Can someone describe what Dublin is like?

[valedictorian]

I'm considering applying to the Royal College of Surgeons. I don't know anything about Dublin. The only things I know about Ireland come from tv and the movies, which some Irish people I met assured me are not very accurate. Can anyone living in Dublin give me a good description what Dublin is like as a city to live in? What are the Irish like? Is living there ok? Good? Great? Not so great? Please tell me what it's like?

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[leorl]

Try this: http://www.visitdublin.com/ . I like Dublin - it's a large enough city, but not as massive as say Chicago or new york. I live in a central area (and you will too at RCSI), and you can still walk down the street and bump into people you know. Some places in Dublin you'd avoid, and in general the city is fun but can be filthy but it's usually cleaned up pretty quickly. The Irish are a lot of fun, they're really funny people, especially the ones who're good at story telling. Dublin itself is really cool in terms of going out and seeing some cultural things, but you do need a break from it every once in awhile. There are some good scenic spots to hang out in like the coastal bits of Dublin that you can just get the Dart to.

 

[dr strangelove]

I wasn't a big fan of Dublin to be honest; granted this could have been as I was attending UCD and was stuck out in the suburbs! Dublin's alright to live in; it's not great by capital city standards though. It has changed a huge amount in the past 10 years, definitely for the better. My major complaints were that public transport was rubbish and there were no areas that really had a student feel to them (at least that I came across in my 4 years there). For what you get as well it's also ridiculously expensive.

 

[leorl]

I suppose it depends where you were. Around Trinity, there are definitely places where students congregate, but there seems to be more a Trinity atmosphere cuz it's somewhat closed, whereas UCD is so large and is open-plan. RCSI - it's a bit too closed in my opinion, doesn't exactly have a campus per say, but a set of designated buildings. But it's in city center so I'm sure there are RCSI haunts. Public transport has definitely gotten better, still nothing really going to UCD but now there's the Luas lines now which take you to key areas, and there's the Dart to get you out of the hubbub of the city.

You will find that in general, Dublin is an expensive city, not exactly the greatest value for money, and getting used to smaller space when coming from the luxurious expanses of the US can be a bit of a change. But as long as you find an apt. you're comfy in and pick your locations well, you'll enjoy it.

 

[PaddyofNine]

Public transport has picked up a lot, and it's now easy to get from the suburbs to the city centre for Earlsfort Terrace/RCSI/TCD. Dublin Bus has improved a lot, and I've said it before - God Bless The LUAS!

As for student areas, while there are no huge student-centred areas as in smaller college towns (Galway springs to mind), there are definitely 'hip' student areas. (Ranelagh and Rathmines come to mind...)

 

[Mike MacKinnon]

Well my wife and i are very excitied about the possibility. Hard not to get excited even though the chances for me are low. In anycase, if not this year than next for sure.

 

[Jammer]

I'm considering applying to the Royal College of Surgeons. I don't know anything about Dublin. The only things I know about Ireland come from tv and the movies, which some Irish people I met assured me are not very accurate. Can anyone living in Dublin give me a good description what Dublin is like as a city to live in? What are the Irish like? Is living there ok? Good? Great? Not so great? Please tell me what it's like?

The inside of an ileostomy bag.