Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Canadian exchange student at DCU
Options
-
08-01-2013 6:44pm#1Hi all,
I'm a 21-year-old, female Canadian university student arriving at the end of the month for a semester at DCU (studying Biotechnology). I'm one of only three students ever (so far!) from my home university to be part of this program. As such, I have a rather limited scope of knowledge about the city. I've gotten tips from the two returned exchange students on what to expect at DCU and some very basic tourist type things ("Go see the Guinness brewery!"). But if I'm going to be there for four months (February to May), I would love a true Dubliner's perspective on the city and what makes it unique and beautiful. I want a thorough, unstereotypical experience during my stay. I also want to stay alive and preferably safe! [Edit: I'm staying at Shanowen Hall in Glasnevin, across from the university campus.]
Having said all that, my questions are:
What is your favourite thing to do in Dublin? (and do you guys also put U's in words like favourite, neighbour, colour? please say yes!)
What is something a newcomer wouldn't expect but should watch out for? (good or bad)
Any other words of wisdom?
I've heard only great things about the city and people from other Canadians. Now I want to hear from you!
Thanks in advance.
(If this is posted in the wrong forum, I apologize.)0
Comments
-
-
-
I believe you're in the right forum, and I think Dublin is a lovely place so I think and hope you'll enjoy your time here!
Although I don't go to DCU, I've been there many times as my girlfriend goes there along with many of my friends. It's a really nice campus/university, and Glasnevin is a nice/safe area so all is fine there
Definitely try to make the most of your 4 months here! Dublin is a beautiful city, though you've probably just missed it when it's at it's best (over the Christmas period).
I'd say the nicest thing you can do to really take in Dublin is take a walk around Stephen's Green (the park in the city centre), walk down Grafton street and proceed through Temple Bar and on to the Ha'penny Bridge.
I've never done the walking tour, but done them in various other cities and always loved them so I would assume the Dublin one would be interesting for someone who's never been here before. They should be in full swing around St. Patrick's day, so try and get to one then. I know you said unstereotypical, but with 4 months you have plenty of time to do the cheesy touristy things as well!
As for the unstereotypical side, there's plenty of gems around Dublin that wouldn't be a tourist trap. You'll be living very close to the Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin so why not pop down to see them one day?
There are two quieter cinemas than the large chains, check out the IFI in town or the Lighthouse Cinema in Smithfield (which will be a bit out of your way but I love it), really cool cinemas. You can bring a drink from their bar in with you too.
There's a few markets I used to have a knowledge of but haven't been in quite a while, I'm sure someone on this forum will have a better knowledge than I on them now. There was a food market in Temple Bar on Saturday mornings, and I believe there is markets on the same time down at Grand Canal Dock (which can be a 20-30 minute walk from the city centre), but could be well worth checking out.
If you do the walking tour you'll most likely go through Trinity College (which is well worth a wander around anyway), and since you're doing biotechnology, you should check out the Science Gallery. It's at the back of the campus, people would gladly point you in the right direction. Interesting exhibits on all the time.
It's quite a small city, but there's plenty more to do than just what I've mentioned.
You'll make plenty of friends from your housemates and those in DCU you talk to, and you'll probably end up spending a lot of time in the NuBar (DCU's student bar). There's pubs on every corner if you want to go in for a pint of Guinness and see what all the fuss is about too. Maybe check out one of the real Irish-brewed pubs like the Porterhouse and see if that's to your liking, the one in Temple Bar has a really good atmosphere. There's also one near to Glasnevin as well, Porterhouse North, I've never been but from the outside it looks lovely.
As things for watching out for, I honestly couldn't say.....maybe don't walk down Talbot Street (in town near the spire) waving an iPhone around for everyone to see. The boardwalk on the river Liffey in town is a nice walkway but sometimes some not so nice people tend to sit on the benches on it, so don't walk down it unattended at night.
I've lived here 9 years (I'm also 21), and I've never had one problem at all, in town, or anywhere around Dublin. The friends you make will be able to help you with all of this!
Watch out for rain though. Plenty of rain.
My words of wisdom would be to search things in google, take a look at your area on google maps and any other places you think you'd want to visit. You can learn so much about a city and how to get around it without ever stepping foot in it now.
The main method of public transport in Dublin is the bus. There's a tram in town (The luas) but that doesn't go through your area.
You can look up routes etc. on Dublinbus.ie when you find out what route services your area. Again, I've never had a problem on the bus and have been getting it since I can remember. I'd advise buying a pre-paid ticket if you're going to be travelling a lot, you can get them in any newsagents or order from here http://www.ticketmaster.ie/event/18004991D1717F6C?camefrom=CFC_IE_AFF_DUBLINBUS&brand=ie_bus It might be worth your while buying a "Student Travelcard" (you can get it in the student office of DCU I think) for €15 and buying the 5 day/30 day student rambler ticket. It's non-consecutive and when you use it once for the day you can use it as many times as possible that day (the fare would be ~€2.40 per trip, so 4 trips would nearly be €10, where the 5 day non-consecutive ticket is €18.30)
You'll learn quickly when you get here anyway
Oh, and yes we include the u's :P
If I think of anything else I'll update it, but that's all for now.
