I found Belle's library!

Trinity College is the home of thousands of old books. Now, for some people this is probably not very exciting, but I have coveted Belle's library ever since I saw Beauty and the Beast as a child so to find such a place here on earth is exciting!
In the morning, we took the DART to Dublin where Trinity College is located. They have an exhibit entirely dedicated to the Book of Kells. This book is an illuminated manuscript of the four gospels that was created by Celtic monks around the 9th century. Their display shows enlarged pictures of some of the more elaborate drawings done by the monks as well as explanations of the process of creating such an incredible book. The whole thing is gorgeous! At the end of the display there is a staircase leading up to the Long Room- the longest library in the world. I think they said they purposely made it 5 feet longer than Oxford’s library just so they could claim that title. It is truly amazing! The room is made out of dark wood, has  thousands of books with that wonderful old book smell, and ladders running up and down the shelves. The place is truly magical. Visiting there was a fantastic way to start the day. We wandered through the exhibit and the library for over an hour.
This afternoon we had a skype class with Dr. Jones and then I actually did homework for about an hour. That was torture. Even though at Taylor we have far more class and tons more homework, somehow doing those things here seems like a crime. I would so much rather be out experiencing the culture and learning about Ireland through interactions with people! Oh well, I suppose we have to sacrifice a little free time so that we can actually get school credit for being here.
I did take a break from the work for a bit to go down to the beach before dinner and just juggle a soccer ball. That was a great. It was funny to watch the Irish people walk by. I haven’t seen many people playing, let alone girls, so they probably thought I was a little odd. Most of them would give me funny looks, but I'm pretty sure the little kids wanted to jump in. It was great to play around with a soccer ball and listen to Jesus music while the sun set and the waves crashed against the shore. Practically heaven on earth right there.