I went to the Chester Beatty Library where I saw the most AMAZING exhibit!!!!!!!!! On display was the Codex of Leister of none other than (may I have a drumroll please?) Leonardo DaVinci!!!!!!!!!! Oh, it was phenomenal!! they had on display 18 sheets (written on four sides....as in one sheet folded in half yeilding two sides per half for a total of four leaves). It was mostly about water and the hydrologic cycle, the relationship of the sun and moon with each other and how the moon must have had water on it to reflect light the way it does. There were also some personal tidbits and lists thrown in. I saw a 1472 copy of La Comedia di Dante (it was actually give the name La Divina Commedia by Boccaccio) and also some poetry of Petrarch in Latin. The work was amazing...there were copies of many of the works that Leonardo consulted or owned in his library.....fascinating stuff really!!I made it back to the national museum and finally got to see the Book of Kells which was SO NOT WORTH IT!! but I did get to see the longroom (?) it's the old library at Trinity College ....oh the smell in there....old paper and books and well-kept wood.....much better than the Book of Kells. And here I made such a big deal about going and seeing it....sigh
and then my interesting last night in Dublin began.........
I met a Dubliner but he skipped out on me....the whole thing was very weird. I made it to The Temple Bar (most famous, I hear) it was around nine and still bright like fecking midday (this puzzles me still....how can it still be light like that at 11 at night? I simply fail to comprehend this) and so I decide to take myself out for a coffee at Bewley's (where I had tried to have coffe the night before, alas it was closed) so I'm on my way over there when I pass this sort of improv street theatre thing where this woman was recounting some story about a child an old man and an orange (what the feck? you may be asking....and yes, I second that what the feck?) when my viewing was interrupted by said Dubliner named David. Quite a nice fellow so we walked and talked and walked some more....nedless to say I ended up at the Temple Bar instead of a Bewley's drinking beer instead of coffee.....David had already had "a coupl'a pints" and was working on a coke bottle which was half full with VODKA (who says the Irish aren't open about their alcoholism?? there's nothing to hide!! complete denial, agreed, but totally open about it all the same) and we get the Temple Bar and he's on another pint. Now I was thinking before I left my room that I sort of wanted to go there because it is sort of famous and I did sort of want at least one beer in Ireland (c'mon, it's Ireland!!) ok, so we're sitting along the river liffey (which he totally fecked up and called "the Liver Riffey" <----I swear that really happened, I couldn't make it up) and he tells me that he wants to buy me a drink.....I'm looking at the time thinking that it's kind of late (but damn that bright sky is deceptive!!) but I agree. We get to the bar and he didn't even finish his beer (only half way) when he announces that he's got to use the toilet and keeps assuring me that he's going to use the toilet and will be right back. Beers are paid for, so quite frankly David, I don't care if you don't come back because I've gotta go back to my room and figure out how to readjust my baggage so I'm not over the weight limit (which I was by five kilos incidentally, but the lady was cool and didn't charge me anything!! WOO HOO WE LOVE THE IRISH!!) not to mention that the first two nights were great because I was alone in the room but on the last night I had all three roomates in....one guy from England and one from Australia who were travelling together (but were a little unfriendly to begin with) and some totally weirdo (but seemingly nice I guess) dude named Benedict from Ghana who came in with two empty small suitcases telling me very openly about himself asking me if I am religious and wanting to know if I believe in a superpower (read: divinity) (I told him yes, I do believe in a superpower....ME! he didn't like that very much.....I told him I had a machete in my suitcase he left me alone) then he went out for a bit and came back with yet another larger suitcase and a bunch of stuff to fill the smaller suitcases. he told me he was on his way to someplace else (wales maybe?) and that he could teach english math and science in the United States if he wanted to ......he was leaving at 5 in the morning and I was happy he was gone when I woke up (as was everyone, coincidently) but back to my David story......to after all his reassurances that he was going to the restroom, David never came back. David also spent the last 15 minutes of our conversation telling me that he loved me. I told David I was happily married to a German. I think David might have been ajust a bit drunk. But this is all good because I spend the next half hour chatting with a Dutch couple about world politics (another very warped dude who seemed to sort of agree with the nazis......sigh) Needless to say, I had a very VERY interesting time in Dublin..............
and now, here's me!!! (I've heard one should never ever do this, but what the hell, I can always delete it no?)
Ah yes, I can still hear the waves crashing on the shore.......... damn it sucks to be landlocked!!
