Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Men's Lacrosse Trip: Rain In Spain, The Humor Of Mr. Burke And The Beauty Of Dublin
June 09, 2008 | Men's Lacrosse
The day for the Princeton men's lacrosse team began with a different sight in Spain - rain. Or, put another way, the rain in Spain came as the Tigers got on the plane.
The last morning at the La Manga Club Resort began with breakfast at 6:45 under threatening skies, this after there had barely been a cloud in the sky for the four days the Tigers had been there. The Princeton contingent was just into the hour-and-a-half ride back to the Alicante airport when lightning cracked in front of the bus and strong rains began to fall. The steady rain lasted until Princeton was boarding Aer Lingus Flight 571for Dublin, and the skies were clear and sunny by the time the plane lifted off.
Not that this meant the flight would be smooth. It was anything but. There was serious turbulence over Northern Spain and Southern France and pretty choppy conditions for the entire ride, including a wind shear that caused the plane to dip suddenly as it began its descent. Nevertheless, it was a great view out of the window, as the plane went over France, the English Channel, England, the Irish Sea and finally Ireland itself.
The Tigers were joined in the Dublin airport by Jack McBride, the Ivy League Rookie of the Year who scored two goals yesterday on Long Island in a game with the U.S. Under-19 national team. After that, it was onto the buses and off for a two-hour drive around Dublin.
Enter, at this point, Jack Burke. Pedro Martinez in Spain was a great tour guide, leaving Mr. Burke with big shoes to fill. Fill them he did, with a delivery that was about two-thirds guide and one-third stand-up comedian.
The comedian part featured lines from Oscar Wilde and impromptu (it seemed) comments on the history and tradition of the city. It was obvious, though, that Mr. Burke is thoroughly in love with Dublin, and with good reason.
Dublin dates back nearly 2,000 years, when the Vikings first established Ireland's cities and drove the natives to the country. St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland in 432, and the Irish spent nearly 800 years under British rule before becoming an independent nation as recently as 1922.
The local economy is strong, as evidenced by the construction everywhere, and the hot-button political topic is an upcoming referendum on whether or not Ireland should be included in the European Union. Mr. Burke, for what it's worth, seemed skeptical.
After driving back and forth across the River Liffey, which splits the city into Northside and Southside, the Tigers were treated to a quick view of the hot spots of the city, including old buildings dating back hundreds of years, houses of government, architectural landmarks and street after street of shops, pubs and restaurants.
Dublin couldn't be more different than La Manga. While the Tigers spent the first half of their trip on a beach resort in Spain, they are now at the Jury's Inn, set in the middle of the city. There is no beach here, though the Sea is not far from the center of the city. Whereas little was accessible at La Manga without transportation, almost everything in the city is within walking distance.
It is a city without high-rises, one that appears to be very clean. It's a great complement to the Spanish part of the trip.
Princeton will play the English Under-19 National team tomorrow morning.