ben_haines_london

I was in Dublin from 5 to 10 September to see something of the city and to attend the Science Festival, which goes from city to city in the British Isles and was at Trinity College Dublin this year. It will be back in the United Kingdom, in Norwich, next year, much like the triple A meeting in the States, but smaller: please see http://www.the-ba.net/the-ba/Events/FestivalofScience/. I walk badly these days, so moved by bicycle.

Dublin is beautiful, with one example after another of good Georgian building, designed with taste and restraint. As in Paris, Berlin and London the river gives shape to the city, but it is a smaller river in Dublin. I had a student room in a nineteenth century building in the College, so was 200 yards from the Book of Kells and people could walk from the college to very many other places of interest of the city. To stay in summer costs anybody sixty euros a night, with continental breakfast: full breakfast is four euros more. My shower was 20 yards from my room along a corridor, but there was no pressure on them. Detail is at http://www.tcd.ie/Conferences/visitor2.htm/.

Just out of the college main gate and to the left is the city tourist information office in a converted church, with helpful people, though you may have to wait ten minutes for your turn to see the adviser comes up. Over the road from that office is an ornate Victorian pub, well known, with a carvery and hot meals service daily from noon to nine thirty, and decent slices of cake for afters. The fast bus service from the airport takes cases in the boot and drops you beside the College gate, among other places. There, too, a hop on hop off bus service takes 90 minutes to tour the city centre, so you know the shapes of great buildings that you may visit later. Mine had a driver who sang to us: perhaps they all do.

Dublin is as expensive as London, which means it costs a lot.

Ben Haines, London
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JudyC

To Mr Haines,

Many thanks for the report, hope you have enjoyed the programme. Perhaps you would like to talk about some interesting lectures? They have webcasted a few, but not many.

Ozarksbill

Ben Haines...I am amazed by your travel knowledge! You have been offering so much helpful advice on Fodors talk. I note that you are based in London and are familiar with areas like Ireland and Eastern Europe where we've been. BTW, it so happened that we were in Dublin on 9/11.

Are you a Brit and are you an academic or scientist or businessman or maybe retired? I note the science festival in Dublin you attended. And how do you have the time for so many posts?

Just curious...
ozarksbill
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Ozarksbill

Follow up comment: What an interesting
conference you attended...never heard of the BA Festival of Science but looking at the various Sections I see many intriguing topics. And covering a considerable array of scienfific disciplines. One was about a mystery I must surely read: The Third Policeman.
ozarksbill

JJBhoy

ozarksbill,

Haven't looked at the conference website (yet) but am I right in assuming that you are referring to The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien?

It's one of my all-time favourites & I would thoroughly recommend it (& anything else by O'Brien).

Jim

Ozarksbill

Jim: Yep, that's the book, and glad to discover O'Brien. I've enjoyed mysteries although read other stuff, like right now I'm into MCullough's
"1776" which will take awhile, but is perfect having just been in Boston.
ozarksbill