Chan Weng Kit's Blogspot: Trinity College Dublin

Sunday, 23 September 2018

DAY 746-752

Sept 18-24

1) Last Fri (Sept 21) was Culture Night 2018, and various venues and public spaces across the island opened their doors to host a programme of free late-night entertainment, as part of an all-island celebration of arts, heritage and culture.

2) Not wanting to miss out on this wonderful opportunity, Zi Yan and I decided to visit the Book of Kells, conveniently located at Trinity College, Dublin. So we met up at RCSI Main Campus (in town) in the afternoon. It really has been such a long time since I've visited the main library - where I spent most of my waking hours studying at last year. Anyway, we went to have buffet dinner at a place that I haven't gone before - called Mongolian Barbeque.

3) The conditions are simple - just pick all the meat and veggies that you like into a bowl, add sauces and condiments, spices etc, and hand it to the cook who stir fries it in front of a huge semicircular hot plate. It's an all-you-can-eat buffet, so multiple trips back to the buffet cart are permitted (much to the cook's chagrin I suppose).

4) I experimented with various meats including seafood, including their wide selection of sauces and condiments. I personally found the tikka massala sauce to be the best, and you could even top the bowl with fried garlic flakes and/or satay sauce! Definitely a unique and worthwhile experience, especially if you go for the early bird menu (4.30pm-6pm) which is cheaper.

5) Our appetites satiated, we walked to Trinity. At first, the line leading to the Book of Kells seemed to stretch very long, but we were surprised that it moved so quickly. After barely 10 minutes of waiting (in the cold windy weather), we were ushered in. There was an exhibition of the various books, including the eponymous Book of Kells in a separate room.

6) According to the guide, the book is over 1400 years old, and was donated to the College during the 1600's. The glass encasing the book is temperature and light-regulated, and the entire floor descends into a vault at night, to prevent any would-be thefts! It was a really unique sight, but sadly we weren't allowed any photographs in the room.

7) We then proceeded up the stairs into The Long Room - famous for having inspired the "library" scene in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. Adorning each pedestal on either side of the bookshelves were busts of famous people, including an elaborate statue of Jonathan Swift himself - the guy who wrote "Gulliver's Travels"!

8) After taking loads of pictures, we decided to call it a day. That is the highlight of my week so far, and if only I had more time (and energy XD), I would have explored more of the city. Anyway, that has been the summary of this edition of my blog, and thanks for reading. Have a lovely week ahead, cheers! :D

Food = Smiles :))

The Long Room

The Mongolian Barbeque

Spoilt for choice here

Live cooking for thy entertainment ^^

Can't wait to get started haha

Trinity College Dublin on a bright and sunny day

The long line to the entrance of the Book of Kells

The name says it all - well worth the wait imo

The Long Room!

Nobel Prize Certificate

The front facade/ quadrangle of the college

A day well spent

The Museum of Mischief - that certainly ain't no statue XD

Back to Europe's Most Advanced Clinical Simulation Suite - at RCSI! :)

Sunday, 3 June 2018

DAY 627-629

May 21 - 23

1) And just like that our Europe trip has come to an end! But that was certainly not the end of our adventures though - as we faced an 8-HOUR delay on our flight back to Dublin! It was a rather long wait at the airport, with more than a few feathers ruffled as the flight was delayed initially from 1pm to 4pm, and then 8pm, and finally to 9.30pm. In fact, there was another flight (to Manchester) scheduled at 11am, but which ended up being delayed until way past 10pm. I can only sympathise with the passengers on board...

2) Anyway, we reached Dublin past midnight, so the entire day was gone. Nevertheless, we woke up very early the next day, before taking the first bus to town. Here our amazing tour of Dublin began - with myself as tour guide of course ^^ I first showed my parents around Dublin 1, with its lovely bridges, i.e. O'Connell, Samuel Backett, Ha'penny amongst others. We walked past Custom House Quay and the Famine Memorial, before stopping by Munchies for breakfast.

3) We continued on our way to my college, stopping by Trinity College for a bit. We would have gone in to the Book of Kells, but due to the long line we decided not to. After a bit more walking we reached RCSI. It's great that the new building has been opened, so in addition to the main campus, I had another 10 floors of state-of-the-art equipment to show my parents. We took many photos around RCSI, including a fair bit in St. Stephen's Green. After this, my dad wanted me to show him where I once stayed, so I brought my parents over to Leeson St. I haven't passed by myself for at least a year now, so the walk back there certainly brought back some livid memories both good and bad.

4) With noon approaching, we took the LUAS from Harcourt to Ballaly. If you haven't guessed already, I wanted my parents to sample what I consider to be good quality buffet at a reasonable price, at Global Cuisine. We sat down for the better part of three hours, just chatting away and enjoying the good food and lovely view of the Dundrum skyline. My parents agreed that it was a really nice meal (plus I still had a complimentary food voucher left so it was even cheaper ^^).

5) After our delicious lunch, we took a slow stroll back to my second accommodation here in Dublin, in Sweetmount Drive. Again, it was pure nostalgia as I retraced my footsteps up the three inclined slopes leading to my accommodation. Next, we found our way back to Dundrum station, before returning to St. Stephen's Green. We entered the Shopping Centre for a while, before passing by Temple Bar on our way back to Beaumont. But as usual, that wasn't the end of the day. I still had to show my parents my college at Beaumont (a.k.a. Beaumont Hospital).

6) I first brought my parents to the hospital building itself, which leads to the Centre of Education extension. We visited the lecture theatres, the student lounge, and the library in quick succession. Then, we walked to the Smurfit Building to grab some photos, and that was it for today. Returned home to what would be my parents' last night here in Dublin, while I cleared up stuff in my room. The next day, we paid a visit to Northside Shopping Centre, and I showed my parents where I did my groceries. We then had breakfast at a cafe upstairs, before returning to take our luggage.

7) Emma was very, very kind in allowing my parents to stay over for the couple of nights and for driving us to the airport, where I said goodbye to my parents. It has been a very exciting and memorable two weeks, and I do sincerely hope to be able to enjoy other such trips again in the future. But for now, that's all there is, there isn't anymore XD. Thanks for visiting my blog, and have a nice day. Cheers!