Dublin // Temple Bar

Hi everyone! I'm really really very excited for this new series which is being launched today on my blog. For a person that dwells in Ireland and keenly posts travel photos, it is fair to say that I have been completely negligent in not showing you all our capital city, Dublin. In my experience and opinion, Dublin is incredible. It's friendly, exciting and full of culture. The city is rapidly expanding and evolving. There are actually so many things to do, all kinds of shops, restaurants and public parks in which you can spend your time. It's becoming quite a multicultural city too, which is very nice and really does help to create a stimulating, lively, interesting environment. I've known Dublin for all my years, and in going out to take these photos, had a number of things in mind. I know that when visitors come to Ireland, they have a list of things to see that everyone wants to see, that friends have recommended, that tour guides praise. When you're not a tourist, you generally avoid those things. But I do recognise their acclaim and importance, and so for the purposes of this travel guide, I will be including some of these attractions. However, in order to give YOU an insider's view of Dublin, and places to eat and see that are really beautiful and not touristy, I'm attempting to strike a balance by including some of my favourite spots too. This series is going to be rather long, but it will be bi-weekly for the next two months. Also, if you have any requests of places you'd like me to photograph and discuss, please let me know and I'll do my best to cover them! With all that being said, I present to you Temple Bar.

Temple Bar is what one might call a "tourist trap". Tourists flock there, but I can actually understand why. It's in the heart of the city and is a mini creative district. It's also a great place for nightlife and pubs and hosts a wide array of places to eat. Many of the pubs boast live music. Tourists adore taking photos of themselves outside the actual bar that is called "Temple Bar", so I've omitted that. But the rest is truly worth seeing and exploring.

Depending on how you approach Temple Bar, you're going to see this massive building with a globe made of leaves outside. It's the central bank of Ireland, and also a key area for loitering youths (unfortunately!). The building itself isn't great, but the open space before it is a great place to take a quick break before venturing into the wonderful craziness that is Temple Bar itself.

So basically street art is the thing here! It's a very colourful little area and a place where you get a great sense of people creating all the time. There are numerous mini-galleries and craft shops, such as the Jam Art Factory and Cow's Lane Designer Studio. If you're looking for vintage secondhand items, it is also your best bet with places like Siopaella (which sells secondhand designer pieces) and Tola Vintage. Above is this almost creepy but very intriguing shop called Lucy's Lounge.

I have to include a shot of Urban Outfitters because #aesthetics. Also pictured is a little market in Temple Bar that isn't usually there (this was a weekday so maybe it is!)  that a friend of mine and I stumbled across.

Thank you so much for reading this post. In part two I'm going to give you a quick tour of the Quays.

Does your locality have a "creative quarter"? x

part 2 - the south side // part 3 - the quays // part 4 - the sweet stuff // part 5 - the north side