Tourism Dublin

This is for you, Yu Jian. Generally Dublin is a shithole, but hope it helps somewhat.


Welcome to Grafton Street, Dublin's half-arsed answer to Rodeo Drive. It's a convenient branching-off point to the other sites, as it runs pretty much through the centre of Dublin City. The picture is of the beginning of the street. Behind it lies..


St. Stephen's Green park. The usual park-in-the-city you find everywhere in the UK and Europe. It's pretty nice. If you uh, like flowers and stuff like that. The UCD Medical Faculty is just right before the park, next to the National Concert Hall. If you like concrete building blocks, go look see.


Walking along Grafton Street.. Most of the shops are the same as on Oxford Street in London, except for a few touristy gift shops (good for souvenirs). Check out Brown Thomas if you're a brand snob.


St. Patrick's Cathedral. Only a twenty minute walk from Grafton. I don't know if you like churches and stuff, but you should check this place out. Named after the guy who used the shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity (they needed a leaf to understand God). He supposedly chased away all the snakes from Ireland as well. Yeah, whatever.


Right smack in the middle of Grafton Street you'll find Trinity College. The have a showcase of the oldest book in the world (The Book Of Kells) and it's a pretty cool campus. Aesthetically, that is. UCD kicks their ass without breaking a sweat.


Walk all the way down Grafton and you'll reach the O'Connell Bridge. It separates South Dublin (where you were) and North Dublin (where you will be if you cross the bridge). The south is generally regarded as the posh side and the north is where all the knackers are. East side west side baby, bang bang. Once over the bridge, Grafton Street continues on as O'Connell Street. More shopping and stuff. There too you will find the Dublin Spire, a pointless jarum sticking into the sky, of which the Dubliners are really proud of. Bodohnya, tak pernah tengok Petronas.


And now, my favourite place. The Guinness Distillery. It's a must, don't miss visiting the place. Fantastic; entrance fee includes a complimentary pint of freshly-brewed Guinness in the uber cool Sky Bar. There's more to see here than gay quotes on the wall, I assure you.


If the sea is your thing, Dun Laoghire (pronounced done leary) is only a bus ride away from Dublin City. Port town. Nothing really much to see here, but if you must..


I don't know if you plan to see only the city, but if you do decide to explore, you should check of the Cliffs Of Moher in Clare. Really cool place, and the only place worth leaving the comforts of the city for. They're about three hours away by car.


They're really awe-inspiring. Makes your balls shrink, no kidding. One word.. huge. No, make that two words.. really huge.

In the city, your best bet would be to go on the hop-on/hop-off bus tours. They bring you almost everywhere worth visiting, pretty good value as well. Remember to carry student identification as student discounts can be had almost everywhere.

And of course, Ireland isn't really Ireland without the pubs. Off Grafton Street is the infamous Temple Bar, a stretch of nothing but grog and occasional violence. Must see.

Give me a call when you're here, if I'm not stuck in some hospital somewhere I'll definitely meet up and try to layan you and your friends, heh.

This entry was posted by tsh, on Friday, September 02, 2005. You can bitch back.