3 Best Sights in Ireland

These shocking but beautiful bronze sculptures by artist Rowan Gillespie portray a few wasted victims of the Great Famine stumbling desperately along a road in search of salvation. The location, on Custom House Quay, is particularly appropriate as many of the ships carrying survivors to the New World left from here. A matching set of sculptures can be found on the other side of the Atlantic in Toronto. The nearby World Poverty Stone is another monument to the many people still suffering desperate deprivation throughout the world.

Christened the "Stiletto in the Ghetto" by local smart alecks, this needle-like monument is the most exciting thing to happen to Dublin's skyline in decades. The Spire, also known as the Monument of Light, was originally planned as part of the city's millennium celebrations. But Ian Ritchie's spectacular 395-foot-high monument wasn't erected until the beginning of 2003. Seven times taller than the nearby General Post Office, the stainless-steel structure rises from the spot where Nelson's Pillar once stood. Approximately 10 feet in diameter at its base, the softly lighted monument narrows to only 1 foot at its apex—the upper part of the Spire sways gently when the wind blows. The monument's creators envisioned it serving as a beacon for the whole of the city, and it will certainly be the first thing you see as you drive into Dublin from the airport.

If you want to understand Irish history in one small nugget---or rather, a giant limestone block overlooking the Shannon River and King John's Castle---then cross over to the Treaty Stone, close to the Curragower Restaurant. Limerick's nickname (the Treaty City) is derived from this monument, set upon a hefty, stepped plinth, the site where the Williamite-Jacobite War ended in 1691 after the last stand by supporters of King James at the end of the Siege of Limerick. After signing an agreement on the Treaty Stone that the Irish would be treated in a fair and dignified manner after their departure, Ireland's earls took flight to mainland Europe, leaving those remaining at the mercy of the conquerors. It didn't end well.