In Dublin’s Fair City

14 June 2007

We arrived back in Gatwick - the plane was inexplicably running half an hour late and so we only had 2.5 hours to arrive, collect our luggage, head off to Heathrow by bus (1 hour 20 on a good day) via the M25 (that car park!) and check in for the next flight to Dublin. Everything went smoothly got our bags quickly - caught a bus that left within 2 minutes of us getting on - no traffic on the M25 - quick check in - then we ran through the rat run that they send you on through Heathrow - no dramas whatsoever.

We got to Dublin at about 11pm and stayed at the airport - the room was wondrous after Dubrovnik - did I tell you our apartment was in an attic and you could only stand up in the middle of the rooms - we both sustained a few bumps and bruises from the sloping walls - and the toilet was pretty well in the shower - very hygienic but slippery. Bewley's Hotel at Dublin airport was spacious, clean, crisp and white. Ric flailed his arms wildly around for a few minutes after we arrived to enjoy the space.

Next morning we headed into Ball’s Bridge in Dublin - as it happened it was just around the corner from where Tri lives when she's there. We dumped our bags and walked straight into town to get a feel for the place. Right in the centre of the city there is this giant silver spike - the Millennium Spire - erected to replace Nelson's Pillar that was blown up in 1966. It's 120 metres tall - most unusual and striking. A taxi driver told us they are just starting to get used to it. We wandered around and found the Liffey- the tidal river that runs through the centre of the city - checked out Temple Bar - a cobble-stoned area that is now extremely touristy - and wandered down Grafton St - the main shopping precinct of the city. There are Romanian gypsies everywhere - with swaddled babies (even kids up to 5 years get wrapped up like babies) - mum’s eyes downcast, begging. Ric and I got separated and we both started thinking we would never see each other again - so once we were reunited we decided a drink was in order. We headed for a grand pub decorated in art deco with leather lounges opposite the GPO and waited for Tri to come and meet us.

Tri was a wonderful guide - and her commentary was very personal - down to her Granny being holed up in a wardrobe that got dragged into a blockade on O'Connell Street during the Irish Easter uprising of 1916.She pointed out buildings her Dad and Grandad had owned and the places she'd kicked around as a kid. We walked back to Ball's Bridge met up with Natt and her friend Laura who just arrived from Cambridge, drank a couple of celebratory bottles of champagne then walked back into town for more sightseeing and dinner. We ate a meal in a cavernous hall of a building turned into a pub and restaurant - absolutely packed with people - it once must have been a shoe factory because one wall was decorated entirely by shelf after shelf of shoe lasts. Walking around on a Friday night in Dublin was electric - every pub was filled to overflowing with people standing in the night time sun lit streets, drinking pints and laughing. Ric said he had never walked that far in his life when we got home - we were all foot weary - Tri's feet were even bleeding!

Dublin is an eclectic place - the beauty is in the detail - the shamrocks on the lamp post, the brightly coloured front doors and a tiny shop jammed in a corner - you couldn't describe the city as beautiful. Sadly there is rubbish all around and millions of cigarette butts but the place is very welcoming despite its comely appearance.

We walked Ric and the girls to the Guinness Factory through an area on the wrong side of Dublin. Tri tells me you can tell from the shape of people's faces which side of the Liffey they are from - we laugh when we hear a mother confiding to a friend that her toddler will grow up to be a handsome knacker (slang for a rough character) as Tri and I head to a emerald green park next to a church to chill out before all meeting up again in town. Ric is disappointed the Guinness Tour is 'virtual' with no actual brewing on show. Apparently the view from the top coupled with the 'free' Guinness helped to ease his chagrin. Natt's shoes can't sustain the amount of kilometres we've covered and completely blow out - she buys a pair of leather thongs (flip flops here) to replace them.

We walk back again to Ball's Bridge before dinner and Ric and I taste our first sip of Bolly before walking back into town again for Japanese dinner. Together with Ginni, Tri's mate joining us for Natt's birthday dinner Ric puffs up - he is surrounded by 5 beautiful women and glances around to see if anyone has noticed! We have an outstanding meal, laugh our heads off and head off to an outlandishly decorated pub for more partying - I meet a guy who is a ranger at Phoenix Park in Dublin, 712ha - lawns and stuff, all enclosed with deer grazing we compare jobs and realise they are very different - he's horrified to hear we shoot deer! Natt and I have a dance and finally we decide to head home - this time in a taxi. We chat to the good natured taxi driver who recognises our accents immediately and he tells us about a boy who was transported to Australia for picking up an apple that had fallen outside a walled orchard!

Next day we head out for breakfast and Ric accidentally drops his telephone into a deep section of the Grand Canal just near our hotel. We wander into town via a park where artists display their works along the fences and enjoy a free outdoor gallery experience. Many of the local landscapes have dark brooding skies with grey seas - As I put on sunscreen it occurs to me that the hot sunny day overhead is at odds with the Ireland represented in the paintings. The artworks in the National Gallery across the road have the same muted colours. Back in town we enjoy a coffee together before heading of to pick up our hire car. Tri, Ginni Ric and I head to Balbriggan to Tri's Mam & Da's (sorry Tri) and the girls laze in the sunny park before heading back to Cambridge. I talk to Natt later that evening to hear that the flight back to England is completely unloaded due to her luggage! Meanwhile in Balbriggan we walk along the seaside (rocky beach) to Skerries about 7 km away to witness an amazing sunset over the sea and eat an incredibly fresh feed of fish, rounded off with a Baileys on ice. Cathy & Ric