Dirty, dreary, expensive, nothing to do

murpho999

Rubberchikken wrote: »

visited a european city last week.
coffee excellent and a lot cheaper than here. food much the same price but nicer.
hotel very reasonably priced incl breakfast and all excellent.
things to see and do.

dublin - overpriced, nothing to see or do, tired, dirty and vastly overrated by its upstanding citizens.

So why can't you name this "city"? Wasn't in Eastern Europe or another place were the locals earn €5 an hour?


I have Dutch family and they come here regularly and they absolutely love Dublin.
They like the pubs and shops, the Guinness, loved the music.They loved the food that has come on leaps and bounds in recent years.

They thought the Dart journey along the coast from Bray to Dublin was spectacular. Loved places like Howth and Greystones.

They admired Dublin's architecture. Loved having free museums and galleries (You don't get that in Holland) and found Irish people very friendly.

Prices are also comparable to Amsterdam.

Bashing of Dublin by people is unwarranted in my opinion and some people just like to criticize all things Irish for the sake of it.

Church on Tuesday

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

They get the water from the Canals.

Dublin is great but could be SO much better for everyone including tourists. As a pp said, where are the indoor markets with cafes and restaurants? The Fruit and Veg place off Capel Street will probably take forever to become reality like so many other proposals.

I would agree that apart from museums and other cultural places there are far too few places to get out of the rain and mooch around. London has Borough Market, Barcelona has La Boqueria, in fact most cities have an indoor market, but Dublin has Moore Street. Enough said!

There really is nothing North of O'Connell Bridge that is worth it both for interest or your own safety now. Nicest places are around Sth William Street, Camden Street, the Green, Merrion Square. I am sure I have forgotten some!

Failte Ireland should really take note of the mummys, they possibly reflect a lot of views of the entire UK. Instead of going on the defensive, Failte Ireland together with the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, the Gardai and DCC should go on the attack and see it from the eyes of visitors and a residents and try and sort it out.

They don't. They sit in their fancy offices and produce great booklets and advertising but do not have a clue what's going on on the ground.

Dublin has great potential but it is not invested in. The traffic is awful, public transport has its limits, crime is visible everywhere and nothing is done, the streets ARE dirty, with cracked pavements and infills with dirty tarmac.

I better stop for the moment, because I lose my rag sometimes to see a lovely city being run down like this.

Myself and my Brother nearly got mugged outside Bank of Ireland College Green two days ago sure.

And no, I'm not knocking Dublin.

murpho999

Potential-Monke wrote: »

Never been, doesn't interest me. The only way I'll visit Rome is to do the Path of Illumination tour, just so I can see the places and statues from the book. Other than that, I've no interest in the place.

Same with most capitals tbh. I'd rather go to a quieter town outside of the typical norms, as I find you experience a lot more without the crowd.

You should visit Rome, you're missing out. It's got history on every corner.

You're not allowed say that. Shur don't you know it has museums, and churches, and buildings, and... and... museums!

So what do you think tourists do in cities? They go to museums and view architecture.

They don't just shop and eat all the time.

IAMAMORON

Church on Tuesday wrote: »

Myself and my Brother nearly got mugged outside Bank of Ireland College Green two days ago sure.

And no, I'm not knocking Dublin.

That is unlucky and I hope you are ok.

In fairness Rome, Barcelona, Madrid and Lisbon all have infamous reputations for pick-pocketing and other petty crimes. It never stops people going there however.

Mezzotint

I must have been very, very bored but I googled and read the thread on the forum where it was posted and it's being completely overblown. A few people didn't like Dublin, and many of them seemed to be posting with distinctively Irish flair, which leads me to the impression that a large % of the commentators were, most likely, Irish.

If you take a browse through Trip Advisor, you'll always notice that the comments about Irish destinations posted by actual tourists tend to be pretty positive and then the locals all chime in pointing out all sorts of minutiae and generally slagging off everything about pretty much any destination in Ireland.

Also the commentary about the weather: It's not the Costa del Sol. You should be expecting rain if you're visiting Ireland, Britain, Western Scandinavia, Benelux, Northern France etc and the observations about it being a small city, that's just fact. It's not huge. I'd make similar observations about a lot of the Benelux and Northern European capitals and major cities. There are only a few megapoles in Europe i.e. London, Paris, Madrid etc. In reality, most European cities are rather small to middling size.

