DUBLIN!

my first two hours in dublin, ireland were great!

before arriving, I was planning on spending the night resting and on my computer. BUT! when i stepped off the bus and saw the streets bustling with people and flooded with neon lights, I knew i couldn't waste my precious time in dublin inside.

im staying in temple bar, which is a little strip at the heart of the city center and right near the liffey river, and just around the corner from trinity college. it's a so-called "party district" filled with bars and restaurants. so i grabbed my camera and headed out to the street of dublin.

temple bar (specifically fleet st). cobblepaths. neon signs.

lower liffey st. (north of liffey)

merchant's arch. (south of liffey)

over the liffey on the O'Connell bridge. in view is the Ha' Penny bridge. love the green.

colorfully lit buildings lining the liffey on lower ormond qu.

after wandering along the banks of the liffey, i decided to head back to temple bar. but on the corner at the head of fleet st., i noticed this bar.

palace bar since 1823.

live traditional irish music! i obviously had to go. normally, i would've been hesitant/awkward about walking into a bar alone, but i have less than 72 hours in dublin, so i just went for it.

locals hanging at the bar (i only heard irish accents, and no american accents. yay!)

traditional irish musicians! i was surprised they were guys in their late 20s, instead of fully bearded men in their 60s 70s.

they were just playing away, tucked in the corner providing musical entertainment for the pub without being center stage or anything. no theatrics, simply down-to-earth. just a natural part of the pub.

i love love love this photo, but I had to get awkwardly close to the guys in order to take the photo. so, i just scurried away after sneaking this one shot. haha

since I was in ireland, i got myself my first half-pint of guinness! and it was much better than i thought it'd be. while sipping on my guinness and listening to traditional music, I asked the bartender if live music happens every night. she said it only happens on thursday, sunday and tuesday nights, so i'm extremely glad I decided to stop in tonight! then, she started talking to me about the different bands and different types of music that happen throughout the week. we went on to chitchat for a good 15 minutes about irish music, london, boston, and winter weather. apparently, this is the coldest winter ireland has had since the 60s! and ireland also happens to be one of the few countries that's even less prepared for snow than england! so within my first two hours in dublin, i managed to get irish beer, irish music and a nice conversation with an irish lady! (she was super sweet, but her thick accent made her even cooler)

i spent about 45 minutes there just sitting at the bar, listening to the music and taking photos. surprisingly, i didn't feel awkward about it at all! it was all great fun.

now, i'm going to bed since i have a big day ahead of me tomorrow. i'm getting down to the "real" reason i'm here: research of jack b. yeats and samuel beckett. i'm going to read at the national library, then i'm going to meet with one of the librarians, who's a friend of my nyu professor, and he's going to show me some cool/pertinent stuff there and around the city!