Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [112]
AROUND DUBLIN
Without even the smallest hint of irony Dubliners will happily tell you that one of the city’s best features is how easy it is to get out of it, and they do, whenever they can. But they don’t go especially far: for many the destination is one of the small seaside villages that surround the capital. To the north are the lovely villages of Howth and Malahide – slowly and reluctantly being sucked into the Dublin conglomeration – while to the south is Dalkey, which has long since given up the fight but has managed to retain that village vibe.
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DALKEY
South of Dun Laoghaire is Dalkey (Deilginis), which has the remains of a number of old castles. On Castle St, the main street, two 16th-century castles face each other: Archibald’s Castle and Goat Castle. Next to the latter is the ancient St Begnet’s Church, dating from the 9th century. Bulloch Castle, overlooking Bullock Harbour, north of town, was built by the monks of St Mary’s Abbey in Dublin in the 12th century.
Goat Castle and St Begnet’s Church have recently been converted into the Dalkey Castle & Heritage Centre ( 285 8366; www.dalkeycastle.com; Castle St; adult/child/student €6/4/5; 9.30am-5pm Mon-Fri, 11am-5pm Sat & Sun). Models, displays and exhibitions form a pretty interesting history of Dalkey and give an insight into the area during medieval times.
Dalkey has several holy wells, including St Begnet’s Holy Well, next to the ruins of another church dedicated to St Begnet on the 9-hectare Dalkey Island, a few hundred metres offshore from Coliemore Harbour. Reputed to cure rheumatism, the well is a popular destination for tourists and the faithful alike. To get here, you can hire a boat with a small outboard engine in Coliemore Harbour. To get one, simply show up (you can’t book them in advance); they cost around €25 per hour.
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DETOUR: SANDYCOVE & JAMES JOYCE MUSEUM
About 1km north of Dalkey is Sandycove, with a pretty little beach and a Martello tower – built by British forces to keep an eye out for a Napoleonic invasion – now housing the James Joyce Museum ( 280 9265; www.visitdublin.com; Joyce Tower, Sandycove; adult/child/student €6.70/4.20/5.70; 10am-1pm & 2-5pm Mon-Sat, 2-6pm Sun Apr-Oct, by appointment only Nov-Mar). This is where the action begins in James Joyce’s epic novel Ulysses. The museum was opened in 1962 by Sylvia Beach, the Paris-based publisher who first dared to put Ulysses into print, and has photographs, letters, documents, various editions of Joyce’s work and two death masks of Joyce on display.
Below the Martello tower is the Forty Foot Pool, an open-air, sea-water bathing pool that took its name from the army regiment, the Fortieth Foot, that was stationed at the tower until the regiment was disbanded in 1904. At the close of the first chapter of Ulysses, Buck Mulligan heads off to the Forty Foot Pool for a morning swim. A morning wake-up here is still a local tradition, winter or summer. In fact, a winter dip isn’t much braver than a summer one since the water temperature varies by only about 5°C (9°F). Basically, it’s always bloody cold.
Pressure from female bathers eventually opened this public stretch of water – originally nudist and for men only – to both sexes, despite strong opposition from the ‘forty foot gentlemen’. They eventually compromised with the ruling that a ‘Togs Must Be Worn’ sign would apply after 9am. Prior to that time nudity prevails and swimmers are still predominantly male.
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To the south there are good views from the small park at Sorrento Point and from Killiney Hill. Dalkey Quarry is a popular site for rock climbers, and originally provided most of the granite for the gigantic piers at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. A number of rocky swimming pools are found along the Dalkey coast.
Queen’s ( 285 4569; 12 Castle St; lunch €8-10; noon-4pm & 5-7.30pm Mon-Fri, noon-4pm Sat & Sun) is a Dalkey institution offering a great pub lunch of meat and fish dishes.
OK, so it’s not strictly Dalkey, but all self-respecting crustacean-lovers