Dublin, the capital of Ireland
The famous not only in Dublin but even beyond it Abbey drama theatre was founded by the National Theatre Society of Ireland in 1904.
In National Art Gallery pictures of Irish masters as well as artists of different countries of the world are kept. There’s a good collection of old Russian icons in the gallery.
National Museum, Natural History Museum, Dublin Museum of Literature and Irish Museum of Modern Art have interesting collections. Museum of Bernard Shaw is also among the famous. It is located in Killiney, a suburb of Dublin.
Dublin’s university is called Trinity College. In 1591 English queen Elizabeth Tudor chartered founding of the first university in Ireland. The authorities of the city gave a piece of land outside the city walls with dilapidated buildings of former Monastery of All Saints for construction. Now the university is in the center of the capitol. Its former students are such famous philosophers, writers and scientists as Jonathan Swift, bishop Berkeley, Richard. B. Sheridan, physicists Boyle and Moline.
The university’s library is so rich. The first set of books was sent here from London in 1601-1608. In the library’s fund there are many rare editions; among them is “The Book of Kells” – an illustrated Gospel written by hand in the monastery of Kells in VIII century, an outstanding artifact of ancient Irishmen’s art.
The main street of Dublin – O’Connell Street – is named after the first Lord Mayor of Dublin, the leader of the movement for Irishmen’s civil rights. In the beginning of the street there’s a monument in his honor. A monument to Irish patriots who died fighting for freedom and independence of their motherland is of note. Swans are soaring over the monument as personification of liberty. In the city there are erected statues of saints with crosses pressed to their chests who bless the passers-by.
All O’Connell Street, Grafton Street that continues it and all the lanes deviating from it are a continuous row of shops and places of entertainment. The biggest market place of Dublin with piles of vegetables and fruit is also situated here. This downtown area is vivacious until dead of night. Restaurants, bars, night clubs, discothèques and pubs are working.
But as a whole Dublin is a very quiet city. It can be noticed even in its appearance. Only government buildings and those of business companies rise higher than two or three floors. Residential buildings have one and two floors. The streets of the city are well-shaped rows of houses of the same height, similar facades, lawns and flowers before them. Dwellers of Dublin prefer to have their own little houses with little gardens.
There are 650 pubs in the city. A pub is not just a drinking facility but something like a club, a site of social activity. Downtown there are three or four pubs per block. Every pub has its own face. There are young people’s and students’ pubs, workers’ and farmers’ pubs; in other pubs actors, writers, poets, journalists and policemen gather together. Business appointments, dates, meetings of charitable institutions, unions of hunters and fishermen, admirers of flowers, interviews and discussions, dancing parties and folk song parties, exhibitions, fashion shows and press conferences take place here.
On week-ends the favorite pleasure spot of Dublin’s dwellers is Phoenix Park, which is bigger than all the parks of London. Here the residency of the president of the Republic of Ireland is located. A herd of deer live in the park. On its territory there are a race track, a zoo, golf-links and other things. The park’s name has nothing to do with the resurrecting firebird and is derived from a shining brook.
Sand and stone beaches of Black Rock, Donmery, Killiney and other towns on the shore are as popular. In Donmery, Killiney bay there are yachts, steam-boats and jolly-boats, which is typical for a coastal town.
Translator: Mikhail Chirkov
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