A Weekend In Dublin, Ireland
Welcome back to the blog. As I told you last time, I’m not working chronologically on all the blog posts I need to catch up on, but this week I’ll tell you about one more weekend trip I made this winter. I’m talking about my trip to Dublin with a good friend, just before Christmas.
Temple Bar Area
Of course, I have to start with the most famous part of Dublin: Temple Bar. This neighbourhood is in the south part of the city and is filled with bars, pubs, restaurants, shops and live music. You could also say that Temple Bar is the heart and soul of Dublin. While Temple Bar makes for a great stroll and has an amazing atmosphere, there are way better places to stop and drink or eat something than the Temple Bar pub, as there are millions of other, cheaper, pubs waiting for you. Also, live music is completely normal, so if you are visiting the city, don’t go to the first place that offers it, instead chose which place is more to your liking.
Also, while Temple Bar is great fun at night, I suggest you come back in the morning as well. There are way fewer people in case you wanted to take a picture for the books, and it feels like a completely different place when most of the pubs are still closed, but coffee and tea shops are already open. We came back during a Free Walking Tour, which was great and I can only recommend you do one as well, there are various operators, and get to know the city from a different perspective.
Grafton Street
What would be a girls trip without shopping? And if you want to go shopping, Grafton Street is the place to be in Dublin. This is also where we were staying, and it was the ideal location. We were surrounded by shops – big retailers as well as local shops – live music was playing on every corner, the Christmas decorations were on point, we were able to choose from millions of different breakfast locations, and everything else we wanted to see in the city was just a few minutes by foot.
Phoenix Park
This may be the part of the trip I anticipated the most. Just around a week before our trip, I came across a picture of deer wandering around a park, just next to people. After a bit of research, I found out that there’s a herd of deer living inside Phoenix Park. They roam around freely and are not too afraid of people. But be prepared, Phoenix Park is enormous, and it can take you hours to find the deer. They’re mostly located near the Pope’s Cross, or towards Castleknock.
Trinity College & the Book of Kells
Trinity College might be the most prestigious colleges in Ireland, but it is not only famous for being a great institution of learning. It is more famous for its library. The Long Room of the Old Library is, according to some people, one of the most beautiful libraries world-wide. I have seen my fair share of libraries and have to agree it is one of a kind. Is it the prettiest one? I don’t know, but it is definitely worth a visit, but be prepared, it gets packed within minutes after opening so come early.
Trinity is also known for being home to the Book of Kells, a book that dates back to the 9th century. It is regarded as Ireland’s finest national treasure. Entry to the library comes with an entry to the exhibition around the Book of Kells, but during our visit, it was being restored, so we were only able to see the exhibition but not the book.
EPIC – The Irish Emigration Museum
This was one of our last stops before heading back home, but it was one of a kind. I know not everybody likes museums, and some museums can be really boring, but EPIC is different. This museum highlights the was Irish people have migrated around the world, influenced the lives in so many places and most of all: it is interactive.
You can take quizzes, stamp your own “EPIC passport”, experience things in different dimensions, believe me, you’ll be surprised how much fun a museum can actually mean. And while you’re at it, you’ll actually learn a lot as well. Or did you know before that Barack Obama had Irish heritage, or where the highest Irish pub above sea level is located? I’m usually not a big fan of places where everyone tells me beforehand how cool they are as I tend to get disappointed then, but this one did blow my mind.
Dublin Castle & Christmas at the Castle
While visiting Dublin, you surely have to make at least a quick stop at the Dublin Castle. From the outside, it looks rather unspectacular and not quite fitting together, which is due to the fact that significant parts of it burned down in 1684. I suggest you take a walk to the gardens, as from the back of the castle you might be surprised by the colours of the castle. I know I was!
During our visit, a Christmas Market was taking place in the courtyard, and if you are visiting during the festive season, I can only suggest you do so too, as it was a great experience and I ate so many sweets, dinner afterwards would not have been necessary.
As always, this blogpost highlights only some of the great places I’ve seen during my trip and cannot include all the great experiences I made. Other highlights were, for example, the Ha’penny Bridge or the Molly Malone statue, and if you are looking for a unique dining location you should head to the Church, a restaurant that used to be a church and I can only assure you, you won’t forget your visit. I hope you liked this blog post, and I can’t wait to see you back on here for the next one!