I'd agree with some of the commentary on it being drab and run down. If you have a walk from say Smithfield through to Capel Street, that's entirely accurate. Or, go for a wander around Parnell Street, Dorset Street or something like that, but there are plenty of nice parts too and no city is free of that kind of stuff. A lot of parts of London look run down, parts of Paris are absolute dumps, same applies to Brussels. However, it just implies they're living cities, not Disneyland.

Dublin's not perfect and has issues and you can certainly get a bad impression of it if you end up in the wrong parts e.g. book a hotel in a rough part of the north inner city or something like that, but you can equally get a terrible impression of most cities by doing similar, but to cut a long story short, we're over reacting a tad to a thread on a forum that's about as relevant as something on After Hours.

wakka12

badabing106 wrote: »

If that is the answer, what is the question?

Wow check out this post by a poster called louis on broadsheet, LMDGA!


Let’s knock off the B.S. and try and be a bit honest here. Dublin as a capital is still a bit of a dump (not as bad as it was in the 80’s, but still a dump) Yes the nightlife is good, but strip that back and think about it objectively and critically, and pretty soon you realise that it’s not much better than Bucharest.

The problem with the city is that there’s a serious absence of civic pride, and I blame that on three parties (1) Central Government for lack of investment (2) City Council for lack of taste and intelligence (3) Locals who have this romanticised version of the “Dirty Old Town” and row against any suggested improvement (if there are any?)

There are lots that can and should be done to improve the place, the problem being that the likes of Failte Ireland are still flogging the same old horse they were flogging thirty years ago (the Book of Kells and the Ardagh chalice)

I’m sorry to have to say this, but Dublin is no better than a drab town in the north of England.

So let me make a few observations as a foreigner who’s lived here for a long-time.

(1) No one outside of Ireland gives two sh1ts about Easter 1916 or anything related to it as a tourist attraction.
(2) Viewing The Book of Kells is Boring waste of time.
(3) Templebar is a dive, and not even the locals bother with it.
(4) The Guinness Store House is limited to people who like a drink and not for families. It’s also set in a fairly rough part of town, as was recently demonstrated.
(5) The Poolbeg Chimney’s are not and never will be an attraction for a tourist, particularly for anyone who grew up in an industrial city, where stacks like that were a dime a dozen.
(6) Leaving genuine homelessness aside, there’s a small battalion of professional beggars on the streets of the capital.
(7) Placing an injection room facility near a “tourist attraction” is the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard. Please note I’m all for harm reduction.
(8) The paving of the Grafton Street Quarter is nearly taking as long as the building of Berlin’s new airport!
(9) One Luke Kelly statue was enough, two is overkill considering few people under fifty knows who he was, especially foreign tourists.
(10) A city should be safe for tourists, yet the cops are strangely absent on the ground, particularly in the core tourist areas

So what do tourists want?

(1) Put simply they want interesting, entertaining things to do and see that are affordable. Dublin’s free museums are quite good, but could be so much better.

(2) Hire “Meow Wolf” and ask them to build a world class attraction like they created in Santa Fe. If you don’t know it or never been to it, check it out.

(3) Where’s the huge statue of Gulliver? Something so obviously missing from the city, it beggars belief? Build one, and put a miniature Lilliput around it…..and do it tastefully!

(4) And having dealt with one famous writer’s contribution to world literature, how about getting rid of that giant hypodermic needle on O’Connell street and rebuild the pillar with the viewing platform (yes it actually paid for itself) and put Oscar Wilde’s “Happy Prince” on it. If you don’t know the story, read it. And if the usual hard-leftie republicans kick-up ask them if they ever read a bedtime story to their little princesses (or taken them to see Frozen!)

(5) Refurbish the Rutland Fountain, its a disgrace that it’s left in its current condition. And if some half-witted architect graduate from UCD shouts “Pastiche” ….cover him in fox scent and send him to Shelbourne Dog Track on a wet Thursday in November :-)

(6) Demolish those eyesores on the Poolbeg peninsula and use the space for something truly breathtaking that could become a real symbol of the city.

