Sunshine

You fly like a zephyr, in the blue sky above

With the easy grace, of the whitest dove

Oh, do stay awhile

And make me smile

As I feel again, the sunshine of your love

Fly On…

For a special friend who, sadly, was taken from us much too early.

Dublin’s Georgian Squares – Northside

It is often said that parks are ‘the lungs of cities’ and Dublin has plenty of them, particularly its Georgian Squares. The five squares were laid out from the late 1700s with Rutland Square (now Parnell Square) and Mountjoy Square being laid out on the Northside of the city. Such squares were developed to improve the image of the city by linking new wide street with elegant, appealing squares.

Parnell Square was the first the Georgian squares where Bartholomew Mosse opened the lying-In Hospital in 1757 which was designed by the renowned architect Richard Cassells. Mosse also developed the gardens, which were laid out by Robert Stevenson, and used to raise funds for the hospital. The Rotunda and Gate Theatre were added later and helped the fund raising.

The Gate Theatre

The popularity of the gardens was significant in getting property developers to complete other three-sides of the square with beautiful houses with fantastic interiors. Oliver St John Gogarty, doctor, writer, politician was born in No. 5 and the wonderful The Hugh Lane Gallery sits imposingly at the top of the square.

Oliver St John Gogarty

A short distance away is Mountjoy Square which was developed by Luke Gardiner, 1^st Viscount from the 1790s and completed in 1818. At that time is the most desirable address in the city with such luminaries as Arthur Guinness, and the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin. Down the years other famous folk who lived on the square were Sean O’Casey who set his Dublin Trilogy of plays mostly set in in Georgian Dublin, with the square featuring. Similarly, James Joyce, who lived nearby, mentions the square in his books Dubliners, Ulysses and Finnegans Wake.

Many of the original paving stones can still be seen on the square, and in 2005 architecture critic Christine Casey claimed that the ‘Neoclassical plasterwork is finer even that that found in the contemporary terraces on the south side of Merrion Square’. And it is a ‘square’ with each side measuring 140 metres!

Ballybrack Dolmen

Ballybrack Dolmen

It’s often the case that when you have something ‘on your doorstep’ that it’s ignored for another time. And that was certainly the case, for me, when I decided to check out the Dolmen near Ballybrack village. I knew about it for a long time but had put my visit on the long finger until a few days ago. It was warm and sunny when I arrived, and the old stones looked bright and sharp in the middle of the green that is almost surrounded by modern houses. (It is on a green in Cromlech Fields, and it’s no surprise that cromlech is another word often used to describe such ancient structures.) What was it like here on the day the last stone was put in place, I wondered, and walked to the group of heavy stones.

I read that the large, roof stone weighs about twelve tons and that must have taken some effort to set it in place. Thinking about that and the commitment of those who first decided and then erected the structure it must have been important to them, and it’s a statement of the focus and skill that it is still standing after, possibly, more than four millennia. A small, stone beside the dolmen says that it is a Dolmen, Portal Tomb, circa 2,500 BC – a timeframe that is impossible to understand. Since that time, getting on for nearly five thousand years, almost all of recorded history has come and gone and the dolmen is still standing and awaiting the next sunrise.

There are many dolmens around the country and, having one so close to home and easy to visit, it was a real treat to see it and think about druids in flowing robes carrying out mystical rituals by firelight back in the mists of time.

Samuel Beckett Bridge

It’s different, that’s for sure, but the image of an ancient Irish harp spinning in the air was the inspiration that led Santiago Calatrava to the unique design for the Samuel Beckett Bridge. It was the second bridge over the Liffey that he designed, having previously seen the James Joyce Bridge open on Bloomsday 2003. Both Joyce and Beckett (born 13 April 1906) left their native city early on to pursue their dreams, but neither ever forgot about Dublin.

The bridge, stretching 123 metres from Guild Street on the north quays to Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, is a vital part of the city’s traffic flow system and unites the local community. It is a vital part in the overall plan for the area as it looks forward into future.

It is, uniquely, a moving bridge, opening up and welcoming visitors to the city. Swinging through 90 degrees it is an impressive sight and one not to missed.

Although Calatrava was appointed in 1999 building did not begin until April 2007. The bridge was made in Rotterdam, Holland, and shipped to Dublin – a 630-mile trip – in May 2009. It was followed all the way by interested onlookers and social media platforms before arriving in Dublin Bay. The total cost of the project, which included new roads and various upgrades, was €60 million and was paid for by the Dublin City Council, the Dublin Docklands Authority and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Culture.

The official opening was held on 10^th December 2009, and it was attended by both Beckett’s niece and nephew. Also in attendance was Seamus Heaney, another Nobel Laureate, who shares Beckett’s birthday (born. 13 April 1937). The bridge complements Calatrava’s other bridge to the West, is loved by many for its aesthetic appeal and won the 2010 Engineers Ireland Award.

Samuel Beckett Bridge