16
One tea later and the rest of the donuts in a bag to go, we’re now strolling back on the other side of the river. It always amazes me the sheer number of people that are out at any hour in a city. Well, I guess any real city. Sorry Hartford.
We pass a street sign for Fleet Street. I take a peek down, the name ringing a bell from when I did some research months ago. There’s a pub a bit down on the right, where a few people are sitting outside drinking a beer.
I look down at my watch, noticing it’s barely after nine. “Are the pubs really open this early? I’m not trying to stereotype again or anything, but c’mon.”
Niall looks over, waving in the direction of the pub. The two guys at the furthest table wave back. “Erm no, the Palace Bar is not open. Not yet, but should be in about an hour or so. Looks like those two may have picked up some beer from that Tesco and are getting a head start.”
“So, wait…you don’t know them?”
Niall looks over at them again, then back at me. “Do I know the two drunks waiting for a pub to open on a Thursday at nine in the morning? No.”
“Then why did you wave?”
Niall loops his arm into mine, pulling me away from Fleet Street. “Because you likely want to stay on the good side of those who are drinking at nine in the morning. Not, like, antagonize them.”
We continue down, what I’ve now gathered is, Westmoreland Street. We almost immediately pass another donut shop, which look just as delicious as Rolling Donut and much closer to both our apartments. Niall shakes his head. “Not as good I’m afraid,” as we continue to walk past the shop.
We round the corner of the next building and Niall stops, pointing to our left. “And there is your employer.”
Now, I loved going to CCSU and UConn. I met great friends there, had great professors, and left with a great education.
But looking at the outside of Trinity College, the physical structure of the building, and I know this is a totally different experience.
It just looks fancy, that it just looks historic and holds wisdom.
It’s kind of blowing my mind that I’m going to be a lecturer here.
“Did you want to go in and take a look around?” Niall asks. I look at the entrance and it’s a constant stream of people going in and out, which is a bit crazy given that classes aren’t even in session. I guess it’s equally a tourist attraction as it is a place of education.
“Part of me wants to, but part of me is thinking about how sleep deprived I am.”
Niall looks behind us. “Well…what if we had a tour guide?” I follow his gaze and see groups of people scattered around on the sidewalk.
“Hey Alan!” Niall waves at a man in a yellow hat, walking over and hugging him.
After a few moments Niall comes back over.
“We can jump in this tour that starts in a couple minutes, but completely up to you.”
“You know the tour guide? A pub buddy? An ex-lover?” I’m looking at Alan, who seems to have at least twenty, if not more, years on us.
Niall pushes me playfully. “Funny. He’s actually a frequent patron of my shop. I guess that technically makes him a pub buddy.”
We join the group and Alan shoots his hand out to me. “I’m Alan with the Yellow Hat. And yes, that does mean we have more than one tour group leader with the name Alan. Welcome to Dublin! I heard you will be a lecturer here this semester. What department?”
“I’ll be part of the English department.”
“Well, pleasure to meet you. Let’s get you acquainted with your employer so you don’t get lost on day one.”
* * *
We’re well into the tour at this point, now about to enter the room for The Book of Kells.
“Before we enter the room with the exhibits and the actual book, remember what I told you to look out for. The Unhappy Turkey, The Happy Dragon, The Golden Page, and The Comic Wall. Take your time moving throughout the room, and come find me with any questions. We will meet in about fifteen minutes in the next room.”
The group separates out as we walk around the room, looking at the various displays and blown-up pages of the book. “You religious at all?” Niall asks, leaning in to take a closer look at a wall that shows the illustrated Latin alphabet from the book.
It’s all very visually impressive, given the age of the book. “No, not at all. My dad’s parents were super strict Catholics growing up and it put a huge strain on their relationship. He ended up going no contact with them after I was born.”
“That’s sad, but I get it.”
“No, no,” I say, “let me finish. The reason they went no contact is actually pretty crazy. My grandparents found out my parents had no intention of baptizing me or involving me in the church. So, to ‘save’ me, they offered to babysit me to let my parents have a night out. When my parents got home, no one was in the house. My grandparents had essentially kidnapped me and brought me back to their house, and planned on bringing me to their church in the morning to get baptized.”
Niall’s mouth is hanging open, and I notice a couple standing a few feet away from us staring at me. Any time this story comes out it always gets a bit of attention.
“So, what happened next?”
I wave the couple over who blush when they realize they’ve been caught, but come over anyways. Because why wouldn’t you want to hear the end of the story?
“My parents freaked out and call my grandparents’ house, which obviously they don’t answer.
Mom and Dad are concerned with how the grandparents will react when they show up, so Dad calls the police and gets them involved.
My Dad tried knocking on the door, to give them the benefit of the doubt, and they don’t answer.
But they sure did answer right away when the cops pounded on the door.
They handed me over as quickly as they could, while telling the cops how terrible my parents were. ”
“Did they press charges?” The eavesdropping woman asks.
“No. They were asked if they wanted to. Instead, my parents opted for a restraining order. No contact, couldn’t come within 500 feet of us. I was actually given the option to lift the restraining order when I turned eighteen but ultimately decided against it.”
The couple nods and leave us, heading to the next room. “You didn’t care to get to know them, even after all that?”
“Kind of,” I say, guiding us around a display and heading towards the next room. “I think it was more of the fact my Dad was dead at that point, and in my head the connection was severed. Hell, I don’t even know if they ever knew their son died.”
“Fucking hell.”
We move onto The Long Room, which is a bit of a disappointment.
The library is undergoing a bunch of restorations so only a handful of shelves actually have books on them.
However, the various items on display are pretty cool, especially the Brian Boru Harp.
And, of course, the Gaia installation hanging above the hall is breathtaking.