(7) Make Halloween a true city-wide festival and market the hell out of it abroad…. the Bram Stoker festival is drab, characterless and boring.

(8) Build an opera house. It may not be my cup of tea, but seeing the opera lovers pile into your local omniplex and spending good money, means there’s a market. If anything it will add to the city.

(9) Same for ballet, there’s a market. If you build a ballet hall, they will come.

(10) Encourage people to live in the city, including the one’s with money. There are magnificent houses on Merrion Square, Fitzwilliam Square an even Mountjoy that are subdivided into small offices. Seriously, what an utter waste?

Halloween even originated in Ireland did'nt it? Surely that should be celebrated!
When I started reading this post I thought it seemed like just another boring dublin bashing thread but nice to see some suggestions on how it could improve for once!

Church on Tuesday

IAMAMORON wrote: »

That is unlucky and I hope you are ok.

In fairness Rome, Barcelona, Madrid and Lisbon all have infamous reputations for pick-pocketing and other petty crimes. It never stops people going there however.

We're both grand thanks.

Comes with any city.

JohnnyFlash

I always get this image that most of the moaners on threads like these are bachelors in their late 30’s from truly depressing towns like Tipperary or Longford. Don’t know why.

wakka12

Elemonator wrote: »

I would take Dublin over most British cities anyday, with the exception of London.

Have you ever been to Birmingham? Have no ever noticed once it is dark that nobody walks anywhere and they all drive? Tells you everything you need to know about how dangerous it is. A dangerous place it is too.

Would tend to agree with that, though there are a couple of other nice ones like Bristol, Norwich, Brighton. The rest were and probably still are pretty awful places to both live and visit but theyre certainly coming along, Manchester could be a cool city in a few years. Liverpool is a lot nicer now too, big regeneration schemes like Liverpool one going on

Mezzotint

Dublin's tourism offerings could definitely be improved, but there's also an element of needing to explore and try when you visit a city or town. They are not tourism set-pieces like Disneyland or some place that is entirely dependent on tourism. You are walking into a real living, working place and things are not necessarily going to just jump out and entertain you - you sometimes have to make an effort.

Mezzotint

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

I always get this image that most of the moaners on threads like these are bachelors in their late 30’s from truly depressing towns like Tipperary or Longford. Don’t know why.

They also tend to invariably have their targets set on Dublin or Cork cities I've noticed. Sometimes Limerick, but it's very much a chip on shoulder about urban areas thing in Ireland that I really notice more than I do in some other parts of Europe and I think that's reflect in the way that the cities are let flounder to some degree too.

AlekSmart

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

SNIP/
Dublin is great but could be SO much better for everyone including tourists. As a pp said, where are the indoor markets with cafes and restaurants? The Fruit and Veg place off Capel Street will probably take forever to become reality like so many other proposals.

I would agree that apart from museums and other cultural places there are far too few places to get out of the rain and mooch around. London has Borough Market, Barcelona has La Boqueria, in fact most cities have an indoor market, but Dublin has Moore Street. Enough said!

SNIP/

Failte Ireland should really take note of the mummys, they possibly reflect a lot of views of the entire UK. Instead of going on the defensive, Failte Ireland together with the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, the Gardai and DCC should go on the attack and see it from the eyes of visitors and a residents and try and sort it out.

SNIP/

I better stop for the moment, because I lose my rag sometimes to see a lovely city being run down like this.

The Iveagh Market Meath Street.
The Fruit Market
The Fish Market

Three ideal locations, which any half aware Local Authority would have long ago made something out of,but which languish in a Limbo of PPP's and associated "Planning" issues

Losing one's rag is all we have left to us really......:(:(:(

Mezzotint

If you want good urban governance and planning in Dublin, Cork and other cities in Ireland you need to actually devolve more power to them. It's the same with towns lacking any kind of councils, mayors or autonomy. If they were in most of Europe or North America their councils would have power over transit, local policing, control of funds for carrying out major public works, in some cases control of educational facilities and so on.

In Ireland, the cities councils have been stripped of almost all ability to do anything as we centralise absolutely everything into various state bodies and government departments. Then we scratch our heads wondering why the cities and towns don't operate like continental ones.

