{"id":906,"date":"2014-08-23T17:41:57","date_gmt":"2014-08-23T22:41:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bojnberry.ca\/~berry\/blog\/?p=906"},"modified":"2014-08-24T02:33:34","modified_gmt":"2014-08-24T07:33:34","slug":"my-european-adventure-day-12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bojnberry.ca\/~berry\/blog\/?p=906","title":{"rendered":"My European Adventure*, Day 12"},"content":{"rendered":"

*I\u2019m beginning to think this is a lame name. Shame it’s already 11 days old…<\/p>\n

TL;DR: I checked out the cathedrals and libraries near the hotel, and conned it up!<\/p>\n

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View from my hotel window<\/p><\/div>\n

Ah, morning in Ireland. I top-o-the-morning\u2019ed myself, got ready and headed down for my first Irish breakfast. It seemed a lot like a full English breakfast, but with added blood pudding. My next quest was for the laundrette. There isn\u2019t one near the hotel, and the hotel itself, being swank, charges through the nose for laundry (\u20ac4.50 per pair of undies, for instance (Hah! I just double-checked that since it seemed so outrageous, and it’s actually \u20ac4.75@. Yikes!)), so I found a place that was a 15 minute walk away and found it closed when I arrived. Fortunately, I\u2019d passed another moments earlier, and that one was open! Free of my burden, I made my way to town.<\/p>\n

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One power bar to rule them all<\/p><\/div>\n

I meant my first stop to be St. Patrick\u2019s Cathedral, but on my way there, I passed a sign for the Marsh\u2019s Library<\/a>,\u00a0a public library founded in 1707. It\u2019s virtually unchanged since then, to the point of not having new books added (with rare exceptions) since 1745. There\u2019s a strict \u201cno photography\u201d rule there, otherwise I\u2019d have a million pictures trying to capture the atmosphere of the place. They had a special exhibit entitled \u201cImagining Japan: 1570-1750\u201d, looking at how early western writers viewed the country, despite its seclusion. All works had been taken from the shelves of the library. Ditto for their Lublin to Dublin exhibit, featuring Hebrew texts. As I was on my way out, I heard the door open and the docent (erm, maybe she wasn\u2019t a docent, I don\u2019t know) ask where the newcomers were from. Croatia was the answer. I turned the corner and saw Irena and a few of the other Croatia group that have come to Shamrokon. Heh. Small world.<\/p>\n

We chatted for a bit, then I headed on to St. Patrick\u2019s, quite an interesting cathedral with several layers of rebuilding done to it. It has the feel of several different buildings because of this. I arrived at the time of peace prayers, so I was able to hear the Lord\u2019s Prayer in irish.<\/p>\n

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Some awesome flooring (Christ Church)<\/p><\/div>\n

After that, at the prompting of the Croats, I went to the Chester Beatty Library on the grounds of Dublin Castle. There they had an exhibit called \u201cThe Art of the Book\u201d, showcasing block-printing and calligraphy and illumination and all the things that made medieval (and later) books so brilliant to behold.<\/p>\n

Then, Christ Church Cathedral. By this time I was alliterated out, and I took the place at a jog, wanting to get back to the hotel and in the room for my first panel. It was quite pretty inside, and had the best floor eva.<\/p>\n

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Can you see what’s wrong with this picture?<\/p><\/div>\n

I had a full dance card the first day of the con, going to four talks and the opening ceremonies. Briefly, here\u2019s what I thought:<\/p>\n