Why is Dublin such a shιtty city?

Perseverance The Second

All cities are pretty much **** when you look below the surface.

Although in the case of Dublin it's just a bit worse due to the lack of public transport infrastructure.

HBC08

There are some incidences where Boards is way off the mark in the public mood/ opinion but this is not one of them.

This topic is regularly brought up and if you asked most Irish people to describe Dublin as Nice European Capital or Kip.....I think you'd get your answer.

I'm my opinion it's neither but heavily leaning towards kip.

John_Rambo

I'm on a job here in City Hall in Dame st. What a building (JimmyVik and co won't know about it). The interior is just stunning.... I'm back from an amazing lunch. City is looking amazing in the sun after a shower. You don't know what you're missing lads.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118277345#Comment_118277345

do you agree that the majority of our towns and villages are utter sh*tholes compared to nice European towns and villages or do you think it's only Dublin that is lacking?

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278169#Comment_118278169

Not really,and it's a different topic anyway.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278247#Comment_118278247

It's not really a different topic, all urban areas in Ireland face the same problems. Go to towns in Provence, then go to the vast majority of towns in the midlands. Like chalk and cheese, much like comparing Dublin to Salzburg.

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278259#Comment_118278259

If you're comparing European capitals it's a very simple and direct comparison,there's only 27 of them or whatever.

Westport is 20km from me and is amongst the nicest places I've been in Europe,Tuam is half an hour from me and is a kip.We would be here all day.Lets take those 27 EU capitals for example,Dublin would be in the bottom 5 to 8 in my opinion.

I know you're a decent poster and respect your opinion., I know if you're from there you'll feel a need to play up the positives and defend the place but the consensus is fairly consistent.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278669#Comment_118278669

Yes Westport is lovely but so is Sandymount and Dalkey etc. I just think it's unfair to pick on Dublin being a total sh*thole when it's just a reflection of the country on a whole, some of it good some of it bad.

The other thing is, I've met Swedes and Americans and Germans who think Dublin is amazing, you have to put yourself in their shoes sometimes, it's probably so different to some Midwest town in the USA or a boring German/Swedish small city, regardless of the problems in Dublin, there's a buzz and good party vibe in the place you don't get everywhere.

Heraclius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278821#Comment_118278821

The same thread will be regurgitated in a few months again anyway. It would nearly be easier to ignore them and go for a nice cycle around Dublin's fair city.

I've had very few issues since moving to Dublin a decade ago. I don't think the city is perfect; it could definitely do with investment in public transport and maybe some more gardaí on patrol but it definitely isn't a bad place and it has some beautiful areas too.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278821#Comment_118278821

I've only moved to Sandymount village from D3. Mother of jaysus it's like a little oasis of village tranquility a few km from the city centre.

Stunning place to live. Polar opposite of the other place I lived.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278908#Comment_118278908

Parts of D3 are lovely. S-mount is great, I go to the Westwood there so am there regularly. I could never afford to live there but these places are still easily accessible by bike or public transport, that's what's good about the city being relatively small.

Heraclius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278908#Comment_118278908

Will you become a Southernlily now?

Brian?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118278669#Comment_118278669

Ah here, you’re comparing Dublin to some of the nicest cities the world! The EU capitals include nearly all of the nicest capital cities in the world.

batman_oh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118276759#Comment_118276759

It's actually bizarre. He listed Glasnevin too. Must be afraid of his own shadow

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279085#Comment_118279085

yes Dublin is somehow supposed to compete with French and Austrian and Dutch cities built on the back of Imperial riches.

I mean it's quite obvious why Dublin is the way it is if you know anything about this country and its history.

JizzBeans

OP is asking a very fair question here. There is an element of Kip-ness and scummy-ness that just isn't associated with Cork and Galway. Galway seems to be universally loved actually.

Just to touch on OP's comment about how visibly dirty it is....There is always an effing smell of trash or landfill in the air! Particularly in the city center.

Again, this is not the case with Galway or Cork.

And it actually pathetic that the poolbeg chimneys are considered a "landmark". Its just a dirty power plant and eyesore. How do people actually think otherwise?

Surinamo

Dublin is lovely with low rise buildings and friendly people. The city would feel more vibrant if the river running through it were more vibrant. I love the trees around the city. And all the wonderful accents are a joy to behold. Now there are cafes on the street and it’s a lovely thing.

Not in Kansas

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279402#Comment_118279402

On Galway...it has a reputation as a great place to visit, yes, but also as a city where dreams go to die. I have to agree, as I know a fair few lost souls who moved to Galway for the craic and nightlife in their 20's and still behave like 20 year-olds even though they are now in their 40's. It's all a bit sad. A weekend in Galway just seems a bit Groundhog Day-ish in comparison to Dublin and Cork. It feels very stagnant.

Dublin has its problems of course, but it also has a huge heart, great people and so much to do. It just needs to be steered in a better direction, one not dictated by corporate greed, and a zero tolerance approach to antisocial behaviour (which has increased during the pandemic) needs to be taken.