Also don't confuse Dublin physically hosting the national government and institutions with Dublin actually having any autonomy or power at a local level. It doesn't. Nor does Cork, nor does Limerick, Galway or Waterford. The whole mayoral plebiscite thing was a complete con as it didn't actually offer any more devolved powers, just a vague promise of an executive mayor with no defined powers - in reality just taking powers from the council and putting them into a single elected reps hands.

We're horrendous at local government and we don't even see it because this is how thing are here and we don't compare.

wakka12

Richard Hillman wrote: »

To be fair, it's a bit crap. Not much history, rubbish architecture, non unique food, very expensive hotels, ****e weather. All we have are pubs and our nanny State governments want rid of those for Vegan and Coffee places.

If the architecture was rubbish,Dublin's georgian areas wouldnt be considered for UNESCO status. Perhaps it's more of a case of it not being to your taste. And I dont know what'not much history' means, Dublin has existed for many hundreds of years,that is history, every city has a history of some length dependingon when it was founded, Dublin's is more extensive than most in the world in that regard. Maybe you mean again, history that doesnt personally interest you?

Anyway as another poster said, cities don't(or at least they shouldnt) exist as palces to entertain visitors. You go to a new place to experience the culture of how the people live there, their culture shouldnt change to accomodate you and impress you.

Mezzotint

I'd actually rate the food here as pretty decent by comparison to a lot of places at the moment. It's not dramatically different from the UK and neither countries have a defined cuisine like France or Italy, but they have extremely good food and they're not afraid of bringing in new ideas (which some European countries most definitely are). I'd say if anything our cuisine is defined by the fact that it's a melting pot and willing to borrow ideas from all over the place. It's diverse, creative, casual and doesn't take itself too seriously. I think that applies to the US, Canada, Australia and NZ too. They all willing to try stuff and have relatively open ideas about food culture.

If you compare that to France, Italy or even Spain etc, cuisine is often very much part of national, regional and local culture and can be extremely locked in and conservative. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but it's totally different to the experience in any of the anglophone countries.

I've just seen a few food snobs bemoaning the lack of a fixed cuisine here and in England and it just grates on my nerves after a while.

For an average British person visiting here though, it's going to look extremely familiar and there's not much we can do about that really - the two places are very close together and similar in many respects because of that.

Blueshoe

murpho999 wrote: »

So why can't you name this "city"? Wasn't in Eastern Europe or another place were the locals earn €5 an hour?


I have Dutch family and they come here regularly and they absolutely love Dublin.
They like the pubs and shops, the Guinness, loved the music.They loved the food that has come on leaps and bounds in recent years.

They thought the Dart journey along the coast from Bray to Dublin was spectacular. Loved places like Howth and Greystones.

They admired Dublin's architecture. Loved having free museums and galleries (You don't get that in Holland) and found Irish people very friendly.

Prices are also comparable to Amsterdam.

Bashing of Dublin by people is unwarranted in my opinion and some people just like to criticize all things Irish for the sake of it.

He is telling lies and you are telling lies.
He didn't go anywhere outside the front door and you don't have a Dutch family.
I was in Abuja (Nigeria) with my Spanish family last week. So much better than Dublin. The weather, the food and the cappuccinos are fab.

IAMAMORON

Blueshoe wrote: »

He is telling lies and you are telling lies.
He didn't go anywhere outside the front door and you don't have a Dutch family.
I was in Abuja (Nigeria) with my Spanish family last week. So much better than Dublin. The weather, the food and the cappuccinos are fab.

How was the Ebola, Dengue and Malaria ?

Church on Tuesday

wakka12 wrote: »

Would tend to agree with that, though there are a couple of other nice ones like Bristol, Norwich, Brighton. The rest were and probably still are pretty awful places to both live and visit but theyre certainly coming along, Manchester could be a cool city in a few years. Liverpool is a lot nicer now too, big regeneration schemes like Liverpool one going on

Yup, agree with you there, real up and coming place; very vibrant.

Chester's really nice to visit I found.

Blueshoe

IAMAMORON wrote: »

How was the Ebola, Denga and Malaria ?

