I Landed in Ireland (Part 1): Rollin' in Dublin!

- June 25-26, 2026, Thursday to Friday.

- "I think your visa....your visa's not alright." Even in my last moments in Cardiff, my heart was pounding - though now with anxiety instead of excitement. I was in Cardiff Airport about to check in to my flight to Dublin, Ireland. I thought I was not going to make it. 

Goodbye Cardiff....almost.

- Many people often forget that the Republic of Ireland is NOT part of the United Kingdom (though Northern Ireland is). Through Ireland uses the euro as its currency, it is also NOT part of the Schengen area, as it issues its own visa. For Philippine passport holders like me, the Philippines is part of a list of countries that can take advantage of the "Short-Stay Visa Waiver Programme" using a UK visa. This programme allows passport-holders from the list (again, including the Philippines) with UK short-stay visas (better if multiple entry too) to enter the Republic of Ireland for casual purposes like tourism for 90 days maximum AS LONG AS the UK visa-holder lawfully enters the UK first. Make sure the passport is stamped by immigration just to avoid problems too. Through this, I did not need to apply for a separate Ireland visa because I already had my (multiple-entry) UK visa, and I entered the UK first via London. 

- Unfortunately, the check-in person at the airport got a bit confused since the appearance of my UK evisa was a newer format. From what I understood, the guidelines she had did not match the kind of visa that I had so she had to ring up immigration just to double check. She was kind and calm about the whole thing while I was fidgeting in nervousness, but confirmed that my visa was indeed "alright" and my short-term visa claim was legit. I also realized that since many people often skip Cardiff in their UK travels, Cardiff less frequently encounters special visa situations like mine (boo third-world passport boooo). Because of some travel agreement between UK and Ireland, travel arrangements seem to be less strict (?) because after check-in I did not have to pass through a proper immigration booth unlike most international travels. However, upon reaching Ireland after an hour-long flight, I did have to pass through immigration. This time, however, everything was easy-breezy and immigration took a jiffy to stamp my passport. I guess because I arrived via Dublin, which is the capital, where they may encounter my case more frequently.

- It was past midnight when I checked into Abigails Hostel, which was conveniently located in the center of Dublin. It was a spacious and modern-looking hostel. I should also note that Ireland was significantly colder than London and Wales, so I had a comfortable sleep that early morning. 

- I had an early start despite arriving late the night before, because I really couldn't believe that I was already in one of the European countries I had long wanted to visit. One thing I already observed in my first hour out walking was that even though Dublin is a technically a fairly big city, most main sites in Dublin are also within walking distance of each other.

- My first stop for the morning was a visit to St. Patrick's Cathedral. It was built in the 12th century and is the national cathedral of Ireland. It is also the country's largest!

First views of Dublin. This is the O'Donovan Rossa Bridge with the Four Courts at the back.

With origins dating back to 1754, the Brazen Head is said to be the oldest pub in Dublin, though not in the whole of Ireland.

St. Patricks' Cathedral.

Prayer hall.

One of the old stones found in the site of the cathedral, dating back to the 1800s.

Ireland's memorial records from 1914 to 1918.

Tree of Remembrance. 

I love the details of the stained glass.

The Tomb of the Duke of Schonberg and the chair used by William of Orange (William III) when he visited the cathedral.

More stained glass windows!

Boyle family monument. Erected by Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork, for himself and his family in the 1600s.

- Around the corner from the cathedral is a place sometimes overlooked by visitors. Opened in 1707, it was Ireland's first public library. The library was named after Most Reverend Narcissus Marsh, for whom the library was built. Today, it impressively maintains its "old time" look. It still also functions as a library with an impressive collection of antique books that are centuries old, though many tourists are happy to pay the entrance fee just to go through the library as a "living" historical landmark! 

Who knew this small door would lead to an amazing historical library!!

The library was owned (?) by Most Reverend Narcissus Marsh. 

It feels like the library in Hogwarts.

Old shelves with even older books.

No sorry, THIS other part of the library feels like the library in Hogwarts.

I'm actually curious to know how they're able to preserve their really old books.

Oh look, a skull.

