|
A short distance south of the city centre and with good bus routes for those unable or unwilling to walk, Ballsbridge is an expensive residential neighbourhood, whose postcode (Dublin 4) is synonymous with plummy accents, faux Victorian conservatories and undimmed middle-class values. To the north the Grand Canal separates Ballsbridge from the less salubrious but up-and-coming old Jewish quarter, where you can visit the Irish Jewish Museum and the house where George Bernard Shaw once lived.
Grand Canal
From Baggot St to Richmond St South. Bus 5, 7, 7A, 10.
A walk along the Grand Canal is possible if you don’t mind the litter and the traffic, starting around Baggot Street where it crosses the canal and continuing as far as the Portobello district and beyond. If you’re especially keen, the walkway actually follows the canal for over 100 km all the way to the river Shannon. En route from Baggot Street you’ll pass a statue of Patrick Kavanagh (’the bench with the stench’ as Dublin wit has it). The poet (1904-67) enjoyed sitting on the banks of the canal here, and the Kavanagh Seat is true to his express wishes: “O commemorate me with no hero courageous tomb, just a canal bank seat for the passers-by.”
Irish Jewish Museum
3-4 Walworth St, off Victoria St. T 01 453 1797. May-Sep Tue, Thu and Sun 1100-1530, Oct-Apr Sun only 1030-1430. Free. Bus 16, 16A, 19, 10A, 22, 22A.
The Portobello area of Dublin, bordering the Grand Canal, was home to a thriving Jewish community from 1880 onwards. One of the synagogues has been restored as a museum of Jewish life in Ireland, with the place of worship faithfully recreated on the first floor and a reconstruction of a Jewish kitchen below. The exhibits tell the story of the dispiriting indifference shown by the Irish government to the plight of the Jews in Europe during the 1930s and ‘40s. Look out for the anti-semitic Sinn Féin poster from this period, and the letter from the Irish Chief Rabbi to President De Valera asking for visas for six Jewish medics. The request was turned down; in fact not a single Jewish refugee was admitted to Ireland during those years.
Shaw’s Birthplace
33 Synge St, T 01 475 0854, http://www.visitdublin.com May-Sept Mon-Sat 1000-1700, Sun and public holidays 1400-1800. E6. Bus 16, 19, 122.
‘Author of Many Plays’ reads the plaque outside the house at 33 Synge Street where George Bernard Shaw was born, more or less summing up most people’s perception of the playwright. Whether you’re a fan of his work or not, the house itself is worth a visit for the quality of its Victorian interiors.
|