The ebola was lovely ! I was surprised as it didn't look great. Not too spicy. On the second day my uncle had malaria . He's had it before and said it was the really traditional type that's hard to find back home.
Didn't see any Denga unfortunately but il definitely be back and it's first on the list.
Fab spot.

Del.Monte

Fritzbox wrote: »

There's lots to do in Dublin - bars restaurants galleries, museums, churches, castles and old houses, parks etc. Tell me, what is there to do in the other small capital cities in Europe, what is there to see and do in Bratislava, Oslo, Helsinki, Copenhagen etc.? Is the weather any better in any of these places? I read recently that the rainfall is greater in Amsterdam is heavier than in Dublin, could be true?

You need to travel outside Ireland more.

sondagefaux

Elemonator wrote: »

I would take Dublin over most British cities anyday, with the exception of London.

Have you ever been to Birmingham? Have no ever noticed once it is dark that nobody walks anywhere and they all drive? Tells you everything you need to know about how dangerous it is. A dangerous place it is too.

I don't know if they have them now, but there were no late night buses in Birmingham (after about midnight or so) last time I visited. It's a pretty drab city overall, although the Jewellery Quarter is a nice enough part of the city centre.

Edinburgh is lovely and well worth a visit. It gets very crowded and expensive for most of August during the festivals, but it's well worth a visit then if you want to see any of the shows, comedy acts, plays, films etc. You can stay in a town/city that's got a decent bus or train service to Edinburgh to avoid the overpriced accommodation during the festivals.

I liked Bristol, although it's not really as special as some of the people who live there make it out to be.

Apart from those cities, there aren't really any cities in the UK that are particularly special, although there are some nice smaller towns (some of which would be considered cities in Ireland), such as Bath, Durham, Oxford and Cambridge, for day or weekend trips.

There are plenty of nice villages, although some of the villages have almost no facilities, because they're full of holiday homes and/or commuters to nearby larger towns/cities, who don't really shop locally for groceries or other essentials. In some of the more touristy ones, it's easier to buy antiques/souvenirs than a loaf of bread.

Overall, I think Irish cities/towns/villages compare favourably with their British counterparts.

I think northern England especially has a far higher ratio of crappy places to nice places than Ireland.

FixdePitchmark

OP is a clown.

Dublin is a fantastic city , you can go out and do something every night of the week. You will find it hard not to have a great time.

Its expensive , but that is a fairly strong indicator of its success.

The city offers incredible diversity from , entertainment, food, culture, history, arts. Very interesting historical architecture.

Would agree that you need to stay clear of Temple bar - but it serves a fairly important function for younger people wanting to go out and party and meet people from all over the world.

I have found myself drifting more and more south in the city as the years have past - and there is a completely different atmosphere there.

You also have the coast that is rarely visited , but is an extraordinary asset to the city . We are slowly understanding this and improving the infrastructure.

Other parts of the city are growing, creating new sub cultures like the diversity of Capel street across to Smithfield
You have the IFSC and always great gigs and events down that end of town.
Then you have the Grand Canel dock area , the IT area and the whole coffee thing going on
It is a great university city too
Then we haven't even got into our sports culture / GAA / Rugby/ Golf near the city / Tennis / Soccer / Athetics / Cycling. All having fantastic community based clubs.

Then the parks / museums.

You have stunning smaller parts like , Clontarf, Sutton, Howth, Malahide, Dalkey, Bray, Drumcondra. These small places enable you to have a full night out and not go anywhere - have great food , drink, entertainment.

And if you are pissed off with the weather, you have a Pub - and we genuinely have an extraordinary and brilliant Pub culture (once the government cop on a bit and stop being so puritanical about anything around drink)

Was on a Dart during the summer out to Howth as we hit Sutton - I heard a full gasp from the tourists as they seen the views out to the sea. You have even better on the southside

After all that - you have the people , the humor, the resilience, the determination, the hope, the failures, the families.

Nothing like her.

Ready4Boarding

sondagefaux wrote: »

there are some nice smaller towns ... such as Bath, Durham, Oxford and Cambridge, for day or weekend trips.

Unless your use of the word nice carries a lot more enthusiasm than mine, you are massively underselling those places!

