Travel & Holidays in later life
The full circuit takes 80 minutes, with up to 25 stops along the way at sightseeing highlights. Get on, or get off, whenever you like through the day. The cost is 13 euros. Along that circuit, nothing has changed, including the drivers' Irish jokes that they've hammed up several times a day over the past decade. During the circuit, they're guaranteed to sing Dublin's national anthem - Molly Malone - in thickest possible Irish accent. It's a fun tour, played for laughs
En route, the most popular stop is the Guinness Storehouse which tells the 250-year story
of Ireland's best-known export. "I'm driving you all to drink," says the bus
driver, when most of his passengers alight. Just along the street is Number Twenty Nine, a restored middle-class house of the late 18th century. Visitors can capture the atmosphere of Upstairs-Downstairs of 200 years ago, when servants were cheap. Today that's all changed. Dublin is bursting with prosperity at all social levels. The republic has been humming for years with stunning economic growth. More people of Irish origin return to Eire than emigrate. As a result, Dublin is exposed to trendy ideas from New York, Sydney or elsewhere. Dublin
today is a very cosmopolitan city, with coffee-bars and restaurants of every imaginable
national cuisine, from Thai and Chinese, to Mexican, Russian, Japanese and Indian. It's
hard to find any eating place serving a traditional Irish stew or "Cockles and
mussels alive, alive-oh." But no continental country can match the traditional full
Irish breakfast of bacon, black pudding, eggs and properly-made tea!Much of the catering business is staffed by workers from everywhere in the world, from China to the Philippines or the Baltic States. Younger hotel staff may come from France, Germany or Thailand - all adding English-speaking experience to their CVs as they gain work experience around the world. Meanwhile, the famous pubs are crowded every night. You're not regarded as a wimp if you order a glass of wine instead of a pint. But "the black stuff" still remains the prime pub drink that triggers the wild conversation and laughter. It's one of the great joys of Ireland. Sooner or later most visitors migrate to the narrow cobbled streets of Temple Bar - formerly an area of decrepit warehouses, due for demolition and rebirth in steel, concrete and glass. Instead, the district has matured as the Cultural Quarter, full of restaurants, pubs and night clubs. Shops sell everything from old books and records to oddities of dress, collectibles, and craft giftware. You can be tattooed in Zulu style. From Temple Bar, pedestrians cross the River Liffey on the landmark Ha'penny Bridge, which has now been refurbished with dazzling white railings, granite paving and new lighting. The city also makes better use of the scenic Liffey waterfront wit  h a Millennium Boardwalk for riverside relaxation. Likewise O'Connell Street has been rejuvenated, with something called The Spire where Nelson's Pillar used to stand, and a Plaza in front of the General Post Office where on Easter Sunday 1916 the uprising took place. The shrapnel holes are still preserved.
Read about these other areas of Ireland BLARNEY - enjoying the talk in Counties Cork and Kerry DUBLIN - Pub-crawling for literature IRELAND WEST COAST - Coach-touring the west IRELAND - TRALEE TRA-LA to Dingle Bay "Books to read - click on cover pictures" or click on the links below "Festival of Irish Music" - a two-disc collection of tracks by varied artists, including The Dubliners. A good memento of evenings out in Dublin's favourite taverns. "Lonely Planet: Dublin" - a detailed guide to the city, including a good selection of walking tours; and where to go for all the lively evening enjoyment. "Literary Guide to Dublin" by Vivien Igoe - describes the association of so many famed writers with Dublin, from Jonathan Swift to modern times. Helpful in following --their literary trail around the city. Dublin by Edward Rutherford - A massive but very readable account, 1215 pages, stretching back into history in great detail.
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If
you haven't been to Dublin for several years, there are plentiful reasons for taking
another look.