Hope it all goes well0 -
-
-
Advertisement
-
Fantastic advice! I live in Toronto, and we get all sorts downtown here too. So a few junkies should be nothing out of the ordinary, haha. You make a good point about trying out the touristy stuff too! Also glad to hear DCU has a good name within the communityDr. Jonathan Crane wrote: »I suppose I don't have any favourite things to do in Dublin, besides a few favourite pubs and clubs. Those we have in abundance. There's also some incredible restaurants, great art gallerys and stereotypical as they are, the tourist stuff is actually a lot of fun! Ended up going to a few tours and things with a friend a while ago and actually enjoyed myself. Even after living here 20 years I hadn't seen so much.
Yes, we put "u" in those words :P
I definitely don't want to taint your experience before you even arrive and you seem to have a great attitude, but you might not expect the number of junkies hanging around the city centre. Most are harmless and your best to just walk right past, ignore them if they say anything etc. Just keep your wits about you and you'll be fine. I don't know a thing about life in Canada so for all I know you're used to this, but just in case!:D
Other than that, just keep the great attitude and experience everything Dublin can offer you. DCU is a great college and community, so once you've made some friends here you'll find loads to do! I'm sure someone more eloquent than me will be a long to include all the things I didn't :rolleyes:
Best of luck! 0 -
My favourite things in Dublin are going to the Sunday Markets on Newmarket Square and going to Tolka Park to see Shelbourne FC
And yes, I put the 'U' inside those words, because that is the way, you learn it in Germany...at least, I did lightyears ago
Words of wisdom? 'The biggest coward is the one, who tries to be loved by everybody'0 -
Very thorough! Usually not a huge sports fan but if it's part of the culture there, I'd love to see it, especially since I'll be around for St. Patrick's Day. The museum and cinemas would also be lovely...and a lock in just makes me think of Shaun of the Dead (cheesy, I know...) which is AWESOME. Believe it or not, I actually never learned to ride a bicycle when I was a kid so that's probably the only suggestion you made that's out of the question for me, but maybe it's a good time to finally get to learning it! Thanks for all your tips. As a bartender, I'll definitely be trying your local stouts tooyes u in everything... cept you (plural) that can be ye:D
bad- so many are going to approach you on the street... spare change/smokes... and chuggers (people working for a charity trying to sign you up to a donation system) theyre harmless tho, just annoying
good - on a nice summers day the city looks so much better that usual it always seemed to surprise me
probably worth getting a gaa game or 2, all ireland club finals are on st patricks day, i know a few germans who went to them and were quite glad. if your there for it opening round of the NFL in croke park should be a good occasion too, dublin v cork (2012 league winners) and AI champs donegal (:D) v kildare. febuary 2nd though so possible too early for you. there may be another double header later in the league. Unless you stay longer i doubt you will get championship games where the atmosphere and standard of play will be well ahead of the league
rugby also, plenty of games til the end of the year, tickets still going (i think) for the amlin final in may (second tier of europe which could see an irish team yet depending on how the heineken cup groups pan out) its away from the usual gaa and leinster always have a good crowd.
would be worth checking out the dead zoo (natural history museum)
cant beat a "lock in" in some random pub down the country... *just a note on getting out of dublin, cant beat a good road trip. im sure there will be someone in dcu who will help with this... also im sure they will advise on nights out
there is better irish stout than guinness, the beamish in comiskeys on constitution hill or the oyster stout if its flowing in the porterhouse to mention a few. (basic rule buy stout where its flowing, in general if there is pints on the tables your grand)
get a bike, nothing too fancy, the city is tiny in reality, you will make the price back over paying for a bus and the freedom of it is great... there is also the dublin bike scheme but not sure if it goes out to DCU
in fairness always seems to be some thread about restaurants so may be worth hanging around here
movies... if you like non mainstream stuff try the IFI or the lighthouse cinema
oh and the societies in dcu im sure would be a good help in catering to your interests 0 -
This is lovely. I'm going to print this out and post it over my desk when I get there, and cross things off of it as I do them. Thank you so much!I believe you're in the right forum, and I think Dublin is a lovely place so I think and hope you'll enjoy your time here!
Although I don't go to DCU, I've been there many times as my girlfriend goes there along with many of my friends. It's a really nice campus/university, and Glasnevin is a nice/safe area so all is fine there
Definitely try to make the most of your 4 months here! Dublin is a beautiful city, though you've probably just missed it when it's at it's best (over the Christmas period).