Spanish Eyes

Now I know some will want to kill me right now, but I was in Malaga City a couple of weeks ago. Every morning at 6/7 am the street cleaners were out power washing the pavements. No litter, lovely streets, well maintained. Delightful place and right beside the sea/beach too.

Just the way the city council clean it up every day was a revelation, but I do realise Dublin is a Capital City. Surely that should mean it would be maintained to a similar if not better standard?

DCC to me are useless. Always moaning about lack of funds. The City Manager and his team of Finance Officers could, if they wanted to, prioritise things for the good of the residents and tourists too.

But I suppose they spend most of their budget on the Homeless so can get away with the real job of running a Capital City.

The Housing issue should be hived off to another agency separate from Councils really. Just my opinion, and then we might see some progress. I would like to see an elected Mayor with full financial control over how the money is spent on the City, but somehow I get the jitters thinking WHOA, are there going to be controls in the Mayor's office! Just my scepticism going on how things have gone so far.

Am I mad or bad here!

murpho999

Blueshoe wrote: »

He is telling lies and you are telling lies.
He didn't go anywhere outside the front door and you don't have a Dutch family.
I was in Abuja (Nigeria) with my Spanish family last week. So much better than Dublin. The weather, the food and the cappuccinos are fab.

Well I'm not lying actually, I do have Dutch family. My wife is Dutch. Lived with her in Netherlands for 7 years and now we're back in Ireland since 2005 so I get plenty of family over regularly visiting. Not that I really need to prove this to you.

Fritzbox

Del.Monte wrote: »

You need to travel outside Ireland more.

I have lived most of my adult life outside Ireland - I'm typing this post in Germany. Could you elucidate a little bit further as what you might find problematic with my post?

Spanish Eyes

I don't think we have high expectations of DCC and so we let it go, because it will not improve much these days will it?

So DCC are increasing rents and parking charges. But what do we see as a result? Not very much IMO.

Their Headquarters are massive though and cost us the historic Viking City that they built on regardless.

Realt Dearg Sec

Fritzbox wrote: »

I have lived most of my adult life outside Ireland - I'm typing this post in Germany. Could you elucidate a little bit further as what you might find problematic with my post?

No no no, it's an important part of Dublin bashing tradition that anyone who doesn't think it's an insufferable kip is a sheltered yokel unlike their cosmopolitan selves. That's why the other lad is lying about his Dutch family and you have never been to Germany either. Needless to say I'm writing this from inside a methadone clinic on the quays.

Spanish Eyes

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

No no no, it's an important part of Dublin bashing tradition that anyone who doesn't think it's an insufferable kip is a sheltered yokel unlike their cosmopolitan selves. That's why the other lad is lying about his Dutch family and you have never been to Germany either. Needless to say I'm writing this from inside a methadone clinic on the quays.

LOL, Dublin Bus had to move the stop from Merchants Quay to preserve the commuters from the mayhen every day outside the MQ methadone clinic. And opposite the Four Courts too (for the naive tourists).

All in the middle of the city. Well thank God the injection centre was binned.

Where will it go now?

Stop moaning ffs

Another kick Dublin thread.

You’re getting boring at this stage.

People visit Ireland and Dublin especially in the millions for a reason.

Spoiler alert: it isn’t the weather. It’s the people.

4068ac1elhodqr

Could be worse, folks over in Birmingham tonight found their movie night was somewhat disturbed after 100 'cultured' yoofs turned a cinema into a riot scene.

Around 100 people - including youths and thugs with machetes - brawled at a packed cinema complex tonight.
The youngsters started fighting in entertainment complex Star City near Nechells, Birmingham, which was evacuated tonight.
Police said this evening a group of people with machetes had arrived at the cinema within the complex. Officers were assaulted in the sickening fracas.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/breaking-birmingham-star-city-incident-20945783
https://www.rte.ie/news/uk/2019/1123/1094752-birmingham-cinema/
15 to 20 cop cars, dogs and ARU.

Spanish Eyes

Stop moaning ffs wrote: »

Another kick Dublin thread.

You’re getting boring at this stage.

People visit Ireland and Dublin especially in the millions for a reason.

Spoiler alert: it isn’t the weather. It’s the people.

