Dublin General Tips by call_me_rhia

Favorite Thing: Most of the 'official' attractions lie on the south side of the river Liffey, but there's quite a few interesting things in the northside too. So let's start with the northside: first of all there's the largest road, O'Connell St with plenty of expensive shop, and nearby little Talbot St with inexpensive shops. More shops can be found along Henry St (which changes name about 5 times while you walk along it). Still along O'Connell St there's a great building: the GPO, where the 1916 Easter Rising started.

Another interesting place to visit is the Dublin Writer's Museum in Parnell Sq. There's several interesting statues scattered around: James Joyce at the intersection of talbot St and O'Connel St, and some funny ladies's statues outside the Dublin Woollen Mills before the Ha'Penny Bridge. Parkwise there's the famous Phoenix Park (and the ugly zoo is in that area too) and Croke Park.

What else? There are two interesting buildings along the quays: one is the Custom Hall (near the dart line) - there's a good theatre in the area (but i fail to recollect the name) - and further north along Arran Quay there's the Four Courts building. A few minutes walk from there you can find Saint Michan's Church, with some mummifies bodies and the organ on which Handel performed the Messiah for the first time.

Fondest Memory: Clubbing there regularily - and trying to walk through Summerhill at night and see how long it would be till I got mugged (answer: never!)

The second fondest memory is the vist the the Jameson whiskey distillery, where you can find out why irish whiskey is actually better (in my opinion) and smoother (in everyone's opinion) than Scottish and American whiskys.

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Favorite Thing: In Dublin's southside you can find all the classic attractions - normally the places that everyone visits: one place that can't be missed is Trinity College with its stunning Old Library and collection of books - in particular the Book of Kells: every day they show a new page so it's worth a repeated visit. From the main Gate you can walk along Dame St and stop to visit the Dublin Castle, which doesn't look much like a castle from the outside (but it does from the inside). At the top od Dame St you can find the two cathedrals (Christchurch and Saint Patrick) and also Dublinia, an exhibit about Dublin life 1000 years ago (and, I shall add, a tourist trap unless you are under 10 years old).

Further up from here you reach Saint James' Gate, home of the Guinness Brewery, where you can see the machinery and ingredients used to produce the black stuff, and you can taste it too. Sort of south-west of Trinity College you can find the National Gallery, if you like art, and not far from there you can walk to Merrion Square and Fitzwilliam Square to see the famous Georgian houses and doors: Oscar Wilde used to live in one of these houses. The park of Saint Stephen's Green is nearby too, and from there on you can proceeed along into the Stephen's Green Shopping Centre or along Grafton St for more shopping.

Fondest Memory: Living there - in Temple Bar - when it was all crumbling down, and flats were about 20 pounds a week. We're talking ages ago, I'm afraid. And then again, walking two flights of stairs down to get to the pub (Brogan's now - but it was then called the City Hall Inn) and two minutes to get to college. From there it was two more minutes to get to my (now ex) boyfriend's local pub, the Palace... and I remember being annoyed at the detour.

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