1) Today, Zi Yan, Wei Herng and I embarked on a quest to visit the Christmas Market at Dun Laoghaire. Dun Laoghaire is a suburban seaside town, about 12 km south of Dublin City Centre. We met up at RCSI as usual, and took the bus to the city centre. Unbeknownst to us, we were staring right at the Christmas Market and didn't even know! My only excuse is it was early in the morning, and many stalls had not been set up properly yet.
2) We continued walking around the harbour, before taking another bus to Upper Georges' Street, where Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre is situated. From there, we thought we had to take the Bus 111 to our supposed destination. After checking the bus schedule, we decided to walk the rest of the approximately 3km together. Not taking the bus turned out to be the best decision we made, as we took in all the sights that Dun Laoghaire had to offer.
3) We passed by Town Hall, People's Park, took a tour of Dalkey Heritage Town, strolled by Bullock Castle, skirted along Castle Park School (whose building was a real castle!), and took some lovely snaps of the mist-leaden islands in the horizon. We unanimously agreed that Dun Laoghaire had some of the most beautiful houses we had ever seen, and the decorations that adorned the walls of many a building were simple yet ornate.
4) To make a long story short, we asked for directions after being unable to find the Christmas Market, only to be redirected back to the City Centre! We then took the bus back, before finding the Christmas Market right in front of us, stalls open and beckoning our arrival. Famished, we first looked for something to eat. Wei Herng decided to give the Hungarian "langos" a go, while me and Zi Yan had the foot-long 100% Irish sausage hot dog, with all the fixings! The weather was simply perfect, cooling yet with the perfect tinge of sunshine to bring a smile to everyone's face.
5) I decided to get a large 99's after lunch, and was pleasantly surprised to discover the enormous size of the soft serve, complete with raspberry drizzle and a chocolate bar. Afterwards, we decided to go for a walk on the West Pier. As we returned, the Sun was setting, its golden rays reflected in the shimmering waters beneath. Wei Herng went back to the Christmas Market to get some takeaway snacks, and we took the bus back to Dublin. That has been our day today, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it. Thanks for tuning in, and happy holidays everyone! :D
P.S. Do scroll down for LOTS of memorable pics of a seaside town that has quite enamoured me. Cheers!