- Another major cathedral in Dublin is the Christ Church Cathedral. It was built in the 11th century, though its current appearance did not take place until at least a century later. It is one of Dublin's oldest structures. Compared to St. Patrick's Cathedral, I think one can see more of Christ Church Cathedral, including its crypt.        

Christ Church Cathedral.

Tomb of Strongbow, whose real name was Richard de Clare, the second Earl of Pembroke.

Heart of stone.

These tiles are the cathedral's original 15th-century tiles.

Main prayer hall.

Crypt.

An exhibit of the original costumes used in the series "The Tudors". The cathedral was a filming location.

The cat and mouse are real and, according to the description, were probably chasing each other in the 1800s. They were found in the organ pipes centuries later.

My next stop was the building to the left: Dublinia!

- Just across the street from Christ Church Cathedral is an interactive museum called Dublinia. It was built inside Christ Church Cathedral's Synod Hall. The hall and the main cathedral have been connected by a stone bridge, built in the 1800s. The museum itself opened in 1993.

It looks like it's for kids, and well it is to a degree, but I really think adults can learn so much from Dublinia too, because of its immersive and interactive approach.

Ireland was a Viking nation before.

One of the things I really don't take for granted living in this period is hygiene.

Strongbow. Kindly scroll up (where I talked about Christ Church Cathedral) to see the real Strongbow, or at least, his tomb.

Dublin as a Viking town.

Visitors were allowed to throw balls at this "criminal".

St. Michael's Tower above the museum, and the tower's nice stained glass window.

View from the tower.

I saw this statue at the yard of Christ Church Cathedral. By the way, to exit Dublinia, visitors would need to cross the stone bridge back to Christ Church Cathedral. 

- To change things a bit, I walked all the way to George's Street Arcade. It is a 19th century shopping center that is still being used the same way today. It had some vintage shops, handricraft stores, and souvenir stores.

Dublin Castle, with the Chester Beatty Library inside, is currently closed to the public. Ireland is currently the president of the European Union Council. Events and other political matters will take place in the castle grounds from June to December 2026.

Dublin City Council peacock. I just like it because it's a peacock haha.

George's Street Arcade.

By the way, across the arcade, there are plenty of good shops, some of them thrift stores.

Inside the arcade.

I am really here.

- I walked around a bit more to ge some souvenirs. I also had lunch at a Chinese restaurant because I was already sick and tired of tasteless potatoes in any form. 

One of the stores I came across.

This is so far the best Irish souvenir stores I've seen. It has many branches both in Ireland and in Northern Ireland. Selection is wide, and prices are reasonable!!

Molly Malone statue. Molly Malone is a character in an Irish folk song. The statue was built in 1988 to celebrate Dublin's millennium-year anniversary. It is said that rubbing her breasts will give luck, hence the discoloration. However, the local government and some human rights activists do not agree with this practice.

The souvenirs here are a little bit more high end.

BIANG BIANGGGGGGGGG.

Passed by this Filipino milk tea place. I didn't buy this time but I sure did at some point. This was near my hostel.

- The perfect way to end my first full day in Ireland was to watch Riverdance. Riverdance is a dance performance that mainly emphasizes Irish step dancing, though it interacts with other related forms of dance such as flamenco and tap dancing. It started as an interval act in Eurovision in 1994, until it turned into a full-blown show. It originally started Michael Flatley, who is one of the performers in the world I look up to. (I've been wanting to see Riverdance since I was in high school. You have no idea how much this means to me!) Currently, they're performing at the Gaiety Theatre.

Gaiety Theatre.

I still cannot believe it by the way.

Luciano Pavarotti performed here!

Pub area before going to the main theater.

The theater itself is a sight to behold.

Look at that dome!

I look calm but if you only knew how excited I was!

Here we go.

Cannot wait!!

He's not flying, he's....Irish dancing!

Thank you for that wild ride. I literally cried tears. (Of course no photos or videos during the performance, we were only able to do so during the curtain call and encore.)

- Dublin was a lot more than what I thought it would be and I'm glad it did exceed expectations. It was cultural, it was loud, it was musical. And this was just day one. There was a lot more of Ireland to see in the coming days!