Trim

Sorry loyal followers but there have been a lack of posts due to the lack of adventures in my life. I, along with the other members of the Wolf Pack, have been busy studying for finals and haven't had time to take Ireland by storm like we usually do. We have, however, had a lot of time to introduce Laura to the trash TV that is The Real Housewives of New Jersey.

Yesterday I woke up and since I don't have another final until Thursday it seemed like the right time for an adventure to Trim Castle in County Meath. I woke up at 10 am and seeing that it was a beautiful I quickly found when the next bus for Trim was leaving and started on my way, fueling myself with an apple and a Crunchie candy bar- the breakfast of champions.

I often feel like Blanche Dubois because in Ireland I really "depended on the kindness of strangers" (not because I'm crazy). I'm just so lucky that the strangers in Ireland are so nice. I asked a man at the train station to verify that I would be able to get to Trim if I got on a certain bus and the bus driver also made sure that I got on the right bus. When I had to get off not only did the bus driver tell me that this was my stop but another random girl on the bus also told me.

I got off the bus in a slightly drizzly Trim and the castle was right in front of me.

I love castles. Trim Castle is an Anglo-Norman castle built in the 12th century.

It was also used in the filming on Braveheart.

I found the entrance to the castle and signed up to do the tour (free due to my Heritage Pass) which wasn't until "half two" or 2:30, so I had about 45 minutes to wander. So wander I did.

After walking around the grounds I went up on the other side of the Boyne River and explored the Yellow Steeple. The Yellow Steeple is all that remains of an old abbey's bell tower.

I got on the tour at 2:30 with a Flemish couple and our guide, Brenda. I introduced myself as Claire and she said (like many other Irish have) "a good Irish name." She took us on an hour long tour and told me some interesting facts. Here are the highlights:

1. There is only one door to the keep in the center. The door is above the ground and a wooden staircase leads up to it. In times of crisis, the townspeople could run into the keep and then burn the stairs behind them so that so one could get to the door, and because the door was a couple meters above the ground a battering ram could not be used.
2. The spiral staircases in the keep all went clockwise. This is so that the man at the top would have the advantage. The designers of the castle figured out that 7 out of 10 people were right handed and if the staircase turned clockwise then the right-handed person coming down would be able to take a full swing, unlike the person coming up whose stroke would be impeded by the support in the center of the staircase. The spiral staircase only allow one person up at a time, another defensive advantage.
3. The moat running around the castle was where the town dumped the waste from the leper hospital. Naturally, people didn't want to jump in that moat.
4. Rain water was kept in order to have a reserve in times of trouble.
5. Brenda told me that after women give birth in Ireland they are given a Guinness to drink. Stout apparently gives you iron which is needed for breastfeeding.
6. If two people with the same last name get married they will have the cure for something (like ringworm) according to Brenda.

After the tour Brenda showed us pictures from when Mel Gibson came to film Braveheart and then I headed back to the bus stop and had a pleasant ride back to Dublin. When I got into the city I bought supplies for dinner (chicken caesar wraps) and then had dinner with my Irish family.