I lived inner city for years, then on the fringe of the city and am now a regular visitor. Some of the problems mentioned are definitely exaggerated, some are real, and some are worsening.

Now Cork...I love!!!

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279085#Comment_118279085

100%

Its a kip compared other European cities, its great everyone is in agreement.

Brian?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279700#Comment_118279700

I’d rank Dublin pretty low among the European capitals. But that still puts it in the top 20 of world capitals. FFS man.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279402#Comment_118279402

OP's post was asking a silly question when you consider the cost of property in Dublin. Poolbeg is a magnificent structure compared to most buildings in Ireland, for me it's Irelands best landmark mainly because we have a lack of decent landmarks. It's an important part of Dublins lovely coastline.

Jeremy Sproket

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118280743#Comment_118280743

They're chimneys ..........

Chimneys in a dirty fossil fuel burning plant.......

They might act as some kind of way point for a pilot relying on VFR should instruments go down to guide him or her towards DUB but that's it really ...

No one is going to pose for pictures beside them like the Eifel Tower or Pisa.

Dublin is an embarrassment. I can criticise the city if I wish without being told to f* off home as some people have suggested. My mam is Irish (from Fermanagh) and dad is Swedish (from Lulea). I'm as much Irish as most people here. I lived in Taby for 18 years and here for the past 10.

Dublin is a dump ...end .... of.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118280886#Comment_118280886

I never compared Poolbeg to the Eiffle tower. If your making fair criticisms then that's grand, Dublin is far from perfect. Its when people make ridiculous criticisms that's when people say to go away. If an American spends 2 hours in Dublin and goes home and calls Ireland a dump then that American is an eejit as you can't judge a country after a two hour walk. Lots on people on here don't seem to grasp the fact that a city having a few bad areas doesn't make a city a dump. The vast majority of Dublin is nice to anybody who has good eyesight and is not afraid of there own shadow.

John_Rambo

"Chimneys in a dirty fossil fuel burning plant......."

They were decommissioned 21 years ago. If you want to learn anything further about your capital nip over to the Dublin City forum.

Galwayguy35

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118279402#Comment_118279402

Wouldn't go that far in saying everyone loves Galway, there was a thread about it a few years ago and the hate was every bit as bad as anything you would see on this one.

Having said that apart from a weekend piss up in the pubs which could be good there isn't much else to do in Galway city.

John_Rambo

Galway is great fun, while it doesn't match the capital when it comes to culture and the arts it's a great city to socialise in. Traffic & driving is horrendous if you're used to Dublin though.

Ray Palmer

Anybody saying graffiti in Dublin is a huge issue has to be blind when visiting other European cities. Spanish cities are covered in graffiti and here is a minor issue in comparison. Traffic in Dublin is no where near as bad as other cities like Rome, Paris, London etc... Go to the main square in Lisbon city centre. Most of the shops are closed and/or falling down. Offered Drugs every 10 feet walking down the road.

Madrid on the main shopping streets have prostitutes all over it. The main part of the city has brothels all over.

Paris is absolutely filthy and very easy to bump into major tent villages of homeless people.

It always amazes me people don't notice things in places they visit and claim Dublin has some massive levels of anti social issues which are way less than where they have been. Most such people have never visited a single museum in Dublin or gone to a play here.

Mister Vain

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118283604#Comment_118283604

Maybe they should set up a few brothels in Dublin. 😋

I agree with you on Lisbon though. Very run down and the constant hassle from guys trying to sell you drugs, yet most people seem to think its amazing. I don't get it. The museums in Dublin are decent to be fair.

Fandymo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118257423#Comment_118257423

There were 3 armed Gardai, and only one of them opened fire, and that was only after the thug lunged at an unarmed colleague with a knife. But shure why worry about facts.

Dublin is a kip. Kippy transport links, kippy public ameneties, kippy scummy junkies and homeless everywhere. Fcuk all Garda presence around the kippy areas.

iffandonlyif

I am in the city every day as a student. I am also very interested in urban design, so the city’s flaws are not lost on me. But I find it astonishing that this opinion can gain any traction, let alone be incessantly repeated here and on Reddit.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284096#Comment_118284096

It has more amenities and better public transport than anywhere else in the country, by far. I'd hate to think what you think of the rest of Ireland.

Fandymo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284165#Comment_118284165

What are the odds of junkies banging up on the back of a bus in Galway? Donegal? Westmeath?

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284216#Comment_118284216

Galway is a small town, and there's plenty of heroin there and in Athlone in Westmeath, Donegal is mostly rural with some little towns so you're hardly likely to see heroin addicts on public transport. It's like some of you can't even grasp the concept of a city, cities are different to rural Ireland.

Fandymo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284254#Comment_118284254

Ah, so that must be why it has more amenities and public transport then, as per your "argument"?

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284628#Comment_118284628

what?

