TripTripTravel

Are you in Dublin and feel like going somewhere special for your Easter break? Somewhere different, but not too far away from the city? Then Malahide Castle and Gardens is the perfect option for you!

Malahide Castle and Gardens is a personal favourite for many people living in Dublin, as it has something different to offer in every season of the year. We decided to visit it on a gorgeous (and rare) spring day and stumbled upon a very Easter-friendly surprise. Would you like to know what it is? Keep reading…

Malahide Castle is one of the oldest and most historic castles in Ireland, with certain structures dating back to the 12th century. It features 260 acres of gardens, and was home to the Talbot family for around 800 years. It was eventually sold to the Irish State in 1975.

Although the exteriors of the castle can be visited at no cost, we strongly recommend to buy a ticket for the private gardens, which are divided in two areas and feature up to 5,000 varieties of plants.
The Walled Gardens consist of seven adorable greenhouses, including a victorian conservatory, and host very rare species. You may even spot peacocks around.

The second area, the West Lawn, allows the visitors to enjoy a breathtaking view of the castle from a different perspective. This part is also a perfect spot to just lay on the grass and relax, or have a picnic on a sunny day.

So…what’s the hidden secret?

As we were walking through the gardens, stopping to take some pictures here and there, we spotted something moving from the corner of our eyes. There were more than one, and they were very, very fluffy. Guessed it already?

Such a cute herd of rabbits!

As you can see, we had an amazing day, including some unexpected friends. If you want to visit the castle and its gardens and would like to know its opening hours and prices, click here.

Dublin is well known for its pubs and its live music, but did you know that it features some amazing street art by world-renowned artists?

Last Saturday we had the chance to join a tour/photowalk that @igersdublin and @instameetdublin organised to see all this art sometimes hidden away in Dublin’s city centre. And what better way to discover all this talent than by following street artist @el_viz_art?

@el_viz_art took us to the most iconic places and gave us a lot of information about the different artists. It was surprising to hear that some of these pieces of art are more valuable than those by Banksy. Who knew! What might appear as an act of vandalism or just a wall covered in graffiti by an over-happy teenager may in fact be a commissioned piece of art created to highlight a certain cause or issue in modern-day Ireland.

One of the most interesting places that we visited is the Tivoli Theatre car park, fully covered in stunning street art, and featuring the work of several artists. All the art here was created during the annual “All City Jam”, which All City Records organise since 2008, and changes regularly. Make sure you visit this space asap, since it will soon become a hotel and all the paintings will be gone. Tip: visit it on a Sunday, when the car park is closed and hence free of cars.

Will Vibes

Triptriptravel practising portraits

Dan Leo

Another location worth a visit is Francis Street. One of the most surprising things that we learnt during our tour was how limited the lifespan of this art can be. When searching Google you can see the same street painted in many different ways, so, if you like what you see, don’t leave it until it’s too late! Some streets and alleyways change their look more often than the weather changes in Ireland.

Fink Art and Luan Castilhos (collaboration)

@rvpenas posing for Triptriptravel

@dublinisblackandwhite and @notsocrystalclear, two queens of Instagram

Temple Bar, one of the most touristic areas, also has some fantastic examples of street art. Don’t overlook it!

“B.P. Fallon” by Maser

The Blooms Hotel, by James Earley

“Captain A-Hole”, by ADW

As you can see, we had a fantastic day and we learnt so much from @el_viz_art. Thanks again to Sofía from @igersdublin for organising this. If you want to see more from this tour, watch these cool videos two guys we met that day created.

@nathanburke1:

Met some great people yesterday ✌🏼 • • • 🔊Lianne la havas – green &a gold (Darius remix)

A post shared by Nathan Burke (@nathanburke1) on Apr 9, 2017 at 11:46am PDT

 

Alex from Triptriptravel with Sofía aka @igersdublin

@visualjungle:

A quick edit from todays photo walk !! Tag anyone you see in it !! . . . . . . #dublin #ireland #videographer #LovinDublin #photography #a6500 #sonyfs7 #dublin #dublincity #dublindivine #discoverdublin #dublinmydarling #igers #igersdublin @I@instameetdublin @igersdublin

A post shared by C Ø N O R H A Y Ë S (@visualjungle) on Apr 8, 2017 at 2:41pm PDT

(If you happen to know the name of the artists that we were unable to tag please let us know.)

St. Patrick’s Day is, without a doubt, one of the most important days in Ireland, if not the most. People from all over the world come to the country to celebrate this day. Also, a great deal of international cities turn their most important monuments green to show their love for this Irish festivity.

This Gobal Greening campaign, as it is called, was initiated by the Irish government. It started in Sydney and Auckland in 2010. This year, only seven years later, almost 300 monuments in 44 countries turned green, from Christ the Redeemer in Río de Janeiro to the Great Wall of China. Amazing, isn’t it?

Now, how much do you know about this saint? If you’re from Ireland, we’re pretty sure you think of drunk people in Temple Bar, shamrocks, and snakes when you hear about Paddy. However, if you’re from abroad, we guess you never stopped to think who he really was.

So…who was he?

According to history, he was captured by Irish pirates from his home in Britain at the age of 16, and brought to Ireland as a slave. Here he would become a shepherd and would look after animals. Feeling lonely and being away from his family, he turned to God looking for support and solace. After spending six years in the Emerald Isle, he heard a voice during his sleep telling him that he was going back to his home country on a boat that was waiting for him.

Once back home, he had a strange dream where a man gave him a letter from people in Ireland begging him to come back to the country. And so he did, but this time of his free will, to become a Christian apostle to the Irish people, who were mostly pagans at that time.

Back in Ireland, he started spreading the word of God, inviting people to believe in Him and do His will. Soon he became a bishop,  then the patron saint of Ireland.

What’s with the shamrock and the snakes?

Tradition has it that he used to use a shamrock (not a clover!) to explain the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit, all in one). As for the snakes, it is said that he rid Ireland of them (although scientists claim there were not any snakes in Ireland at that time). This would have been an allegory to explain that he rid the country of the druids that were living in it.

Back to the celebrations, did you celebrate this special day? If so, how did you celebrate it? Did any of the monuments in your city turn green? Let us know in the comments!

 

 

Hello everyone, and welcome to Trip Trip Travel!

As you may already know, I (Alejandro) love travelling, so I thought it would be a great idea to start a travel blog where I could share with you all my adventures, travel tips, and much more!

Want to find me on social media? Follow me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/triptriptravelblog), Twitter (@triptriptravel_) and Instagram (triptriptravel_)!

My next post will be about the most well-known day in Ireland: St. Patrick’s Day. Stay tuned!

P.S.: For obvious reasons this blog will be in English, but feel free to also leave comments in Spanish or French. 🙂