The Republic of Ireland is undergoing a renaissance. With overseas workers, students, and tourists streaming into the country, Ireland, and Dublin especially, has never been more cosmopolitan. Travel columnist Robert La Bua explored the gay bars, clubs, and special events that are a celebrated thread in the social fabric of a country known for literary characters as colourful as the authors who created them.
For a country that refused to speak English during 700 years of English domination, Ireland sure made up for it by producing a rich literary tradition in the English language after liberation came (for 26 of the 32 counties) in 1922. One of Ireland’s most famous tourist attractions, the Book of Kells, may disappoint anyone who is not a scholar of illuminated manuscripts. Go see it anyway, then make your way upstairs to the magnificent Long Library at Trinity College, which has long been the centre of life in Dublin (if you really are a scholar of illuminated manuscripts, make a beeline for the superb collection at the Chester Beatty Library). Trinity College is the physical centre of a city where education and literature are still revered as valuable national assets. Ireland, a country of eight million people, has produced gifted writers, such as William Butler Yeats, James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, and Seamus Heaney. However, it is undoubtedly Oscar Wilde who best embodies the cleverness, wit, and charm of the Irish people.
Of course, Oscar is also a perfect personification of gay Ireland; Wilde’s wit is abundantly matched and appreciated by his countrymen whose love dare not speak its name. The gay scene is far more welcoming than those better known in Europe’s biggest cities. If you time your visit for northern spring, you will be able to attend the International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival, the only gay theatre festival in the world. This is but one of several homoevents that happens throughout the year, though if you miss the one-off events, the usual gayttractions such as the pubs Dragon and The George are reason enough to come.
For a special place to sleep off a hard night’s partying in Dublin, book a room at Number 31. Once the private home of modernist architect Sam Stevenson, Number 31 – built in the 1960’s in a timeless style – is now a home to guests who like the excellent accommodation and full Irish breakfasts for which this establishment is renowned. The all-white sunken conversation pit and welcoming fireplace are the centrepiece of the property, which offers ultrachic rooms and suites at a fraction of the price of larger hotels in the city. To top it all off, the staff are exceptionally attentive and gay visitors are welcomed with open arms. More formal accommodation can be found among the fine art collection of The Merrion Hotel.
There is, of course, Ireland beyond Dublin. Galway, on the west coast, is a small city with its own history of literary inspiration, conveniently located between ironically appealing barrenness of The Burren and The Cliffs of Moher in the south and the alpine/Mediterranean landscapes of Connemara in the north. Healy Tours can take you to all of these places as well as on a Galway city tour. Galway also has Ireland’s slickest hotelâ€â€the g, always lower caseâ€â€a gay fantasy where pink and purple share the spotlight with millions of Swarovski crystals embedded in the check-in desk, bar, and tables around the hotel.
The majority of Ireland’s visitors rent cars and venture into the strikingly green countryside. However, those averse to driving in a foreign country will be glad to know about Emerald Limo, which can take you on whatever itinerary your four-leaf clover desires.
While some locals pine for one-way tickets to the sunny climes of Australia, the Irish have it good these days. Craic is the Irish word for fun, and to get craic-ing, you need only hop on one of the websites below.
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