How did we go about picking our “must see” sights- both in Dublin and Ireland/ Northern Ireland……well guidebooks are our lead resources…..whether checking Lonely Planet’s Ireland guidebook (hard copy only for taking with us!) or Fodor’s Ireland– at least a couple of us spent time checking out both the highlights as well as the lesser known sights. Newspaper articles also came in handy, as did Trip Advisor for restaurants, etc.
In Dublin, on days two and three, we checked out various spots according to our interests. We didn’t travel together all of the time in Dublin, and this allowed us to individualize our interests…….first of all-The Book of Kells at Trinity College as well as The Old Library. A must see for all history/ book aficionados. Then onto The Chester Beatty Library, which houses Egyptian papyrus texts, beautifully illuminated copies of the Qur’an, the Bible, European medieval and renaissance manuscripts- one of the top museums in Europe. Also- here we had lunch- and the lunches at historical sights and museums in Ireland were delicious- a far cry from what is often served in North America.
A couple of us then headed to the top rated National Museum of Ireland- Archaeology, while the other two headed to National Museum of Ireland– Decorative Art. All in all a busy day, topped off with one of the best meals on our trip- supper at Matt The Thresher Seafood Pub.
The following day we headed to Merrion Square for pictures of the Oscar Wilde statue, before heading to Number 29, ESB Georgian House Museum for a look and tour at the Georgian style houses for which Dublin is so famous. From there we headed to the National Library of Ireland where we were fortunate enough to catch a retrospective of Yeats……how fabulous that was. We ended our day with a walk to a foodie market in the Temple Bar area where some of us enjoyed fresh oysters and a glass of wine sitting at an outdoor food booth…….perfect!
All in all, Dublin is a great city- we barely scratched the surface, and is a place we can go back to again and again……next post- exploring the rest of Ireland……the great outdoors!
