafe there, and had a nice slice of lemon cake. Once I had rested and read more about Kevin, I got up and made by way over to the John Rylands Library, which was nice to walk around. The intricate stone and stained glass work could have captivated me for hours, but since I ducked in at the last half hour, I had to speed through the grand halls and passageways.

From there I walked over to the Arndale shopping center and did some window shopping. It was your typical mall stuff. When the sun started to set, I walked around the city center, just appreciating the warm glow cast by the sun onto the ornate buildings(until the rain set in once more). I then went back to the hostel, where I went to sleep in preparation for my early awakening the next day.

Examples of Halima Cassel’s work.

Manchester Day 1: 'Balancing' the Flight, and Exploring

This morning, at around 3:40 AM, a rather young and energetic man burst into the waiting area in the front room of the hostel I was staying at in Dublin.

“I have 7 seats for the 7 of you who come right now,” he said. There were 3 of us. His face kind of fell, but he regained his smile a bit when we each handed him the 6 euros we were paying him for the trip. Then, we loaded into his big white van(usually a red flag in the US), and he began to speed through the city streets at a break neck pace. It was the perfect pick-me-up after having been awake for nearly 20 hours at that point. Fearing for ones’ life always gets the blood pumpin’.

After we reached the airport and I had to walk around 400 meters to the terminal, I realized how cold it was(somewhere in the 40’s with a windchill that made it feel much lower). Then, I went through security which seemed like the process you go through when you go to a gym in the US, not an airport. Like a train ticket, I simply scanned by ticket on a sensor on a turnstile, and then was let through. Then I just had to take the liquids and my laptop out of my bag, and I was free to go.

After that, I settled in and got a ham and cheese sandwich along with some Tayto crisps. It was a pretty good breakfast. Eventually I boarded my Ryanair flight, in the dim light cast by the Irish sunrise, which was kind of an electric Mountain Dew green that I had never seen before.

It was a beautiful sight, until the stewardess began asking people in the first and last 5 rows to move, so she could balance the plane.

Balance the plane? I thought, with a bit of fear rising in my chest. So this is why the flight was so cheap.

However, everything went smoothly, and I am writing to you now.

After I got off the flight, I made my way to the train station from the airport that would take me to the city center. Endeavors such as these always remind me of how much I have to learn about public transportation, seeing as I accidentally sat in the first class section twice(the man on board was very nice about the whole thing). Even though I wasn’t in first class, the seats were very nice, and the views of the different towns speeding by were very nice.

I then arrived in Manchester Piccadilly Station, and walked to the Science and Industry Museum, stopping at the Alan Turing Memorial along the way. It was nice to see that all of his work was being recognized, even posthumously. From the Turing Memorial, I made my way through China Town, and then across to the museum. I had arrived a bit before it opened, so I sat in the cafe and had a hot chocolate along with some blueberry overnight oats.

Once the museum opened, I was excited to learn about Manchester. The museum is packed with artifacts and displays honoring Manchester’s rich history concerning power, trains, and computing. I think I liked the computing portion best, because it was the most in-depth; the other exhibits had mainly surface-level information. In addition to this, a special textile exhibit was also very cool, since a special room had been filled with old machinery that you could interact with.

As far as I could tell, this museum is as close as you can get to a children’s science museum without calling itself one. School children, young and old, at home and abroad, were running and screaming through the halls, which could make it hard to focus at times. However, if just one of them decides to pursue science, then I would count it as a great success. Overall, if you are not familiar with the rich scientific history of Manchester and would like to learn about it, I recommend visiting the museum on a weekend, or later in the day, so you can avoid the school crowds and fully appreciate the exhibits.

Then, I walked back towards the city center to a bookstore called Waterstones, where I picked up the memoirs of the most wanted hacker in US history, and sat for a little bit. On the way from Waterstones to the hostel, I popped into multiple supermarkets, both to avoid the sparse rain/hail, as well as to see if there was anything different between the UK/Ireland. Overall they seem to be the same, with the UK having slightly more pastries/sweets, and Manchester having larger supermarkets than Dublin.

When I finally got to the Potato Wharf(the location of my hostel), I was pleasantly surprised. The hostel was located on a beautiful waterfront property, and was nice and secluded from the hustle and bustle of the city. Additionally, the amenities here along with the general feel are very new and nice; the beds are even fully equipped with a reading light/device charging fixture.

At this point, I caught up on some house keeping stuff and got settled into the hostel. I told myself I would nap and then go back out for the sunset, but I slept through my alarm so maybe tomorrow. Overall today was a good day, but certainly a test of my travel endurance.

Dublin Day 5: UCD

This morning, I took the bus from the Dublin city center to University College Dublin. UCD is around 30 minutes from the city center by bus. Once there, I went once again to Insomnia Coffee, and this time got some food in addition to my drink(a chicken mango chili wrap, which was quite good). There, I finished The Demon in the Freezer(amazing book). Afterwards, I strolled through the UCD campus, which is also the home of Ireland’s National Virus Reference Lab(this was especially interesting to me after reading The Demon in the Freezer). The campus is very new, and has a remote feel to it, even though it lies in the suburbs of Dublin. On the tour, we began by looking at the academic buildings, which were very new, and looked like something out of an IKEA catalog. The dorms matched. The student rec centers were alive with students, and had many activities going on, such as swim practices, debate tournaments, and talks. Overall, I liked the school. However, I’m not sure if there was enough in its favor to bring me to Ireland over Purdue, especially given the benefits and flexibility a degree at Purdue offers.

After UCD, I took the bus back into the city, and window shopped. Near Trinity College Dublin’s campus, I ate at a tiny Italian cafe. I had a really good pistachio cannoli, and a chicken pesto calzone so good I think I will have dreams of it in years to come.

After dinner, I returned to the hostel, and did some house keeping tasks, such as laundry. A nice Russian man helped me sort out how to use the machines. I am now writing this to you, with around 4 hours until I leave for the airport for my flight to Manchester tomorrow(it is currently 11:50 PM). I plan on pulling an all nighter, because I cannot trust that I will wake up to an alarm if I go to sleep. Cheers, and I’ll write to you tomorrow.

Dublin Day 4: Howth & Indian Food

I started today a little late again, and took the DART north to Howth, which is a coastal town famous for its seafood and cliffs. Once off the DART, I made my way north along the shore, and admired the pastel colored shops and houses, along with the bright boats. Following the main road, I began to climb in altitude, and eventually made it to the trail head after about 25 minutes of walking. From there I braved the steep and crowded trails in my doc martens, and was met with stunning views. The cliffs were alive with the wind, and the sea swirling below added a flair of danger that made your heart jump a little. It was an invigorating experience.

After the cliff walk, I returned to town, where I went into the Howth Market, which is a small collection of outdoor stands that sell food and souvenirs. There I got a hearty bowl of clam chowder. Afterwards, I walked down the dock, and looked at the boats that lined it. Next to one such boat was a large seal, that playfully bobbed as us tourists walked by. It was quite cute.

After this, I hopped back on the DART, and took it down to Dun Laoghaire, and then back into Dublin just to admire the scenery. I think you learn a lot about a place by riding public transportation. I loved seeing the different houses, and differences between towns.

When I got back into the city, I went to a Super Value and got a pack of 2 fresh pastry-type things, that were filled with Chicken Tikka Masala filling. While basically the Irish equivalent of gas station food, they were delicious. Further down the street from the Super Value, I had some really good gulab jamun(dough balls soaked in sugar syrup).

After this, I again ended this day on the bridge, just the same as the day before. Tomorrow is my tour around University College Dublin, and I am very excited.