Welcome to Hotel Washington...

Well this past week we had our first visitors.  My roommate from medical school (Serena) and her husband (Dave) flew from Chicago to come see us...and Ireland of course. Serena is a 3rd year OB/GYN resident and Dave is a cardiology fellow.  Luckily, they were both able to get the time off together to make the trip.  They were here for 7 days and managed to pack in quite a lot.

The Sunday they arrived was the final day of the Tall Ships Festival.  We walked around and had some lunch before these two headed for a nap!

The following day Chad had to work but Serena, Dave and I headed out to do some sight-seeing.  First stop, Trinity College.   It was a rainy day but we made the best of it and really had a great time!! Trinity College was founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth the 1st.  At that time the British were in control of Ireland and the Queen felt the area needed a university equivalent to Cambridge and Oxford in the UK.  Since then the school has continued to expand and now has a medical and law school.  Famous graduates include Oscar Wilde, Jonathan Swift, and Bram Stoker.

The central bell tower

Our tour guide was great!!

Front building on the square

Love this massive wooden door!

Gorgeous concrete columns. Each was decorated with different leaves.

Sculpture outside the library.

Serena and Dave!

Despite the fact that the campus is gorgeous and has a lot of history...another reason to visit Trinity College is the Book of Kells.  The Book of Kells was given to the University in the 1660's and is now housed in the old library.  The library is the largest in the country and has a copy of every book published in the UK and Ireland....over 5 million books!!  You can't take any pictures in the library... but I was able to find a few pics online to share.

Rows and rows of books...There is a second story on top of this!

Birds eye view of inside the library

The Book of Kells was written in 800 A.D. by a group of Celtic monks. The script is in Latin on calf skin and contains the first four Gospels of the New Testament.  Beautiful hand painted images that reflect the writing are scattered throughout.  Originally, the pages were bound in a gold and jeweled cover but at some point in the 11th century it was stolen.  The cover was taken and the pages were buried in a field.  Luckily a farmer found it returned it to safety.

The fact that the book has survived this long is amazing.  What a neat piece of history!! The library itself is also a work of art.  It reminded me of the library in Harry Potter with gorgeous wood paneling 3 stories high and ladders to help you reach the books.

After the library we walked around town, did a little shopping and went to lunch.  So far I can honestly the say the food in Ireland is excellent.  Just about every place we have wandered into has not disappointed! The Green Hen was no exception!

Many more adventures from the week to tell but I think that will do it for now!