I'd say the nicest thing you can do to really take in Dublin is take a walk around Stephen's Green (the park in the city centre), walk down Grafton street and proceed through Temple Bar and on to the Ha'penny Bridge.
I've never done the walking tour, but done them in various other cities and always loved them so I would assume the Dublin one would be interesting for someone who's never been here before. They should be in full swing around St. Patrick's day, so try and get to one then. I know you said unstereotypical, but with 4 months you have plenty of time to do the cheesy touristy things as well!
As for the unstereotypical side, there's plenty of gems around Dublin that wouldn't be a tourist trap. You'll be living very close to the Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin so why not pop down to see them one day?
There are two quieter cinemas than the large chains, check out the IFI in town or the Lighthouse Cinema in Smithfield (which will be a bit out of your way but I love it), really cool cinemas. You can bring a drink from their bar in with you too.
There's a few markets I used to have a knowledge of but haven't been in quite a while, I'm sure someone on this forum will have a better knowledge than I on them now. There was a food market in Temple Bar on Saturday mornings, and I believe there is markets on the same time down at Grand Canal Dock (which can be a 20-30 minute walk from the city centre), but could be well worth checking out.
If you do the walking tour you'll most likely go through Trinity College (which is well worth a wander around anyway), and since you're doing biotechnology, you should check out the Science Gallery. It's at the back of the campus, people would gladly point you in the right direction. Interesting exhibits on all the time.
It's quite a small city, but there's plenty more to do than just what I've mentioned.
You'll make plenty of friends from your housemates and those in DCU you talk to, and you'll probably end up spending a lot of time in the NuBar (DCU's student bar). There's pubs on every corner if you want to go in for a pint of Guinness and see what all the fuss is about too. Maybe check out one of the real Irish-brewed pubs like the Porterhouse and see if that's to your liking, the one in Temple Bar has a really good atmosphere. There's also one near to Glasnevin as well, Porterhouse North, I've never been but from the outside it looks lovely.
As things for watching out for, I honestly couldn't say.....maybe don't walk down Talbot Street (in town near the spire) waving an iPhone around for everyone to see. The boardwalk on the river Liffey in town is a nice walkway but sometimes some not so nice people tend to sit on the benches on it, so don't walk down it unattended at night.
I've lived here 9 years (I'm also 21), and I've never had one problem at all, in town, or anywhere around Dublin. The friends you make will be able to help you with all of this!
Watch out for rain though. Plenty of rain.
My words of wisdom would be to search things in google, take a look at your area on google maps and any other places you think you'd want to visit. You can learn so much about a city and how to get around it without ever stepping foot in it now.
The main method of public transport in Dublin is the bus. There's a tram in town (The luas) but that doesn't go through your area.
You can look up routes etc. on Dublinbus.ie when you find out what route services your area. Again, I've never had a problem on the bus and have been getting it since I can remember. I'd advise buying a pre-paid ticket if you're going to be travelling a lot, you can get them in any newsagents or order from here http://www.ticketmaster.ie/event/18004991D1717F6C?camefrom=CFC_IE_AFF_DUBLINBUS&brand=ie_bus It might be worth your while buying a "Student Travelcard" (you can get it in the student office of DCU I think) for €15 and buying the 5 day/30 day student rambler ticket. It's non-consecutive and when you use it once for the day you can use it as many times as possible that day (the fare would be ~€2.40 per trip, so 4 trips would nearly be €10, where the 5 day non-consecutive ticket is €18.30)
You'll learn quickly when you get here anyway
Oh, and yes we include the u's :P
If I think of anything else I'll update it, but that's all for now.
Hope it all goes well0 -
Lovely, thank you for posting links to everything! I've actually heard of Penny's, glad to know a local would recommend it tootrue-or-false wrote: »Try the "Tea Garden" on the quays in the city centre: http://www.tea-garden.eu/
Get fish and chips in Leo Burdocks (lots of them around the place). http://www.leoburdock.com/
Do the Howth cliff walk. http://www.discoverireland.ie/Activities-Adventure/cliff-path-loop/71514
Check out Pennys. http://www.primark.ie/
Check out the history of the GPO ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Post_Office_(Dublin) ) and then visit it. There's a stamp museum if you're interested, but just a quick peek inside the main hall is nice.
Find some friends and check out the Woolshed karaoke or pub quiz : http://www.woolshedbaa.com/dublin/whats-on/entertainment/
Go to the old Trinity library, it's where the book of kells is. http://www.tcd.ie/Library/bookofkells/
Drink some Red Lemonade. It's lovely. If you like a spirit or two, try it with some Southern Comfort. http://www.theirishshop.co.uk/images/TK.jpg
Let us know some of your interests and you'll get better suggestions! 0 -
Advertisement
![[Deleted User]](/applications/dashboard/design/images/defaulticon.png)
Advertisement