Travelogue: Dublin, Ireland
20 - 24, November 2024
No trip to Ireland is complete with out some time in Dublin.
I first visited Dublin in 2010, I stayed in a hostel right along the River Liffey, mere feet from the lovely Ha’ Penny bridge.
I’ve been back a few times over the years, most recently in the fall of 2024. I booked the same hostel I stayed in on my first trip there. I opted for that same spot, since I knew the area a bit and I love being near the water. I can say the hostel was not the best lodging on the trip overall, but it was fine. A place to rest after all of the walking…
So much walking, but Dublin is a city built for walking and public transit. Which makes it easy to get into the city from the Airport, as well as the train stations, and moving around the city too.
On this recent trip, I noticed the tourism has increased, so much! But that’s one of the things with travel, especially in bigger cities. Lots of people, lots of shopping, and pubs. So many pubs!
I was curious to revisit from favourite spots like the Temple Bar area, to walking along the river, and Grafton Street. Grafton Street offers all the shopping you can imagine, as well as a variety of pubs, restaurants and more. In a place like Ireland I love to find a ring or jewellry of some kind as my memento. Finding a shop that has items that are locally made is so wonderful.
On one day I made my way to St. Stephen’s Green for shopping, but I also wanted to check out the park.
The park is one of those big, lovely city parks offering walking paths, a lake, wildlife, and beautiful trees and flowers.
Outside of exploring this park, I didn’t have a real strategy for my time in Dublin, since I had been before, as I mentioned I wanted to revisit a few areas to see how they have changed but some things I didn’t visit because I thought they’d be too crowded.
I enjoy city life, but it can be nice to wander at your own pace and see what you can come across. So I spent time, wandering through alleyways and off the main streets to see what I might discover, like street art, or slower, quiet moments in time.
I went out in mornings, even on a drizzly day to capture the city in a slower energy. The area of Temple Bar is crazy busy at night, because: Pubs!
Since I was there in fall, there were decorations all about for the upcoming holiday. I spent afternoons resting, somewhat, but I did venture out in the evenings, not only to find dinner, but capture the city at night.
The hustle and bustle of perhaps the most photographed pub in Dublin, The Temple Bar.
To the calm mood of the River Liffey and Ha Penny Bridge.
Be forewarned, if you go to Dublin and want take pictures in this area, it will be loaded with tourists! You’ll want to have patience to get the image you want. I went a couple of nights for different angles and views. Each visit can result in something different. There’s also much more to see in the area, of course.
A lovely visit indeed, about 81K steps over my few days there, almost all walking and occasionally hopping on a bus or street car if I wanted to go farther. I did take the train to a city south of Dublin, Dun Laoghaire, which I’ll create a separate post for.
Thanks for joining me on the journey.
~ Kate