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If you are
visiting Dublin and fancy spending a day in a town with a much slower pace
without having to travel extensively to get there, there is a fantastic option
for you just a short train ride away.
With direct service via the Dublin DART train, Howth is a beautiful
seaside town packed with Irish charm in a very small area. It takes no time to get there from Connolly
Station which is served by the red line of Dublin's Luas tram system.
When you step off the train you
immediately realize you're no longer in a big city, but instead in a small
fishing town nestled into rocky cliffs that plunge into Dublin Bay. The sea envelops Howth's landscape and is
filled with docks for hundreds of small yachts and fishing boats. In the short amount of time that I spent in
Howth I watched at least 10 of those fishing boats coming into and going out of
the harbor with fish that had been freshly caught out of the waters off the
east coast of Dublin. Lining the docks
are many fish mongers and lovely small restaurants that serve almost
exclusively fresh fish. Since I had not
eaten before on the day of my trip I decided to stop into one of these
restaurants named Deep to have a bite to eat, and it was a lovely surprise to
find that my meal there would be my best in Ireland to date. I ordered the soup for the day which was an
Asparagus, Pea and Mint puree and as a meal I ordered their Sea Bass served
with tomatoes and Oysters. Both a
starter and a meal plus a drink set me back less than €25 all together, which
given the quality of the restaurant and the size of the portions I have to say
is a steal. Because of the time of day I
was dining I was able to order off of the lunch menu which I suspect is
considerably less expensive than the dinner menu, but I am sure that any meal
you'd order there would be well worth the money spent.
After a lunch at the docks there are
a variety of activities to pursue all of which I found to be self-guided. There are stretches of beach on which you can
take a stroll or also there are two piers which you can see from anywhere in
town that you can walk on and out over the sea.
On my visit I opted for a walk along the piers in order to get a closer
look at the beautiful green and rocky islands that are just off from the
shore. While the day was quite cool and
windy it all seemed an appropriate touch for the storybook-like image that
Howth presents. At the end of the East
pier is an old working lighthouse that you can stand below and look out over
the bay and on out to a seemingly never-ending sea. Howth is also famous for its seals, and on
most summer days these seals can be seen lounging along the rocks that line the
East pier. Unfortunately on my first
trip here I wasn't able to see any, but I plan on going back to try my hand at
seal-watching again! After the pier a
walk through town is a delightful way to end your trip. There is café after café and multiple
ice-cream shops as well as a number of salons and clothing stores that are
exclusive to the town. With a multitude
of dining, shopping and sight-seeing options, a day trip to Howth is the
perfect escape from the bustle of Dublin.
Written by Joe Gayk - Summer of Travel 2007
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