Yes we Dubs are grand. Just like people are in lots of places all over Ireland also.

However, in a capital city there are just so many nationalities now who may or may not get the the vibe of the Dubs.

My brother works all over Dublin and reckons there are enclaves all over the place where they do not integrate at all. Russians in A, Romanians in B, Chinese in C, and so on.

But sure let them all in. It is wonderful diversity.

Stop moaning ffs

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Yes we Dubs are grand. Just like people are in lots of places all over Ireland also.

However, in a capital city there are just so many nationalities now who may or may not get the the vibe of the Dubs.

My brother works all over Dublin and reckons there are enclaves all over the place where they do not integrate at all. Russians in A, Romanians in B, Chinese in C, and so on.

But sure let them all in. It is wonderful diversity.

So your brother and all of us are so great at integrating with immigrants?

We weren’t talking about tourists by the way.

The tourist experience is rather different than the immigrant one. But I’m sure you’re brother knows that too.

Kermit.de.frog

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Every morning at 6/7 am the street cleaners were out power washing the pavements.

It's the same in Dublin actually.

Spanish Eyes

Stop moaning ffs wrote: »

So your brother and all of us are so great at integrating with immigrants?

We weren’t talking about tourists by the way.

The tourist experience is rather different than the immigrant one. But I’m sure you’re brother knows that too.

Yes I know the tourist experience is different, it is the same for all of us when visiting other countries.

There are enclaves in Dublin though. And we all know it. Nothing I can do to change that. It is the reality.

kowloon

GLaDOS wrote: »

If we're pissing off mumsnet we're doing something right.

Can someone tell me why Mumsnet is so bad? I know nothing about it.

Spanish Eyes

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

It's the same in Dublin actually.

Are you sure about that really? I don't see the evidence on the manky streets.

Sorry now.

Spanish Eyes

kowloon wrote: »

Can someone tell me why Mumsnet is so bad? I know nothing about it.

Billox, you mentioned the website so you know the gig. Just go there and see.

randomspud

Dublin is an absolute kip.


It's basically a mid-sized UK city with more scumbags/junkies and poorer policing. It has absolutely nothing in it that can't be found in other large towns and cities in Ireland so it is pretty much completely pointless.


The last time i had to go there was for a work thing about 5 years ago and i was in and out ASAP and i haven't been back since. Before that i probably hadn't been there in more than a decade.


It's just a ****ty, unpleasant place.

WesternZulu

I was in Athens during the week and it is far more of a kip than what Dublin is. Still though they managed to have a metro to the airport!

FixdePitchmark

randomspud wrote: »

Dublin is an absolute kip.


It's basically a mid-sized UK city with more scumbags/junkies and poorer policing. It has absolutely nothing in it that can't be found in other large towns and cities in Ireland so it is pretty much completely pointless.


The last time i had to go there was for a work thing about 5 years ago and i was in and out ASAP and i haven't been back since. Before that i probably hadn't been there in more than a decade.


It's just a ****ty, unpleasant place.

So basically you know nothing about Dublin.

Great post.

randomspud

FixdePitchmark wrote: »

So basically you know nothing about Dublin.

Great post.

I presume you are one of the poor lost souls trapped in that dump trying to convince yourself that it isn't an absolute ****hole?


Once you hit your early/mid 30s you'll realise that living in a city/large town in this country is pretty much the worst thing imaginable. ****ing hell on Earth.



You couldn't pay me to do it again.

Osborne

I'm a Tan living in Dublin and I fcucking love it.

John_Rambo

randomspud wrote: »

The last time i had to go there was for a work thing about 5 years ago and i was in and out ASAP and i haven't been back since. Before that i probably hadn't been there in more than a decade.

Fair enough. You know as much about the city as a UK mum on the internet, although I'm surprised you've garnered such an adverse opinion of the capitol giving your lack of knowledge and "ASAP in and out" experience of it after a decade of not visiting.

Spent the whole day in the city centre with my eldest (9) today checking out Santa pressies. Had really good food, went to the science museum in Trinity, used the DART in and out and (played the piano in Connelly with three other kids) went on the LUAS for fun, he got a bit bored in the National Museum so we went to Stephens Green before heading home.

