Hey! As you might know, I’m going on my first solo trip ever in a couple of days. I’m going to Dublin for five days, all by myself. I honestly could not be more excited. It all started out around September, when I was beginning to plan what to do in my one week of not having classes. I wanted to go somewhere with friends, but it turned out most of my friends had already made plans. Or they were just too broke to be able to afford travelling. So I decided to embark on this journey by myself. And it might be the best decision I’ve made in a long time.
Reservations and timetables
I decided to plan out just about everything about my trip: a place to sleep, restaurants, events and tours. I’ve read a lot of travel blogs and watched a lot of videos about first solo trips. The thing most people regret the most is planning too much. I realise I’m making the exact same mistake, but I figured it was better to have everything planned than to have a day in which I wouldn’t know what to do. At least for my first solo trip ever.
The first day of my trip, February 3rd, is without a doubt going to be the most stressful one. My plane gets in around 11 am. After finding my checked baggage and getting out of the airport, I need to find a way to get from there to my hostel. I’m sure there are plenty of bus, coach and taxi services, but this part kind of stresses me out.
My general plan for this trip was to kind of try and do things that I wouldn’t normally do on a holiday with my family. That being said, I’d like to get some culture in my first solo trip. Art gallery, museum, cathedral or library; you name it, it’s probably in there.
Concrete plans
As I said before, there are a lot of things I want to cram into these five days. Therefore, I felt it was necessary to plan it all out on a pretty tight schedule. There are a lot of different types of things I want to do. Here they are! (in no particular order)
Markets
This seems like a lovely, quirky, authentic place. I really enjoy hanging out at any type of market, really. Moreover, I might get some really good deals on cool books or something or other here. Also, it’s an indoor market, so this plan won’t get watered down (pun intended) if it starts raining, which is always a good thing.
2. Temple Bar Book Market
I actually have a little bit of a collection going at home: I collect old-looking books, preferably in English or Dutch. I feel like markets like these are an ideal place to find such books for decent prices. I’m really looking forward to this one, because the atmosphere of an outdoor market always reminds me of our yearly flee market at home.
As you can probably guess from the name, this one is right near the Temple Bar Book Market. This means that I’ll take a look at these two on the same day, for efficiency’s sake. In my opinion, food markets and food truck festivals offer the most authentic range of food from another country. I’ve vowed to myself to try new things on my first solo trip, so maybe eating street food will be one of those things.
Art and culture
- National Museum of Ireland (Archaeology)
One of the things I wanted to do during my time abroad was immerse myself in foreign culture. To my mind, a national museum is a great way to do this. I can’t remember the last time I went to a museum with my family, so I think they’re not as interested in this as I am. Also, it’s free.
Oscar Wilde was one of the most influential authors in the Anglo-Saxon world, so I think a quick visit to his house would be in place. Our high school English teachers also kind of obsessed over Wilde, which meant a lot of interaction with his works in class. The Selfish Giant, The Importance of Being Earnest and The Picture of Dorian Gray spring to mind.
Another classic example of “something I want to do when I’m on a holiday but my family doesn’t so I don’t make a big deal out of it”. Well, now that I’m in Dublin by myself, I can do whatever I want. And this is one of those things. Oh, and it’s also free.
Tours
- Trinity College (Book of Kells)
Apparently, if you’re going to Dublin and you don’t visit Trinity College, you haven’t really been to Dublin. Again, as I’m really interested in old books, I feel like this is something I’ll enjoy a lot. It’ll be cool to walk on a campus and compare it to my own university experience as well.
Another thing I’m very fascinated by is the whole prison experience and culture. Therefore, I feel like a bus ride from Dublin city centre to this place will be totally worth it. It seems to be an inspiring and overwhelming tour, and I can’t wait to see what the tour will consist of.
Once more, a more or less essential part of any visit to Dublin. After all, what’s Dublin without a pint of Guinness? To see where and how they make this beer and what kind of craftsmanship comes into play will most likely be something very exciting and special to experience. Also, it seems like the 360° view on the seventh floor is really worth it and will provide me with loads of beautiful pictures for Instagram.
(4. Viking Splash Tour)
I was originally going to take a Viking Splash Tour around the city as well, but after days of planning and scheduling, I found out that I just didn’t have the time to do this. After all, I don’t want to have to rush all over the city just to be able to do everything I planned. This tour might be something to check out if I ever come back to Dublin.
Miscellaneous
Once more, my love for books is shining through. After comparing a fair number of libraries, I decided this was the one I wanted to visit. It had that look of a Hogwarts library I really wanted and it just seemed like an authentic little place that not many typical tourists have visited. Then again, I might be completely wrong about that and the library might be filled to the brim with typical tourists.
I figured I was in a very cultural city, so it would be a pity if I didn’t even get to visit some church or cathedral. That’s why I decided to have a look at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Also, it’s right next to Marsh’s Library, so that turned out to be a nice little coincidence.
A nice little park is a must when visiting any major city. You don’t go to NYC without strolling through Central Park. I guess St. Stephen’s Green could be considered as Dublin’s own Central Park. Kind of. I plan on getting some sandwiches or pastries and eating them here, while sitting on a peaceful bench and admiring my surroundings. I think this park will be a nice oasis of quiet in the loud city centre.
And there you have it. That’s my plan for this first solo trip ever. I’m very excited and I can’t wait to find out what it’s like to be abroad alone. I’ll be sure to keep you posted when I’m there. Anyway, thanks for reading!
-S
