Dublin

Luckily the Cardiff cabbie was proved wrong. My uncle and aunt restrained themselves to plying me with a port after dinner. Im not sure I ever managed to recover from New Years Eve due to a steady diet of Guiness. And yes it does taste different in Ireland. Guiness have also brought out a “new and different” range of boutique stouts each available for a limited time only. They all taste like, ummm, Guiness.......

Im not quite sure what to write about Dublin. My cousin asked me “did you not find it both nouveau-riche and falling apart at the edges?” Well yes there is a certain amount of bling and fake tan slapped onto an ageing city which might not have been that attractive to start with. The “celtic tiger” economic boom (which appears to have been driven by the Irish ability to con the EU out of money) has driven the prices up, allowed it to put on airs like a uppity housewife and put up lights everywhere. And build a very excellent new tram system.

But that’s not what I take away from Dublin, I wasn’t really sightseeing, I didn’t really “see” that side despite spending a lot of time wandering around. It is a nice town, full of monuments, old buildings, Trinity College, the old bank, museums, statues (have you guessed I didn’t do my research?), the Book of Kells was amazingly intricate and spectacular, Brian Borus harp (its not his but don’t let the truth spoil a good story), ancient churches at Glendalough/Wicklow, the green hills etc. etc. Seeing more modern history too – the copy of the Proclamation of the Republic, including “The Republic guarantees religious and civil liberty, equal rights and equal opportunities to all its citizens, and declares its resolve to pursue the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts, cherishing all of the children of the nation equally….” A stunning realisation that maybe history wasn’t meant to be this way. The feeling I had was almost homey, it seemed more familiar than a new city should. Partly this was because Dublin became the backdrop to catching up with family and others, the scenery behind scandals and gossip and innuendo, the ground from which old alliances were built again. It was great to spend with my cousins and catch up on their lives, it amazes me with all the time and distance from our childhood, the paths we’ve taken and the different people we are now that we are still close and keen to understand and support each other. Its probably not that inexplicable since they are extremely nice and wonderful human being and also given we started from similar backgrounds. My favourite memory is on my way to have another drink with my cuz after seeing the other cuz off on the bus, walking through Dublin alive at night and just feeling good. Something to do with the half dozen pints of Guiness perhaps?

Maybe I should end where I started with the Guiness as I was also on a mad dash through every gradient of the spectrum that is “the Irish pub”. From the ‘roughness” of Mulligan’s (where you’re not allowed to smoke OR use your mobile inside – which is the more dangerous addiction?!), more respectable establishments like the Castle Inn and the M1, inner-city bars like McDaids with endless staircases, ignoring the touristy traps of Temple Bar (apart from Messrs Maguires where they brew their own although I had to deal with a Swans supporter) all the way to the red velvet couches and mood lighting of The Front Lounge where you weren’t sure who was being nicer, the barmaid or the guy letting you through to get a drink. Oddly enough the extreme ends of the spectrum were my favourite. Throughout all this the craic and the humour stood out. There was something the barman at Mulligans said that made me piss myself laughing. I wish I could remember it to tell you, but I can remember him spreading cream cheese on his cracker biscuit while telling stories with a cheeky grin. Or the graffiti on a condom machine in one of the toilets - underneath "Tested to EU and international standards" was etched "so was the titanic”.

The most precise fine in all Ireland. You wouldnt want to be short 5 euro.