If you ever want to understand Dublin, stand at a bus stop for twenty minutes.Any one will do. O’Connell Street, College Green, Donnybrook, doesn’t matter. Time stops working there. The …
Phoenix Park is gorgeous and sneaky. It looks like a quick wander and then the horizon keeps moving and your toes start writing letters to management. Here’s the version that …
If you grew up in Dublin, chances are you were marched through the Dead Zoo at least once in primary school. Half the class buzzing with the idea of seeing …
People love the idea of the Liffey. Postcard shots. Reflections. Bridges lit up at night. Looks lovely when you’re walking beside it and don’t have to think about what’s actually …
You get used to daft questions when you’re a tour guide. After a few years, you stop flinching. People are lost, they’re tired, they’re full of jet lag and bad …
You’ll notice it if you’re not from here. No one really says “hello.” Not properly. Not like in other cities where people seem genuinely delighted to see you. In Dublin, …
I used to include the Famine Memorial on maybe one in every five tours. Depends on the group. If they looked like they could handle something heavier than anecdotes about …
Some pubs are built for talking. Others are built for people who’ve already done enough of that and just want to sit down without being asked what their plans are …
I gave walking tours of Dublin for years. Not fancy ones — the kind where you start outside a coffee chain and end up next to a bin explaining to …
I spent twenty years walking Dublin’s streets giving tours. In that time, I had more one-sided conversations with statues than I ever did in my last relationship. Not on purpose. …