Travel Editor Lydia Don takes us through her five day trip to Ireland, exploring its mix of city-landscapes and coastal getaways
When I was younger, I viewed holidaying in places like Dublin, that are so close to home, as a pointless waste of money. I couldn’t get it into my head why someone would spend their hard-earned money on visiting somewhere with the same weather, the same language, and the same architecture, all just an hour away from home. Now at the age of 20, and having visited Dublin last July, I realise why people go. Dublin is one of my family’s favourite places, particularly my Dad: the lively nightlife, the friendliness of the people, and the Guinness are all draws for him! And after visiting this summer, they are (nearly) all draws for me too…
Day 1
The flight was only an hour long and was full of many excitable Irish people going home, and equally excitable tourists like us anticipating Dublin’s liveliness. We touched down, made our way to our city centre hotel, and went for dinner at a nearby pub called Brannagans. This turned out to be the best meal we had during our 5-day stay in Dublin: hearty and comforting vegetarian Sheppard’s Pie, just what I needed knowing I was going to be living off noodles and rice for the next year or so!
That evening we embarked on a pub crawl of Dublin. The last time I had visited Dublin was when I was 9 years old, so I couldn’t get the full effects of the city’s nightlife. Now, as an adult, I saw a completely different side to Dublin that I absolutely loved! Everybody was very rowdy, very drunk, very lively, and yet still maintained so much respect and consideration for one another. It was commendable that everybody, packed into tiny pubs on street corners in the Temple Bar area, were so inclusive and really came together to enjoy singing and dancing to the live music blaring out. My Dad’s favourite pub, and where we spent most of our time, was The Oliver St. John Gogarty. Some of the night was a blur as we were all, shall we say, merry, but one vivid memory was myself, my Dad and some other random people doing the conga around the pub.
It was commendable that everybody, packed into tiny pubs on street corners in the Temple Bar area, were so inclusive and really came together to enjoy singing and dancing to the live music blaring out
Day 2
Our first full day in Dublin, and already we were leaving the city for the day. We hopped on the train and travelled 30 minutes to Howth, a small coastal village with a quaint community feel. We wondered around a local craft market made up of small Irish businesses selling anything from baked goods to scarves to jewellery to paintings of Ireland’s most beautiful landscapes. The prices were relatively reasonable, so I treated myself to a simple but pretty freshwater pearl bracelet which I haven’t taken off since!
We had built up an appetite by then, and since we were by the sea, what better to feat upon than fish and chips. We went to Beshoffs Sea Grill which I had seen on the Netflix show ‘Somebody Feed Phil’. The food was fantastic, and the view over the sea was equally as impressive – especially when we saw sea lions popping their heads above water to say hi, and to play with one another!
Howth sports a lengthy coastal walk, the Cliff Path Loop. While we didn’t complete the walk in its entirety, we made it more than half way, and stopped at a lookout point with views across the Irish Sea as the gradually lowering sun glinted on the water’s subtle waves. The whole walk should take just over 2 hours, but since we were conscious to get back to Dublin before nightfall, we took a shortcut back into the centre of Howth. We really valued spending time along the coast given we live in Birmingham as a landlocked city which we are often too busy to travel far away from.
While we didn’t complete the walk in its entirety, we made it more than half way, and stopped at a lookout point with views across the Irish Sea as the gradually lowering sun glinted on the water’s subtle waves
Day 3
We decided to venture out again, this time to Malahide, a coastal city north of Dublin city centre. After a 50-minute train journey, we arrived and took a leisurely stroll amongst Malahide’s colourful houses. It felt like being on the set of Balamory, only in Ireland! The weather wasn’t on our side that morning, so after a stroll around the harbour before the rain picked up, we stopped for a hot chocolate before walking over to Malahide Castle once the sun has reappeared! The grounds around the castle were huge and sported a varied (but horrendously expensive) gift shop, a café, and what we were most excited for, the Butterfly House. Despite it being sweltering in the greenhouse, it was completely mesmerising to see such majestic and unique creatures fly right across our noses.
Despite it being sweltering in the greenhouse, it was completely mesmerising to see such majestic and unique creatures fly right across our noses
After a walk around the grounds of the castle, we made our way back into Dublin for dinner. On our way into the city from the train station, I noticed an incredible painting depicting Marianne and Connell, the main characters from my favourite TV show and BBC hit drama ‘Normal People’. If you are a fan of the show, this small but capturing mural is a must-see, and is situated right outside Trinity College Dublin. We also saw the Dublin-New York Portal, giving you the opportunity to wave and say hello to the people wondering the streets of New York in real time. This was really fun, especially since people got creative with signs they had made delivering messages to those over the pond, and with the dances people did to entertain others. I’m honestly surprised the portal still exists because, no doubt, someone will have tried to ruin it for everyone else and do something rude or offensive – maybe I’m too cynical!
Day 4
Our second to last full day in Dublin, and as an English student, I was eager to visit Merrion Square Park to see the famous Oscar Wilde statue. Being a Dubliner himself, Oscar Wilde, his many literary achievements and his support of Irish independence are all commemorated by this statue. It depicts Wilde laying laissez-faire on a rock in a rather secluded section of the park. The grandeur and flamboyance of the writer certainly comes through in the statue’s demeanour.
Later that evening, after dining at Sano (a lovely pizza restaurant situated on the outskirts of the city centre), we did probably the most touristy activity there is on offer in Dublin, and perhaps in Ireland as a whole. We went on a tour of the Guinness Storehouse. It is a fantastic immersive experience that walks you through how Ireland’s most favourite drink is made. The work that continues to go into perfecting Guinness since the distillery’s opening in 1759 is admirable, especially considering how successfully Guinness has remained so popular after this many years! The higher up you get in the distillery, the more we noticed the old and new Guinness advertisements. They looked almost like propaganda posters, creatively using pints of Guinness as binoculars and creating rhyming poems reminding people that a pint of Guinness is only around the corner here in Ireland! This signalled to us that we were getting closer and closer to the Guinness tasting stage of the tour. This was conducted in a rooftop bar on top of the distillery with panoramic views of Dublin city. My parents each got 2 pints of Guinness, and I settled for a water – as much as I want to like the taste of Guinness, I just cannot bring myself to like it.
Day 5
Today was the day I was most looking forward to – for the first time, I was visiting Trinity College Dublin and seeing the Book of Kells! I already had some prior knowledge of the university: I chose it as one of my year abroad options, and it was featured in ‘Normal People’. I was most excited to see the library, with that famous picture postcard image of the rows of books, wooden archways shaping the ceiling, and the illuminated 3D globe as the library’s centrepiece. I felt like I had reached peak-literature student here, marvelling at the beautiful architecture being subtly illuminated by warm lights rising up along the rows of books.
I felt like I had reached peak-literature student here, marvelling at the beautiful architecture being subtly illuminated by warm lights rising up along the rows of books
We walked round the university and, if I’m honest, I was slightly underwhelmed. At the same time, there was a sense of relief that I had chosen the right university for my year abroad! Don’t get me wrong, the buildings have a lot of history to them, and the grounds are lush and green, but I did not get the wow-factor I was expecting to feel. Nevertheless, visiting somewhere so high up on my list seemed the perfect way to top off what would be my last time in one of my favourite places, so close to home and with my family, for a long time.
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