Cost less than €30, to easy mate.

randomspud

John_Rambo wrote: »

Fair enough. You know as much about the city as a UK mum on the internet, although I'm surprised you've garnered such an adverse opinion of the capitol giving your lack of knowledge and "ASAP in and out" experience of it after a decade of not visiting.

Spent the whole day in the city centre with my eldest (9) today checking out Santa pressies. Had really good food, went to the science museum in Trinity, used the DART in and out and (played the piano in Connelly with three other kids) went on the LUAS for fun, he got a bit bored in the National Museum so we went to Stephens Green before heading home.

Cost less than €30, to easy mate.

That sounds like a **** day overall.


I can just go for a walk in the woods near my house for hours and it costs me nothing and i see absolutely no one else. ****ing paradise.



We have multiple places that do good food less than 10 minutes drive from me as well.


Still, you do you. How many years have you got left on your mortgage? Have you managed to afford a place of your own yet?


I paid off my place earlier this year after less than 9 years. Started saving for early retirement. Reckon i'll be done with work in my early/mid 50s.


Guess you have those museums that you'll visit a handful of times, so, there's that.

John_Rambo

randomspud wrote: »

That sounds like a **** day overall.

It wasn't in fact. It was a great day, my little boy had a ball, as I did.

randomspud wrote: »

I can just go for a walk in the woods near my house for hours and it costs me nothing and i see absolutely no one else. ****ing paradise.

So can I! I did so yesterday. Wonderful isolation with nature and wildlife.

randomspud wrote: »

We have multiple places that do good food less than 10 minutes drive from me as well.

That's great news.

randomspud wrote: »

Still, you do you. How many years have you got left on your mortgage?

8 on this particular one. Might kick a few years off it if things go well though.

randomspud wrote: »

Have you managed to afford a place of your own yet?

Yes, I've been lucky enough to afford a few places on my own.

randomspud wrote: »

I paid off my place earlier this year after less than 9 years. Started saving for early retirement. Reckon i'll be done with work in my early/mid 50s.

More great news. Well done you!

randomspud wrote: »

Guess you have those museums that you'll visit a handful of times, so, there's that.

The many museums and galleries of Dublin have varied exhibits throughout the year. There's always something new and exciting whenever you visit.

JupiterKid

Mumsnet posters seem to be the types of people whose worldview is very narrow and very limited.

I agree with the others that something drastic needs to be done about Temple Bar - what was an intimate, quirky and largely bohemian part of the city centre in the 1990s and looking really promising with sensitive and imaginative renewal has turned into a cheapened boozy area full of drunk and stoned tourists being royally ripped off.

Temple Bar is in no way a proper experience of Dublin and what it has to offer. If I was a tourist coming over to visit Dublin for a weekend and all I saw was Temple Bar, I’d also be underwhelmed.

wakka12

randomspud wrote: »

That sounds like a **** day overall.


I can just go for a walk in the woods near my house for hours and it costs me nothing and i see absolutely no one else. ****ing paradise.



We have multiple places that do good food less than 10 minutes drive from me as well.


Still, you do you. How many years have you got left on your mortgage? Have you managed to afford a place of your own yet?


I paid off my place earlier this year after less than 9 years. Started saving for early retirement. Reckon i'll be done with work in my early/mid 50s.


Guess you have those museums that you'll visit a handful of times, so, there's that.

Good for you, I would hate to live in a rural area. I'll take the mortgage over it. Everyone is different, live and let live

Kermit.de.frog

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Are you sure about that really? I don't see the evidence on the manky streets.

Sorry now.

You'll see them out as early 5 am power hosing the pavements from my experience recently.

Always Tired

I love Dublin, and Dublin people have always been very welcoming whenever I go up. I would move there if it wasn't so expensive and I didn't have a rescue collie who gets frightened even when I take her into the centre of the crappy little town I live in.

I find the people who complain about it are often the type who don't venture very far from their own street anyway. Every city is a bit dirty and has some crime/junkie/homeless issues. One thing that does bug me is the public transport is crap, doesn't run late, is expensive, and the machines are often malfunctioning for the Luas and Irish Rails incompetence caused me to miss an entire concert last time I went up.