MY STAY IN DUBLIN (2) - CHISTCHURCH TO TEMPLE BAR (repost)
Jack / Darren
available on http://home.earthlink.net/~primos/
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MY STAY IN DUBLIN (2) - CHISTCHURCH TO TEMPLE BAR
Our hotel being situated just in front of Christchurch cathedral, it was
natural we visited that first.
Build in the 12th century by the Normans, it had to endure in 1878 a
neo-gothic type restoration quite heavy. The rare ancient vestiges resume
to a few stones in the front garden, to the roman style transept and the
very long crypt. Inside you can see the tomb of "Strongbow", Richard de
Clare, who conquered Dublin in the 12th century. Christchurch
became Protestant in the 16th century.
For the same entrance fee ( yes there is a donation fee in the church) you
can see Dublinia, a audiovisual show, presenting 4 centuries of life in
Dublin. The manager told me that anyway, mot much is left of the medieval
Dublin. The 2 cathedrals ( both protestant !) although build in the 12th
century have nothing more left of their original building being destroyed,
rebuild and destroyed again so many times...
Next stop: Dublin Castle .
Here also, not much is left of the original medieval castle, only 2 towers
and a bare wall. The rest dates from the 18th century.
From Elisabeth I until 1922 the castle was the residence of the viceroys of
England and the symbol of British authority. The guided visit of the
apartments is not uninteresting. Notice specially the ball gallery, Saint
Patricks Hall, with a remarkable decorated ceiling. It's here that all the
presidents of Ireland are sworn in. The Royal Chapel, rendered to the
Catholic cult, was build in the beginning of the 19th
century. Numerous sculptured heads of illustrious persons of Ireland (
English kings, Swift, Saint Patrick) decorate the interior.
It is about 5.00 PM now and we're off to Temple Bar.
Don't miss it.!! It's the quarter of Dublin where things are moving, a bit
like Madrid a few years ago with the " movida" ! Funny name anyway Temple
Bar ! No, no , it's not a temple dedicated to drunken brawlers or the gods
of nocturne bars. Nor is it a hegemonic appendant of a protestant temple
squatted by thirsty mates. It is in fact a very old area of Dublin, sort of
great rectangle measuring 500 meters long on 300 meters wide and limited
north by the Liffey and south by Dame street. The name comes from a certain
William Temple, rector of Trinity college, who build there a house in the
18th century, not far from The Bar, the name of a pedestrian walk along the
Liffey. Today it's an impressive concentration of pubs " a la mode", trendy
restaurants, avant-garde galleries, exhibition centers, animated cultural
centers, the whole in a maze of narrow and tortuous streets where it is
agreeable to wander when the night is fallen. A lot of visitors and
pedestrians but very few residents.: only 700 persons live in the area. But
in a few years ( from 1991 to 1995) a vast project of urban renovation (
one of the most important ever realized in Dublin) has definitively upset
Temple Bar. Originally it was the medieval quarter of professions and
craftsmen ( shipowners, printers, musical instrument
manufacturers, drapers, furriers....), also reputed (until the 19th
century) for his insecurity at night, his ill reputed taverns, dungeons and
shabby brothels. In the 1950's it remained impoverished, abandoned,
tattered and was squatted during the " hippie" years ( 1970)by
a bunch of alternative, and sympathetic, hyper creative " Illuminated
visionaries.
Today Temple Bar is in full metamorphosis. Will it become a display-window
" culturally correct" to please the European norms?
No need to make you a sketch ! Temple Bar , has, whatever one could say,
already lost his vagrant and bohemian air who gave the most of it's charm.
Gone !, those broke marginals, flown away with the insolvable artists,
disappeared these badly lodged wanderers. Temple Bar dreams today to become
a trendy area, animated, busy , in fact respectable, thus envied... But
let's forget those nostalgic dreams, this vast project has
also his noble aspects. priority for pedestrians ( not a bad thing),
replacement of tar by cobblestones, systematic renovation of buildings and
abandoned warehouses, protection of the area and interdiction of building
high rise towers that disfigures the landscape., creation of 5 new cultural
centers well integrated ( i must say) in the overall architectural
style : a Childrens Cultural Centre, The Ark, the Music Center, a
multimedia Center and a Center of Photography. Add to that a Viking museum
and an Irish Film Center and you will have a small idea of the cultural
revolution of this venerable Dublin quarter. That's what i call an sector
in full "revival" .
Provence, Cote d'Azur, Belgium and Dublin posts are now
available on http://home.earthlink.net/~primos/
You can retrieve all my Paris posts at my host web site
http://www.bway.net/~bux/jack.Paris.toc.html