Do you really know Dublin? Here you can find some interesting curiosity about our green city!

Dublin is a small city and nowadays it is considered one of the most popular city breaks in Europe. Every year millions of tourists come to visit Dublin and its famous pubs, to walk around its monuments, to visit the Trinity Library and the Book of Kells, to drink a pint of Guinness in the Guinness Storehouse and obviously to join the St Patrick’s Day’s festival.

Today we would like to talk about some curiosities about Dublin that nobody really knows, not even people from Dublin:

Arthur Guinness, founding father of the famous Guinness, here in Dublin signed a contract that changed his life forever.

If you come to Dublin, you can’t miss out on a visit to the Guinness Storehouse. It’s a must see and it is considered the most visited venue in Ireland. There aren’t guided tours but there are audio guide that explain very well the history of the building and how Guinness is made (check our post Guinness to find out more info).
On 31 December 1759 Arthur signed a 9,000 year lease at £45 per annum for the unused brewery.!
Since 1759 always in the same building are pouring the most famous alcoholic Irish drink: the dark beer, better knew as Guinness. They produce more than 10 million pints of Guinness per day.
It is popular with Irish people both in Ireland and abroad and, in spite of a decline in consumption over recent years, is the best-selling alcoholic drink of all time in Ireland. More than 9.800 pints of Guinness are sold between Friday afternoon around 5.30pm and Monday morning around 3am!

Dublin city was a Viking city and it was originally called:“Dubh Linn”, that in Gaelic means “black pond”. A long time ago there was a black pond in front of the actual Dublin Castle so it is from this pond that Dublin took its name. The pond was situated where now we can see only the garden.
The garden is actually used like a helicopter pad when very important people come for important events in Dublin Castle. Queen Elizabeth II used this pad when she came in visit a couple of years ago.
All our students go to the Dublin Castle during their stay: it is an important part of Dublin’s history.

Dublin is a city divided by the river Liffey. In the begging the bridges where just few of the one that we see today and there were some of them in which you had to pay a cert amount to cross it. Nowadays there are more bridges which help the people to pass from one to the other side of the river.
The most important are:
–O’Connell Bridge, : the only bridge in Europe which is as long as weigh. It built in 1863 in substitution of a wood bridge was built in 1801 (only one person at a time was able to cross from one end to the other);
–Ha’penny Bridge, called this way because you had to pay  half penny to cross form one end to the other.

Famouse Irish Pub!:The word “pub” it’s just the abbreviation of “Pub-lic House”, so the original idea of a pub was a meeting point for people where they were able to chat and exchange information.
You will be surprised to discover that Dublin has less pubs per person than any other European capital city.
The ancient pub in Dublin is called the Brazen Head which is near Smithfield along the river.

Dublin is a small city but born here a long list of very important people.
Writers like: George Bernard Shaw (the only person in the world who won an Oscar and a Nobel), James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, Bram Stoker, etc.. They are all writers who come from this wonderful city!
And singers like: Bono of U2 and Sidnead O’Connor.
Instead “Hollywood” needs to thanks Dublin from actors like: Maureen O’Hara, Gabriel Byrne and Colin Farrell.
A small town but full of talent people! 🙂

There are loads of more info that nobody known, not only about Dublin. If you follow our blog you can discover amazing things about Ireland. Weekly we post some interesting new story and you will be weekly prepared to visit this amazing island, maybe thanks to one of our travelling programme.
Don’t miss our next post, cheers,

Travelling Languages’ team!