Take a short hop to Ireland’s fair capital
Dublin is alive with history, culture and pubs finds GARETH TIDMAN during a stay at the Conrad
MAYBE it’s because of the large choice of routes now available to the budget airline traveller that Ireland’s capital can often be overlooked when it comes to choosing a city break destination?
It’s true there are more exotic, glamorous and eye-catching cities within the reach of the weekend traveller these days.
But Dublin has so much to offer in terms of history, culture and charm that to not take advantage of its close proximity - and some seriously low air fares – at least once in a while might be considered seriously remiss.
We booked a three night stay at the Conrad Dublin, a luxury hotel opposite the city’s National Concert Hall.
Having just missed the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising marking the day a band of rebels bravely rose up against their British rulers before being brutally crushed, we decide that a history lesson should be on the agenda.
A visit to the museum below the General Post Office, the key focus of the fighting, and Kilmainham Gaol, where the leaders of the Rising were executed, are therefore uppermost on our itinerary.
And so are a few visits to the city’s more atmospheric watering holes, particularly those once frequented by the stars of the Irish literary scene; James Joyce, Brendan Behan and WB Yeats.
We discover that we have chosen a good spot to begin our mission. The Conrad sits on the edge of St Stephens Park where the rebels dug trenches to halt the British Army’s anticipated counter attack, and came under fire from soldiers who had resorted to taking over local hotels.
The park is filled with statues, busts and information boards detailing how the drama unfolded, and bullet holes can be seen on surrounding buildings where the republicans returned fire.
Housed in the cellars of the grand, classical General Post Office rebuilt after being reduced to rubble by the British bombardment during the street battles in the days after the Rising - is a detailed and well organised museum, using displays and videos to relay how events unfolded all those years ago.
The Irish tricolour that now flies proudly above the post office is surely matched in poignancy only by the one that flies in the yard of Kilmainham Gaol, situated on the edge of the city centre.
The yard, were Padraig Pearse James Connolly and other rebel leaders faced the firing squads, is a bleak and sombre place surrounded by giant grey stone walls, and the gaol is perhaps the best place to begin to understand what drove these men and women to take on an empire.
The prison’s cold and brutal cells remain every bit as unforgiving today as they must have been to the poor souls held captive there after it opened in 1796.
Yet such was the suffering outside the prison’s gates during the potato famine of the mid 19th Century that it is said that some looked on its guarantee of a daily meal as a preferable option and deliberately got themselves interned.
The jail also features a fascinating museum, featuring the belongings of key republicans and letters written in the dark of their cells as they awaited their fate.
If you are visiting the jail just make sure you book in advance as the limited number of tickets which can be bought on the door daily sell out quickly.
Back in the centre of Dublin there is more pleasant history waiting to be discovered in far more favourable surroundings.
Pubs like the Palace Bar retain the character and charm that once made them a favoured spot for the city’s leading writers, journalists and intellectuals. There can be few simpler joys than whiling away a few hours in a cosy corner of traditional Dublin with a few pints of Guinness - it does taste better here no matter what anyone tells you. The weakness of the British pound can sadly make this a pricey affair with a pint of the black stuff likely to set you back around six euros. The only good thing that can be said about this sorry state of affairs is that the price does seem to be pretty constant outside of the main tourist traps of Temple Bar.
This riverside neighbourhood has developed a bit of an unwanted reputation in recent years as a soulless magnet selling a hollow Irish ‘experience’ to droves of cash-laden tourists, but avoid the main offenders and there are still some great pubs to be found here, along with art markets, book shops and interesting places to eat.
Literary buffs can also indulge in the history to be found at Sweny’s, a pharmacy featured in James Joyce’s Ulysses, which remains unchanged from the day a fictional Leopold Bloom made regular visits to buy lemon-scented soap.
The Conrad Dublin is a smart and sleek hotel from which to launch your site-seeing expeditions.
Featuring 192 recently refurbished guest rooms and suites, it boasts an army of friendly staff for whom nothing is too much trouble, whether it’s giving you the low down on the best places to sup your Guinness or the offer of lifts in the hotel’s courtesy car to make navigating the city a little easier.
The hotel also boasts a lively basement bar and a classic brasserie and you can also take advantage of 1/3/5 StayInspired.com, the hotel’s guide to the best way to spend one, three or five hours to make sure you get the most out of every minute in this fascinating cultural and historic destination waiting for you only a short hop across the Irish Sea.