Assignment #1

Henry Street
Henry Street is one of the biggest shopping streets in Dublin due to two large shopping centres (Jervis and Illac) and hundreds of individual shops along the street. It links the O’Connell Street with the Spire and then it becomes Mary Street but it’s considered to be just one street. The street was developed by Henry Moore, Earl of Drogheda as many other streets in the surrounding. He also named few of them after himself (Henry Street, Drogheda Street, Moore Street, Earl Street, etc.). Local people have no idea where the name comes from.

Leinster House
Leinster House lies on the Kildare Street near the Merrion Square and nowadays it’s a seat of the Parliament of Ireland, in Irish called Oireachtas. But it was built as a home for James Fitzgerald, the Earl of Kildare so it was called Kildare House. But after he became the Duke of Leinster, the house got a new name, the Leinster House. The unique Georgian house inspired many other important building in the world, particularly the White House in Washington DC. Facade open to the Kildare Street is designed as an city house. Despite the front- rear elevation of the house to the Merrion Square looks like a village house with large lawns. When asking Dubliners about the Leinster House, most of them knew its location and function but no one has never been there or wants to go there. Even the visits of sessions of Parliament are not interesting for them.

Merrion Square
Merrion Square is one of the most beautiful squares in the Dublin city centre in the south part of the city. There is a romantic park in the middle of the square and it’s lined by the Leinster House (see above), other government building, the National History Museum, National Gallery, Irish Red Cross and a lot of charming Georgian brick houses and from one side by the Leinster House (see above). In the middle of the square there is a park with a colourful statue of Oscar Wilde, famous Irish writer and former square resident and collection of lamps from different eras. For the Irish there is a small memory of the incident know as Bloody Sunday. The British Embassy was placed here and destroyed during it in 1972. All the victims remembers “the National Memorial to Members of the Defence Forces who died in the Service of the State”, a modern pyramid-shaped monument right in the middle of the park. But for most people it’s just a nice place to take a rest, particularly if they prefer something quieter than St. Stephen Green, which is 5 minutes by walk from here.

Samuel Beckett Bridge
Samuel Beckett Bridge is a modern cable-stayed bridge, which was opened to traffic at the end of 2009. The bridge was designed by a Spanish bridge-specialist Santiago Calatrava. It’s located in the Docklands and connects Guild Street on the north with Sir John Rogerson’s Quay on the south. It has 4 traffic lines and special lines for cyclists and pedestrians too. With the Ha’penny Bridge are considered to be icons of the city. The sharp of the bridge reminds a harp, which is a symbol of the whole country. The bridge is called by the Dubliner writer Samuel Beckett, who became famous for his drama Waiting for Godot. In some Dubliners’ opinion it has improved the Dublin’s face together with the Convention Centre and it’s a good viewing point as well. In 2013 the Guinness World Record in the longest river dance line was broken here – it was an exceptional event.

St. Stephen’s Green
St. Stephen’s green belongs to the most favourite parks in Dublin. It’s located to the south from the river Liffey near Grafton Street. It was open to public in the year 1880 and offers its visitors a lot of trees, flowers, lakes, water birds, footpaths, benches and memorials of famous Irish e. g. James Joyce bust, statue of Lord Ardilaun, the donator from the Guinness family and monument of the revolutionary Wolfe Tone, for Dubliners known as Tonehange. It’s a popular place for walks connected with feeding swans, seagulls, ducks and pigeons. Students from schools nearby come here in the warm months to learn and young lovers to have their romantic moments. All of them appreciate a big park right in the city centre a lot. Unfortunately some of the citizens know the park just because of the near shopping area and the big luas stop.

Sandymount Strand
Sandymount Strand is one of the largest beaches in Dublin surroundings. It’s located near the Sandymount, the south Dublin suburb and it’s a vital part of the Dublin Bay. It’s a popular final destination not only for the weekend walks. When there is a low tide the beach is so long, that it’s almost not possible to see the sea. When the weather is beautiful there are runners, dog persons, playing children, lovers and other people everywhere. On every step there are signs warning visitors of dangerous of incoming tide, because it’s really fast and could strands people going to much far from the coast.

National Leprechaun Museum
Leprechaun is a specific kind of fairy with magical abilities from the Irish mythology. When the Irish are missing something, they say that the Leprechaun took it or hid it. In these days is the Leprechaun one of the symbols of Ireland and he’s on all souvenirs. The visitors of the National Leprechaun Museum will learn about Irish and Celtic folklore and culture in a funny way. The museum is situated on the Jervis Street. The Irish mostly even don’t know that a museum such like this exists. For the rest of them it’s just another way how to gain from the tourists as much money as possible. An educational benefit has been reduced at the expense of joy.

Anna Livia
Anna Livia is a statue from a sculptor Éamonn O’Doherty, located in the Croppies Memorial Park near the Heuston station on the north bank of the river Liffey. The monument was unveiled in 1998 at the occasion of the 1000th anniversary of the city. Actually it’s a personification of river Liffey itself and the sculptor has found the inspiration in the James Joyce’s book Finnegans Wake. It looks like a super human sized lady with long hair covering her private parts, lying in the stream of water. The monument was originally situated right in the middle of the O’Connell Street but was moved in 2001 to free up the space for the Spire. The Dubliners call it “the Floozie in the Jacuzzi” or “the Hoor in the Sewer” and for them it’s a nice place when waiting for a train. They didn’t like the previous location of Anna Livia; because strange people had the meeting point right there and it caused a lot of problems, but some of them even don’t know where it is located now.

The Brazen Head Pub
The Brazen Head is the oldest pub in Dublin situated on the Lower Bridge Street. It was founded in 1198 as a carriage house. In the past many famous Irish used to visit this pub, including James Joyce, who also mentioned it in his book Ulysses, and Jonathan Swift, another famous Irish writer famous for his book Gulliver’s Travels and some people say that Robin Hood have drunk here. The pub attracts visitors on its long tradition, popularity, live music and stories already mentioned. The majority of the visitors are tourists, who are willing to pay little bit more for beer and food as well. The Irish visit this pub just occasionally and don’t feel well here, because it’s more tourist attraction than a pub. But for tourists it’s a pub celebrity – the must see.

Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle is the biggest complex of Irish government buildings. You can find it near Dame Street in the south part of the Dublin city. It was built in 1204 as a part of defence system in the times of Norman invasion. Later it functioned as a seat of court, prison, treasury and residence of representatives of the British Empire. The major part of the castle is open to public just if you take a guided tour which takes the visitors to the State Apartments and medieval Undercroft. The Chapel Royal and The Chester Beatty Library are accessible free of charge. There are also two museums in the castle complex – The Revenue Museum and The Garda Museum, which is currently closed for due to renovations. The residents visit the Dublin Castle mostly in time of special events and shows. Most of them have never taken the tour, but I will, although it’s not a typical castle towering over the city and it’s quite hidden among other buildings.

References
Information:
Lisa Gerard-Sharp and Tim Perry. Ireland. New ed. New York: DK Pub. ISBN 978-075-6615-444.
Tripadvisor [online, 2014-02-28]. Available on: www.tripadvisor.com
Interviews with Lauren Kavanagh, Noemi Boswell and James Doyle
Personal visits

Pictures:
All the used photos I took by myself