Do you love to travel to foreign lands? I do – and in this post, I have jotted down a few points that made me fall in love with the city of Dublin, Ireland.
There’s a little secret that I haven’t yet shared with anyone. Can you guess the main factor which made me take up my present job? Not the fat paycheck, not the enormous growth opportunities – not even the name of the famous company. It was, in fact, the prospect of going on foreign tours, on a pretty frequent basis. This February, I had been to Dublin, Ireland – and had really enjoyed my stay there. The following factors combined to make my 10-day stay at Dublin memorable:
– Convenient transportation options – Since it was an all-expenses paid trip, I did not have to worry about having to avail of the local public transportation options. I had read about the several companies that offered luxury car rentals in Dublin, and hired a stylish vehicle from one of them. The charges were far from exorbitant, and the rental company offered reliable insurance options as well. I could even drop off the car at a different place from where I had taken it. My office allowed me to live it up during my Dublin trip, and I did not miss the opportunity!
– Helpful colleagues and partners – I had 4 presentations to make, and 3 board meetings to attend, at the Dublin branch of our office. To my delight, I found that all the people I interacted with at the place turned out to extremely polite and helpful. I was a bit nervous before the first presentation, and the reassuring faces of the bosses at the office helped me calm down. I presented my ideas with confidence, came up with smart business development suggestions during the meetings, and generally enjoyed all my business-related activities. From a professional point of view, the trip was a grand success.
– Presence of excellent restaurants – I have a weakness about dining at exotic restaurants. In particular, I love Italian eating joints. Toscana in Dame Street was my restaurant of choice, where I dined on four occasions during my stay in Dublin. Right from the starters, to the main course dishes (fish, red meat, and chicken) and desserts – this renowned restaurant had all the Italian delights of the finest quality. I even packed pizzas from Toscana restaurant, for having during lunchtime.
– Music – Classy music was a constant companion of mine in Dublin. Melodious tunes were continuously played in the lobby of the hotel where I stayed, as well as in my executive suite. Traditional Irish party music records were played in the luxury rental cars I had hired as well. The day before I returned, I managed to take out some time to attend an Irish accordion concert – and was really enchanted!
– Sightseeing – I was on a business trip, and could not quite check out all the famous tourist hotspots in Dublin. However, I did visit the Dublin Zoo during the weekend, and had also gone to the Trinity College Library. On my way to the airport, my chauffeur also pointed out the majestic Dublin Castle to me. My hotel was only a short distance from the quaint Croke Park – and this was where I headed to for a stroll, on most evenings.
– Pleasant climate – I had heard a lot about the general unpredictability of Irish climate – but thankfully, the weather remained uniformly sunny and pleasant, during my stay at Dublin. There was heavy rainfall one night, but the skies cleared up in the morning. I also loved watching the sunrise from my hotel room (oh yes, I am an early-riser!). It was quite ethereal.
– Plenty of well-stacked markets – I did a bit of shopping during my Dublin trip, and was pleasantly surprised by the sheer number of easily accessible marketplaces in the city. The Columbus marketplace was my favorite, and I also bought a few gifts and souvenirs from there, before returning. The Kroger marketplace was very good as well, although I found the range of products available there to be slightly limited.
– Security – It was a new city for me, but never did I feel unsafe at Dublin. The chauffeurs of the cars I hired were reliable and friendly, there were armed security guards at the hotel as well as in the office premises, and the traffic regulations were stringent too. After dining at Toscana in Dame Street, I returned to my hotel pretty late at night on a couple of occasions – but I never ever felt that my safety was at risk. A very safe city – that’s what my opinion about Dublin is!
The ten days passed by pretty quickly, and it was with a slightly heavy heart that I boarded the car to the airport. Dublin had won me over, and I would surely come here again soon – this time with my family members!