A Day Down in Dublin

I’m dreaming of days like this again…

As my country is so small, I love that I’m able to just hop on a train and head to an array of cool places for the day – and make it back for bed time!

Whilst lockdown restrictions had been eased last August, I experienced what was to become the highlight of my 2020; and as I sit here currently in my room at home with my puffer coat on, I wanted to vicariously live through the life of me (if only for that one day) last summer.

And in that regard, I decided to venture a little further down south to Ireland’s capital, Dublin, with my boyfriend (I’m from Northern Ireland so technically it’s a different country, but let’s not get into that debate)… we had an incredible day featuring a very belated birthday meal at Wagamama, watching Allie Sherlock busking, and overall being the ultimate tourists!

Ps. Apologies for some of the photos, I was mainly taking little clips for a TikTok (haha) so the screenshots aren’t the best quality!

We began the day bright and early so as we would be able to make the most of our visit – as soon as we got there though, we had to make a stop at The Cake Cafe to boost our energy (who am I without coffee?!) However, we couldn’t skip past St. Stephen’s Green without a leisurely morning stroll before the rain came on!

After we were revitalised, it was time to walk around and explore the city. I didn’t even realise how many beautiful murals and little side streets Dublin holds; you could really spend forever just discovering new things and getting lost amongst the alleys.

Of course we had to visit the bright red walls of Temple Bar which was [sadly] closed at 11am (not that I’m legally allowed to drink there quite yet!). It was surprisingly very quiet and not swarming with tourists which was nice, although if it was open the atmosphere would have been magical.

Cheers to hoping for some of that Irish pub spirit post-lockdown anyone?

We spent much of the next few hours in the same manner, wandering along the cobblestone streets and just embracing the life of the city while we could, and actually came across some really cool vintage stores – I’m sorry to say Belfast couldn’t come close!

Before we headed for the belated birthday dinner, we of course had to hit Grafton Street – after all, what would a trip to Dublin be without it?

I’m not a huge fan of spending hours shopping, but the person I was with is a bit of a shopaholic so he was easily amused, while I was just enjoying being there – and we were lucky enough to get to watch Allie Sherlock busking on the street (if you haven’t heard of her I strongly recommend you search her up on YouTube.)

It was then time for the main event: dinner!!

I had never been to Wagamama before, so we went basic and got a (vegetarian) Katsu Curry, and it was delicious. I found a recipe online for it and having been meaning to try it out ever since then, so maybe I’ll finally get around to it and let you know how it goes?

We obviously had to stop for ice cream at Gino’s – there are so many of these in Dublin!

Finally, the last activity of the day was accidentally sneaking into Dublin castle…

I’m not really sure how this happened but we were walking around and when I say it started pouring, I mean it was POURING with rain, so we just ran to some steps that had a little canopy shelter over them.

I look to my right and what do I see?

Beautiful coloured building structures and luscious gardens – how could you not explore?

We didn’t go inside the actual castle or grounds, but next time we definitely will; from what we did see, I can only imagine how beautiful the actual castle is…

And just like that, it was time to take the two and a half hour train journey home – but not without a vanilla Yazoo milk first!

I paid way too much money for a milkshake from the Spar, but I can never find them anywhere up here so in my eyes, it was worth it.

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Overall, it was such a memorable day where I felt a sense of hope for what life could be for the first time in a while. I read something the other day that said something like ‘if you’re feeling down about the pandemic, just think that everyday is a day closer to your next holiday, next concert, next outing with your friends’ – and that is what is really keeping me going right now as we are in lockdown 3 (?!)

Now is the time we should all obey whatever the rules are in our own country as if we work together, we can eventually overcome this and be able to hug people again! Although I must say, one thing this time has taught me is that I will never blow out candles on a cake again!

In all seriousness, I know that these times are so difficult, especially with all the sudden U-turns and alterations to rules and regulations and the whole uncertainty of it all – I just want you to know that I am so proud of you for everything. Whether you have completed all of your work, done some exercise or just got out of bed today – you are doing so well.

And on that note, I wish you health and happiness – see you next week!

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