A nice couple take a photo of Niall and I pretending to hold it up in our hands.
Soon we’re perusing the gift shop, and my hands are already way too full.
“You know you’ll be working here, right? You can come in here any day for the rest of the year.”
“While that’s true One Direction, I want to look the part right off the bat. And, also, not seem like the crazy instructor who keeps coming in here.”
“That’s the first time you’ve called me One Direction today. Took longer than I thought.” Niall smirks, grabbing a Trinity t-shirt off the rack.
“Who’s the tourist now?” I say, reshuffling the items in my arms as we head towards the register. I see a water bottle on clearance so I carefully place it on top of my arm pile.
“I’m buying this to show my support for you.”
I roll my eyes. “Right.”
“And it wouldn’t hurt to show support for Trinity at work.”
I laugh. “There it is.”
We step outside and the sun has gone behind the clouds, showing the slight threat of rain. I let out a big yawn, which is understandable given I’ve been up for almost 24 hours.
“You good?” Niall asks, as he grabs his bag off the counter after paying.
“Yeah, but I feel like I could use some lunch.”
“Then let us lunch.”
After breaking free from the tour, with Niall thanking and apologizing to Alan with the Yellow Hat, Niall and I are walking down Dame Street. Some of this looks a bit familiar from the drive earlier, but it’s all a bit hazy at this point.
We stop outside a place with conflicting signage. Some say Pawn Shop and some say Doom Slice.
“Okay, so I know you Americans love a good slice of pizza.” Niall says, leaning forward and opening the door under the Doom Slice sign. “I will say I’ve never had a better slice of pizza than what these blokes offer.”
We walk in to an industrial looking space, with a small bar on the right. We pass the bar and sit at one of the many empty tables, which I feel is not a great indicator at the quality of pizza I’m about to receive.
“You sure about this place?” I ask, looking around. The wall behind Niall is an homage to photography, a collection of various cameras.
“I mean, I’ve been here multiple times after the pub and every pizza I’ve had has been delicious. I know you’re from, what I believe, is the self-proclaimed pizza capital of the world.” Niall exaggerates the capital part, throwing his hands in the air.
“Listen,” I start, looking at the menu, “I’m not the biggest fan of New Haven pizza. And, before you ask, that’s specifically where the ‘great’ pizza of Connecticut, and the world, comes from. This looks like Detroit style pizza, which I will take over New Haven pizza any day of the week.”
Niall looks over the menu, as I continue to look around the place. The crowd definitely leans a bit younger. Given the aesthetic, I bet Doom Slice was trending on Instagram or TikTok at some point.
“I think, if I remember correctly, a heated argument one night between you and Michael about the existence of pineapple on pizza. I believe you were on the anti-pineapple on pizza train.”
Niall’s correct. One of the few things Michael and I had argued about on the regular was toppings on pizza. He loved Hawaiian pizza, while I could not begin to comprehend how anyone could want warm pineapple in general, let alone on pizza.
“You know what? We should get a slice in his honor,” I say, putting the menu down on the table. “Maybe I didn’t give it enough of a chance.”
The waiter comes over, and we order three slices. A Holy Pepperoni for me, The Gloat for Niall, and a Pancetta & Pineapple to split. We opt for soda instead of beer, given my need for caffeine and sleep deprivation.
“So, first impressions, what did you think of Trinity?”
I pause, taking a sip of my Diet Coke. “I think it will definitely be the classiest place I’ve ever been employed.”
“Well, I graduated from Trinity, so class is by default.”
“What did you study?”
The buzzer goes off on the table, indicating our pizza is ready at the pick-up window. “English,” he says, before getting up to retrieve our pizza.
Things go quiet for a bit as I dig into my slice and Niall into his, leaving Michael’s slice sitting between us. This may be, with no exaggeration, one of the best bites of pizza I’ve ever had in my life.
“Holy. Shit,” I say, pushing my plate towards Niall. “You have to try this.”
Niall chuckles. “Danny, I’ve had the whole menu. That’s how I knew to bring you here.”
“I might be in trouble. I think this is closeish to my apartment.” I pull my phone out and plug the apartment address into Google Maps. “Yep. It’s a three-minute walk from here.”
“That sounds like a win to me,” Niall says, popping the last of his pizza in his mouth.
We both stare at the piece sitting in the middle of the table, the pineapple looking especially juicy. I now know the pizza here is great, but the pineapple is just so unappetizing.
“I’ll cut it,” Niall says, grabbing the plate. “We’ll both take a bite at the same time, if it will make things easier for you.”
“I thought you said you’ve tried the whole menu,” I say, giving Niall side-eye.
Niall cuts the slice in half. “I have, but the pineapple was a while ago. And I haven’t circled back to it on the menu.”
“That’s reassuring,” I say, taking my half off the plate. We cheers our slices and, after holding in the air for a few seconds, I take a bite.
The first thing I taste is the pancetta, with a forward note of cheese.
It’s pleasant. But, to my taste buds dismay, the pineapple flavor comes rushing forward.
It takes all my power to not spit out the pizza, to not offend this establishment I see myself frequenting multiple times a week for the next few months.
“I can’t do it,” Niall exclaims, throwing the rest of his half down on the plate.
“Thank God.” I throw the rest of mine on top of his. Niall swiftly takes the plate, along with our other empty plates, and deposits them in the trash next to the bar. I lean back in my seat, feeling full and a bit sleepy.
“Erm…I bet you’re pretty beat from traveling, yeah?” I open my eyes to find Niall standing at the table.
“Yeah. I think it’s catching up to me. I think the full feeling is not helping.”
“Do you wanna take a nap back at my place?
I sigh. “Sounds lovely.”
Niall sticks his hand out and I grab it, with him yanking me out of my chair. “C’mon Danny.”