Bloomsday

Anyone know about Bloomsday? If not, can you guess the what, when and where of it?

I found myself in the middle of Bloomsday quite by accident; and what a lovely accident it was. I had an extra day in Dublin, was staying at Trinity College summer lodgings and came across a number of folks, young and old alike, dressed in Edwardian costumes. As I walked down Grafton Street, I realized that this was a city-wide celebration of some sort, not just collegiate and people were having a great time pub crawling literary row in their summer finery.

Bloomsday, June 16, 1904, the day written about in such intricate and detailed fashion by James Joyce in Ulysses was being reenacted all around me. Dubliners and visitors from around the world gathered to celebrate the life and work of James Joyce, one of Ireland’s most famous writers. I dare say his book Ulysses is one of the best known, and least read, book in the English language. While his work was transformative, it is difficult reading. The fact that it was banned for many years added to its intrigue. So here I was signing up for a walking tour by a handsome straw-hatted Irishman, visiting all the places Leopold Bloom, Joyce’s main character, visited on that fictional version of an ordinary day in the life of one man.

Those interested in doing so can take part in any of a number of  events that recreate Leopold’s day. It was mid-morning before I learned about what was scheduled so I missed the sign up for the annual breakfast at the James Joyce Center. But when learning that the menu was built upon his favorite fried pork kidney, I was no longer sorry. Instead, I observed a pub quiz  based on the novel. I was clueless about the answers and in awe of those in the know. Mainly, I enjoyed the revelry, the street orators and poets, and everyday folk out for a good time. A good craic for sure.

If you find yourself near Dublin, on June 16 of any year, do add yourself to the list of party goers. Otherwise, you can always curl up with the book and a taste of Jameson’s some winter’s night and follow Bloom’s day.