Dublin

I am lucky in that I am fairly well travelled. But it’s amazing how many amazing cities are on my doorstep that I am yet to discover. Until this weekend, Dublin was one of them. Surprising as Ireland plays an important part in my family history. My Grandpa was born and grew up in Cork. He was one of five and the only one to go on to study at University- to this day he is still the youngest graduate in Classics (Latin and Greek) through the medium of Irish. He then went on to do a second degree in Civil Engineering and later in life became a fellow of both Civil and Structural Engineers. However, as quoted at his funeral from the famous Rudyard Kipling, ‘he walked with Kings but never lost the common touch,’ and that was exactly how my Grandpa was – incredibly intelligent and incredibly humble. I often put that down to his Irishness- perhaps.

Anyway, back to Dublin, I was amazed at how the Irish capital that I had never even been to was only a 55 minute flight away. Amazing how at under an hour you can be in such a different place. It may not look that different but it certainly felt different and in a good way. Used to the hustle and bustle and lack of real communication with passers-by in London, I enjoyed the small-town friendliness of this capital city. Described as a city with one foot in the past and one foot in the future you can really get a sense of this. Walking down the busy and cosmopolitan O'Connell Street passing coffee shops and fashion stores and suddenly passing the old Post Office where you can still see the bullet holes from the 1916 Easter Uprising. Astonishing. Knowing that as you wander over the river running to beat the cars you are travelling the same routes that the likes of Michael Collins and De Velera must have taken at some point- probably by bike. 

Getting a bus to the historical Kilmainham Gaol we jumped on quickly thinking it would be in a hurry to leave. Instead, the bus driver took his time to explain that owing to the traffic of that day’s Dublin marathon (that my dad was taking part in) we would be unable to get off right outside. He told us he’d drop us as near as possible and smiled and waved off the fact we didn’t have enough change. True to his word, he ensured he told us where to get off and then spent more time explaining again how to get there and where to get the bus back. What a different world. The gaol itself was absolutely fascinating. From its opening in 1796 to its closure in 1924, it is a place of immense history, on both the nature and running of the prison and the fact it was the place of execution for many of the Irish rebellions during the resistance. I was moved by the tour guide’s wonderful commentary- a girl in her twenties that gave the impression she was speaking through parents, grandparents and great-grandparents who had taught her the history of her country and the struggles it had endured. She had such passion that someone of this generation would be allowed to have in talking about the history she has undoubtedly been affected by, however indirectly it may be.

Our hotel was situated right in the centre close to Trinity College. The marathon started and ended in the centre too, which was a nice touch as the runners were sent off and welcomed home with immense support. True to the Irish nature, one supportive banner read ‘Run as if you’re late for mass!’ We also ventured into the infamous Temple Bar district and spent the evening in a bar where, to the Irish, your typical band was playing. To me, they were a far cry from the local bands you may see in town. Their musical ability was phenomenal and we enjoyed the sounds of not just guitars but Irish bagpipes, fiddle and penny whistle. The crowd was so varied as well- the marathon maybe contributing to this and the fact people from 51 different countries took part. Dad completed it in 4 hours and 27 minutes- pretty impressive effort if you ask me.

What made the trip even more special was the fact I met again with three of my closest friends from University (one of them was running the marathon as well and so we all made a trip out of it). It’s amazing as how you get older you really start to appreciate those who you are closest to and realise that it’s these people who truly know you. You surround yourself with people everyday but it’s rare you make connections like you do with your best friends and it’s a nice feeling when you meet up again and can really be yourself without a worry in the world.

And so my experience of Dublin was a good one. I hope yours is.