DUBLIN - Ireland 2014 - page 141

▲ National Museum: Decorative Arts and History
ThisbranchoftheNational Museum,whichoccupiesthehuge,18th-centurystoneCollins
BarracksinwestDublin,displaysIrishdress,furniture,weapons,silver,andotherdomest-
ic baubles from the past 700 years. History buffs will linger longest in the “Soldiers &
Chiefs” exhibit, which covers the Irish at war both at home and abroad since 1500 (in-
cluding the American Civil War). The sober finale is the “Understanding 1916” room, of-
fering Ireland's best coverage of the painful birth of this nation, an event known as the
“Terrible Beauty.” Guns, personal letters, and death masks help illustrate the 1916 Easter
Uprising, War of Independence against Britain, and Ireland's civil war. Croppies Acre, the
large park between the museum and the river, was the site of Dublin's largest soup kitchen
during the Great Potato Famine in 1845-1849.
Cost and Hours: Free, Tue-Sat 10:00-17:00, Sun 14:00-17:00, closed Mon, good café;
on north side of the River Liffey in Collins Barracks on Benburb Street, roughly across the
river from Guinness Storehouse, easy to reach by the LUAS red line—get off at Museum
stop; tel. [phone], www.museum.ie . Call ahead for sporadic tour times.
▲ Gaelic Athletic Association Museum
The GAA was founded in 1884 as an expression of an Irish cultural awakening (see side-
bar on here ) . It was created to foster the development of Gaelic sports, specifically Gaelic
football and hurling, and to exclude English sports such as cricket and rugby. The GAA
playedanimportantpartinthefightforindependence.Thismuseum,at82,000-seatCroke
Park Stadium in east Dublin, offers a high-tech, interactive introduction to Ireland's fa-
vorite games. Relive the greatest moments in hurling and Irish-football history. Then get
involved: Pick up a stick and try hurling, kick a football, and test your speed and balance.
A 15-minute film (played on request) gives you a “Sunday at the stadium” experience.
Cost and Hours: €6, daily 9:30-17:00, Sun 11:30-17:00, on game Sundays the mu-
seum is open to ticket holders only, café, located under the stands at Croke Park Stadium, a
20-minute walk northeast of Parnell Square—enter from St. Joseph's Avenue off Clonliffe
Road, tel. [phone], www.crokepark.ie/gaa-museum .
Tours: The €12, one-hour museum-plus-stadium-tour option is worth it only for rabid
fans who want a glimpse of the huge stadium and yearn to know which locker room is
considered the unlucky one. The rooftop tour offers views 17 stories above the field from
lofty catwalks (€25, daily at 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, 13:30, 14:30, and 15:30).
Hurling or Gaelic Football at Croke Park Stadium
Actually seeing a match here, surrounded by incredibly spirited Irish fans, is a fun experi-
ence. Hurling is like airborne hockey with no injury timeouts. Gaelic football resembles a