The Delights of Dublin...

We flew Aer Lingus from Paris Charles de Gaulle to Dublin Ireland. Neither of us have been to Ireland before, so we were quite looking forward to it, not to mention an anticipated relief from the stifling heat of the French city. Aer Lingus seems to be a budget carrier - the tickets were cheap, but the extras for our check-in baggage more than doubled the cost!

The Spire (2003) dominates the view along Henry and O'Connell Streets.

The flight was packed, the most obvious demographic being French senior school students on some sort of extended excursion. They were having a good time, but were very well behaved - they looked to be good representatives of their country. The taxi driver on the way to our hotel told us that Ireland is really popular for European students because they can practice their English here. When you think of it, Ireland is the only Eurozone country where English is the first language.

Narrow alleyway at Merchants Arch.

View east along the River Liffey to Port Dublin.

We discovered that Dublin is full of Europeans, not only the French. There's barely room from any Irish in the CBD area. Another reason for Dublin's popularity, is how far a Euro goes here. Prices were noticeably lower than in Paris, so we suppose visitors come for the shopping too, as well as practicing their English.

Outdoor imbibing is a popular pastime in Dublin streets.

Waiting for a tram on a quiet Sunday morning.

The weather was pleasant, as hoped. Daily 15-20C was more comfortable than the 30-35C of Paris. Rain was forecast every day, but it never seemed to eventuate. Skies were generally overcast, with only occasional flashes of blue.

Colorful backpackers' hostel near Connolly Station.

Decoration on the Ministry for Culture.

A moving tribute to the mass starvation and migration caused by the 1850 potato famine.

Example of Dublin's many cobbled streets - great ambience and traffic calming too!

The 2009 Samuel Beckett Bridge over the River Liffey can swivel to allow boats to pass.

Our hotel was right on North Quay nearly opposite the famous old Ha'penny Bridge across the rather sad looking River Liffey and the uber-touristy Temple Bar district. You couldn't ask for a better location. It was very comfortable with a fabulous bathroom! We've stayed at Hiltons so much in recent years of travel that they have started to treat us like royalty! Which is very enjoyable.

The intriguing Bondi Beach Club along Ormond Quay Lower.

The infamous Temple Bar Hotel, deserted at dawn, but packed at other times.

Dublin is ancient. It lays claim to being the oldest city in Ireland - apparently this is disputed by Waterford. Ptolemy referred to a settlement here in 140AD. The Vikings had established villages in the 800'sAD, and remained in control until the Norman invasion in 1161AD (led by the formidable archer, Stringbow) and then the English a few years later. Trinity College, a Dublin institution, was founded in 1592, and still operates as a major research university. Ireland itself became an independent nation in 1922. Much of this long history is evident in the modern city of Dublin.

Famous Ha'penny Bridge, so called for the toll it used to extract.

Demonstration of Viking weaponry at Dublinia.

The Royal Chapel at Dublin Castle.

The 1881 Georges Street Arcade has been saved, but is populated by tawdry shops.

St. Patrick's cathedral in Dublin is special because not because is it the largest in Ireland, but because Saint Patrick himself is reputed to have done many of his good works around 500AD in the vicinity of the present site.

The "real" St Patrick's Cathedral.

We found Dublin CBD to be friendly, vibrant and bustling. It has rough edges, a sort of a grunge about it, which somehow adds to the appeal. Early morning walks show that the city authorities work very hard in the morning to clean up detritus left by bars, restaurants, tourists and drunks the night before. The Temple Bar district is the centre of tourist partying, but there is much more to Dublin than this, with Trinity College, a "Viking/Medieval Area", shopping around Grafton and Henry Streets, impressive Georgian architecture, delightful parks like Merrion Square and St. Stephens Green, and a modern light-rail system.

Vistors enjoy a tour of the Trinity College grounds.

Pretty cute portable food wagon.

Long queue in line to see the Book of Kells at Trinity College.

Photogenic sculpture on display at the Berkely Centre at Trinity College.

Classical exhibition at the National Gallery of Art.

Oscar Wilde memorial in Merrion Square.

Two ways to see Dublin's streets and save the foot leather.

Dublin is very proud of the doors on its Georgian mansions.

Artistic moss on two Georgian buildings.

Colorful caretaker's cottage at St Stephens Green.

A modern tram curves around Harcourt Street past magnifient Georgian buildings.

Selling cherries from an old pram along the Henry Street shopping strip.

Colourful summer flowers, geraniums, petunias and begonias, are everywhere in planter boxes, making the streets very pretty. It's amazing the trouble that everyone goes to, to establish and maintain these little gardens!

Feeding the pigeons.

The River Liffey is rather dreary. It our entire stay here, we only saw one vessel, a tour boat, traverse this dark-coloured waterway, and it seems that significant commerce ceased around 1990. Old photos in pubs reveal a much more vibrant history. Downstream of the CBD and running north off the Liffey, the Royal Canal looks to be pretty-well defunct, crossed by derelict looking opening bridges. We don't know about the Grand Canal, further downtream.

Intricate steel mechanism on an opening bridge on the Royal Canal.

Don't know if this old and dilapidated canal bridge still opens?

Steel art decorates a railway bridge in Gardiner Street Lower.

Enjoying protection from the coolish breeze on a boardwalk along the River Liffey.

On the days were were here, live music abounded. Buskers were everywhere, with the most popular genre being, not surprisingly, Traditional Irish Folk. In the Temple Bar hotel, the rabbit-warren of exceptionally small and character-filled rooms were packed to capacity attracted by mighty fine fiddling. We could hardly get in to take our photo. Other bars were quieter and less crowded, but still popular and interesting.

Busker singing Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah.

This was a very talented fiddler and piper busking in a square in the Temple Bar.

Visitors enjoy live Irish music in the streets all over Dublin.

Outlandish decoration on pubs is a common sight in Dublin.

Molly Malone sold cockles and muscles in the streets of old Dublin town.

Live music at the Temple Bar, This guy was a mighty fine fiddler.

We found it easy to eat well here, a rather pleasant change from Paris. We enjoyed excellent meals every day, and not just at recommended restaurants in tourist guides. One excellent pub meal was at a modest place next door to Tara Street Station, apparently being patronised by city workers awaiting their train home.

Multitasking in Coppinger Row pedestrian mall.

The Church has been rebirthed at an upmarket bar and restaurant.

The famous Guinness Brewery of Dublin.