Ray Palmer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284254#Comment_118284254

I lived in Athlone for about 6 months in 1993 and there were junkies in there then. There were also pubs that were no goes for students anyway as the locals would attack them. I am pretty sure a junkie died in an old school building there when I was down there. Donegal did have the gardai corruption too. A women was attacked with a firework in Galway recently too. The magic of these lovely places outside Dublin is not lost on me

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118284216#Comment_118284216

There are more buses, a lot more public transport and a lot more people in Dublin than Donegal, Westmeath and Galway so you'll see a lot more people do a lot more things in a more populous area. In rural areas you get more farms and agriculture which means vast areas of horticulture and animals bred for consumption with very few humans, that's there reasons you don't see as much human activity as you do in big cities. You may have touched on this in school.

Also, a lot of the drug users from different parts of the country end up in Dublin as they have an easier life in the city, there's more shelter, more drugs, more support, more food & more charity. I work for a few restaurants and frequently see serving staff leave plates of food in laneways for a few minutes before the giant wheelybin. This wouldn't happen in a field because there's no restaurant, no lane, no bin, no food.

Dublin isn't a "**** city".

All cities have their "****" elements and their proud elements. Focussing on the negatives and concluding, "Well, this is all the city has to offer", is completely disproportionate and borders on a desire to hate the city.

Many people who call Dublin "****" have clearly never been to cities with far worse problems. In comparison, Dublin is coping very well and undeserving of the exaggerated first-world-problem description of the city as "****".

Nobody is denying Dublin has its problems. We all know what they are. But the same people condemning Dublin are the same people who probably don't even know what Dublin offers the average tourist. It's condemnation for the sake of condemnation; exaggeration for the sake of agreeing with those who live outside the capital.

For every 1 "****" part of Dublin, there are 9 other great parts.

If you seek to conveniently ignore those 9 parts, or if you don't even know they exist because you see Dublin as a place to get "pissed", then perhaps the problem is with you - and not with the city that you direct your opprobrium.

Fandymo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287745#Comment_118287745

Gotcha, Dublin isn't ****, because there are third world cities that are shitter. Weak as pi55 argument.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118288670#Comment_118288670

do you think Ireland in general is sh*t or just Dublin? I mean we have terrible public transport nationwide, poor healthcare, badly designed ugly towns and villages... do you save your ire only for Dublin?

Chips Lovell

If Dublin is such a kip, why is it one of the most visited cities in Europe? Why does it attract the lion's share of visitors and tourism revenues compared to other regions of Ireland?

Conclusion: You may think it is a kip OP, but most people don't. Maybe Dublin isn't for you?

Fandymo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118288858#Comment_118288858

Well i'm from and live in Dublin, so I can't speak for the rest of the country. I would imagine anywhere Go Ahead Ireland were given a service has shite public transport.

Investigative reports

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118243050#Comment_118243050

Is Paris that bad? Haven't been for 20yrs

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118288929#Comment_118288929

none of these places are that bad. I mean I've been to Buenos Aires which I found to be the most amazing city, but it also has social and poverty problems that make Dublin look like Zurich or Geneva. Didn't take away my enjoyment of the place though.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118306802#Comment_118306802

This is all you see through your anti-Dublin glasses though. Ireland is below Spain, UK, Portugal, many other European countries when it comes to poverty levels.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118306802#Comment_118306802

...to the chavcars - known by the sound of their engines.

katherineconlan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118306802#Comment_118306802

Ireland has only had wealth for a very short period in it's history as a state (or even through the nations 800 year colonization). As a result, we haven't had time to renovate the **** buildings in D1.

The banana republic politics also doesn't help. However I will say it's much better than the third world shithole I'm from. At least the Irish government isn't that inept. They can build marvelous buildings (LUAS, Docklands, Terminal 2) when they want to.

Plus as someone said, just don't go into North Dublin. Most of my friends who live in Dublin or live in commuter towns around the city spend most of their time exclusively south of the Liffey when it comes to dining and pubs.

miss flutter ups

If you look at the love Ireland group on Facebook, tourists are obsessed with Dublin. Maybe we just don't have the same perspective

miss flutter ups

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118288908#Comment_118288908

So true, Facebook is full of visitors pining for Dublin so it definitely has something special going for it

72sheep

It’s tragically true. Dublin is a victim to the fact that in Ireland we have become accustomed - and disgracefully accept - that our govmt/public services do not attempt to care for us.

- Our political class keep telling us how difficult and thankless it is to serve in government - and yet we have multi-generational families fighting like rats to protect their family seats.

- Dublin city infrastructure and buildings is a national disgrace and internationally a cause of shame/ridicule. Not only has Dublin city disintegrated in front of our eyes but we have given away our construction industry to outside funds.

- OECD indicates Ireland's health spend/capita is at highest category in Europe and at same level as FRA/DEN/BEL/SWE. And yet our medics keep telling us our healthcare is crap. (Where's that children's hospital again!)

- We have a professional services class that only serve multinationals. These are the useless fat fools that articulate this ridiculous false narrative that we have a real high GDP.

- Homelessness is presented as just an issue that SF like to "bang on about", but it's irrelevant as SF are just gangsters.

- Any crash just means it’s time for the young people to fcuk off abroad so they stop complaining. 

We don’t care for our own. Merry Christmas :-)