Northside walk

It’s been a productive day. I get up, do my usual breakfast routine, update my to-do list with new job postings, complete a couple of CMA lessons, then lunch. My back and hip feel better… I guess flipping the mattress helped? It’s still relatively nice out, partly cloudy, and a little cooler than yesterday with highs in the low 50s F / upper single digits C. I head out for a walk around 3:00pm, crossing the O’Connell Bridge again but going more into the northside of town.

Some close ups of the O’Connell monument near the Spire:

A touristy statue of James Joyce:

The General Post Office (GPO) building, famous for being the headquarters of the leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916 with bullet marks still visible on its facade (in the foreground is a memorial to Jim Larkin, a workers right advocate with arms raised):

I continue walking up O’Connell to Parnell Square, where I come across a blatant example of the street changing names seemingly arbitrarily:

Nearby is the Garden of Remembrance, which I’ve visited on past trips but haven’t stopped by it since my arrival last October — it commemorates “all those who gave their lives in the cause of Irish Freedom” during the many uprisings against British rule. If it’s not obvious, the tiled mosaic pool is in the shape of a cross:

The prominent sculpture located on a raised dais at the top of the park’s cross layout is based on the Irish legend of the Children of Lir in which the children of the sea god Lir are transformed into chained swans for 900 years:

Left of the statue is a poem written by Liam Marc Uiarin in the traditional Irish aisling “vision” style of poetry. Titled “We Saw a Vision,” the poem illustrates Ireland’s dream and path to successfully attaining their independence.

We Saw A Vision

In the darkness of despair we saw a vision,

We lit the light of hope and it was not extinguished.

In the desert of discouragement we saw a vision.

We planted the tree of valour and it blossomed.

In the winter of bondage we saw a vision.

We melted the snow of lethargy and the river of resurrection flowed from it.

We sent our vision aswim like a swan on the river. The vision became a reality.

Winter became summer. Bondage became freedom and this we left to you as your inheritance.

O generations of freedom remember us, the generations of the vision.

A detail of an Irish harp in the park’s fencing:

The Betel Romanian church across from the Garden of Remembrance, a digital artwork in from of the Hugh Lane Gallery, and a view of the brick Georgian buildings looking back to the Spire:

I walk further up all the way to Mountjoy Square park where I sit for awhile. There are red string lights hung up in the trees, perhaps for Chinese New Year?

As I meander through various streets back towards city centre, I come across a pub named the “Confession Box” which I think is hilarious:

An odd side of a derelict building:

A map for reference:

Late afternoon I hear back from a recruiter about one of the job applications I recently submitted. Unfortunately, she just emailed to let me know my application wasn’t being advanced, but since she’s taken the time to contact me I reply asking for feedback. She emails me back a little later on. As I’ve been suspecting, having an accountancy qualification seems essential for the types of jobs that interest me— if recruiters don’t see that, then then it’s an automatic pass. At least it’s good to have my assumption confirmed.

Until next time….

Northside walk

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