Tuesday sept 19 joanie decided to stay at the hotel and rest her ankle. On our way to meet our bus to Belfast yesterday she tripped on the uneven cobblestones and twisted her ankle, and unfortunately smashed her ph screen. 

Sandy Jan and me (muriel) figured out our walking route and made for the Immigration museum (EPIC) 

The day was warm and sunny.  The museum tells the story of the people who left Ireland in search of a better life. Conflicts, the potato famine, economic problems and religious persecution drove the Irish from their beloved homeland. Many did not survive to their new destinations and the stories of such immense hardships were very disturbing! The stories of why people left and the influence the Irish had throughout the world was told in 20 different rooms.In each room you could stamp your museum passport before moving through to the next. 

As you progressed in the rooms information about the various and numerous contributions Irish people made to the world were documented. Many well known. George Bernard Shaw, James Joyce, Maureen O’Sullivan, Oscar Wilde. Twenty three American presidents claim Irish descent. Writers, inventors, . Movie stars.  There was even a room where you could put in your surname to see if you had Irish ancestry. 

We spent most of the day at the museum.  If you are ever in Dublin you shouldn’t miss both this museum and the Guinness brewery.  Highly recommend both! 

Our next stop was Sweney Pharmacy, which is not a pharmacy at all.  It was recommended, quite highly we thought, by our tour guide on the bus to Belfast.  It wasn’t far from the immigration museum.  We arrived and were quite surprised by how small it looked.  Inside seemed even  smaller! It was probably a space about 10x10 and crammed full of books. Books from floor to ceiling along with many paintings of James Joyce. His books  were also prominent along with George B. Shaw and other Irish poets and writers. The old man who ran the bookstore/pharmacy seem to be a perfect fit to run the place.  We didn’t want to stay too long, Sandy bought a book of short stories about Dublin. As we bid our farewell we were invited back for 7pm when there would be a ‘reading’. 

Back at Hotel Marlin we met up with Joanie who had searched out some restaurants for the evening. We made a reservation at Davey Byrnes, again not far from our hotel.  We had a cocktail called James Joyce Choice. James Joyce figures prominently in a lot of establishments! It was delicious.  I did note they also served Guinness ……but imagine most if not all places in Ireland do!  Dinner for joanie and I ( muriel) was a wagu burger, Jan had chicken, Sandy had lamb stew…..which wasn’t very good.  The waiter took her meal off our bill. Nice!  

We finished our night off with Gelato at an ice cream shop on our walk home.