This morning, the plane landed in Dublin at 11AM.  I picked up my luggage and took a local bus toward Downtown Dublin.  Within 30 minutes, we were already in Downtown Dublin and I got off the bus at the O’Connell Bridge, which is the main automobile bridge across the River Liffey.

Abigail’s Hostel was very conveniently located just a block from the bus stop on the River Liffey.  The River Liffey adds a lot to the Downtown Dublin atmosphere, as it passes through many of the city’s attractions including Phoenix Park, Downtown Dublin, and finally ending at Dublin Port.

I arrived at the hostel at 12:30PM and still had about a hour and a half until checking.  I used the time to walk through the surrounding areas including Trinity College (a University founded in 1592), Grafton Street (a pedestrian-only retail street), Stephen Greene’s Shopping Center (a unique, light-filled shopping mall opened in 1988), St Stephens Green Park (a scenic, urban park), and then made my way back to the hostel.  Dublin is a very walkable city, especially the area that I’m staying in.  The streets are densely packed with lively retailers, restaurants, bars, and coffee shops.

Stephen Street Mall was a challenged, yet vibrant mall in an excellent location right off of Grafton Street.  When I first saw the exterior design of the mall and walked inside, I would’ve guessed the mall was 75-100 years old, however it was a relatively young 30 years old.  The design was very unique, character filled, and had many old-school accents including rod-iron designs throughout the building.  The indoor mall was 3 levels.  The first level was vibrant, the second story had about 50% of the traffic of the first level, and the third level had about 5% of the traffic of the first level.

Here are my thoughts about why this mall has held up much better than most other 1980s malls:

• Location:  The mall’s excellent location in a high pedestrian traffic area right off of Grafton Street
• Character/Design:  The white rod-iron railings and other accent points add a lot to the mall’s atmosphere.  Also, the glass ceilings allow natural light to permeate the mall which is also a huge advantage compared to Westside Pavilion and Beverly Center
• High density of stores/entertainment:  The mall, especially the first level, is very densely packed with small stores.  They also did a nice job of filling the center of the mall with non-pestering storefronts/businesses
• Weather:  The Dublin weather is very rainy, which also provides an advantage to indoor malls
• Well maintained:  The mall was very well-maintained and tidy
• Creative uses:  The Landlord has been creative, and has set aside some of the third floor space as an exhibition space, art gallery, beauty school, tattoo parlor, etc.

After walking back to the hostel through St Stephens Park, I showered and walked to Phoenix Park, the largest City park in Europe.  The park has well-maintained,  wide-open lawns that one would expect to find in a rural city with no shortage of land.

Also, that afternoon I booked an all-day tour to the Cliffs of Moher for tomorrow (Thursday).  At 45 Euros, the all-day tour seemed reasonably priced and I feel like it’s nice to spend time in nature, rather than spending all day in Dublin.