Dublin’s the first (in the hopes of many) international city trips/weekend getaways I plan on doing whilst living in Edinburgh. I really enjoyed the city, with good weather and great food.
Wonderfully walkable
I’ve been having a lot of luck lately with good weather when I’ve been travelling (for example, when I went to Inverness and the Highlands). The luck continued in Ireland, with blue skies and temperatures in the mid-teens. I know I’ve fully adapated to British weather when I consider 15 degrees t-shirt weather.
Dublin is also a flat city, so wandering around it on a day like that was simply gorgeous. Exploring Temple Bar earlier in the morning, before the drinking crowd got in, was a highlight.
Strolling in the sunshine around Trinity College and St Stephen’s Park was also very pleasant.
Dublin seems to pride itself (or at least actively court the tourism dollars) on its literary credentials. There are advertisements everywhere for things relating to James Joyce and Oscar Wilde.
Sláinte
It feels cliche to say a trip to Ireland wouldn’t be complete without alcohol, but I’ll say it anyway.
During a tasting course, I tried some Irish whiskey at the Jameson Distillery. Having now tried Scottish whisky (no “e”) as well, I’ve come to the conclusion the spirit isn’t for me. Glad I tried, but it is simply not my drink of choice.
What I did discover I liked was an Irish spirit made from potatoes called poitin. A bar called Bar 1661, a short walk from the Jameson Distillery, makes nice cocktails using poitin.
Poitin was banned in Ireland by King Charles II in 1661 (hence the bar’s name), and the ban was not fully lifted until 1997.
The cocktail I chose was Generation Six, which consisted of “Micil poitín, tequila, Empirical Ayuuk, mango, bell pepper, sumac, lime, chipotle”. I liked it a lot more than the whiskey.
The politics of protests
I happened upon two protests when in Dublin.
The first was a plaque commemorating Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington’s smashing of a window near Dublin Castle. Alongside seven other women, she spent seven months in prison for the act. Sheehy-Skeffington fought for women’s rights and Irish independence from British rule during her time. More information about her life can be found on the Women’s Museum of Ireland’s website.
The more contemporary protest I witnessed was a march in support of Palestine. The protestors were calling for more sanctions against Israel amidst the ongoing conflict in the region. RTE estimated thousands of people attended, which seems accurate to how many I saw marching.
I’m not going to post the photos I took of the protestors here out of respect for their identity. I did spot an Aboriginal flag being carried by someone. Unfortunately, it was upside down.
Feels like home
This is really neither here nor there, but the pedestrian crossing buttons in Dublin are the same as back in Sydney.
Until next time!