Dublin Darjeeling

How a trip to Ireland inspired me to get creative

As an avid musical theatre lover, the moment my friend told me that “Once: The Musical” was coming to Dublin, I was looking up flights and places to stay almost immediately! Having never been to Ireland, I felt that it was time to explore somewhere I had heard such good things about! I first saw “Once” when it was at the West End, and I was completely blown away. As a show it is completely unique in my eyes; it manages to tell a beautiful love story – described perfectly by Enda Walsh (who wrote the book for the musical) as “one of the most delicate invisible love stories”. The beauty lies in the simplicity, from the minimal set to the fact that the main characters are named “guy” and “girl”.

What I found the most appealing was the fact that the uncomplicated nature of the show gives each person the chance to really delve into the characters and make their own assessment. Perhaps it is the Psychology student in me, but I find that the most beautiful parts of the love story lies in what is unspoken. In the silences I found myself constantly thinking about how the character might be approaching the situation, and what they might be feeling. This is not specific to just the story, either. The music is so beautiful and emotional that it paints a picture of its own.

The song “Falling Slowly” was definitely one of the highlights of the show for me, because of how intensely emotional it was. The harmonies are so incredibly beautiful, and the combination of the guitar and piano (much like the relationship of “guy” and “girl”) complements each other perfectly.

Aside from the incredible acting and music, it was poignant that we were in the city in which the story is set. It brought a beautiful energy to the show, and it felt very special to be there.

After having seen the musical, I was feeling very inspired. When most people become inspired usually it is for something very specific, whereas in my case it was a more general imspiration to do something creative. I tend to get that feeling after seeing most musicals, although it is usually the desire to be a part of the show, having been in musicals previously. This time was different; I wanted to create something that reflected the way I felt after seeing the show. This was laying the foundation for what was to become this story.

I was inspired to sing a cover of one of my favourite songs from the show called ‘if you want me’ on an app called Smule. Here is the link to the song if you wish to hear it!

http://www.smule.com/p/606358772_524982332

The day after we had seen the musical we were walking through the Temple Bar area, filled with the hustle and bustle we had expected from Dublin but hadn’t quite encountered yet. As we walked along the road on our way to what I thought was going to be dinner, my friend suddenly veered off into a doorway. Puzzled by this, I turned to one of my other friends to see if she had an idea as to what was going on. She said to me “I hear there’s someone who likes tea!”

As it turned out, my friends had secretly organised for us to go to this specific place for a tea, as a belated birthday present. The shop was called “Clement and Pekoe”, and it had a wide range of different teas from black teas to white and green teas. I am told I can choose a tea to have, which is always a tricky decision for me as I am a complete tea addict!! Over the recent year I have ventured out beyond the usual English breakfast tea and have tried various other speciality teas. This shop had a huge variety, and my eye caught upon the “Organic Darjeeling”. This was because I was reminded of a time that my mum and I were somewhere having tea and the description of the Darjeeling was that it was known as “the champagne of teas”!

Having chosen my tea we all sat down at a long table, which had a great selection of books to read. They varied from design books to books about films and fashion. One that I was particularly interested in was one called “52 Weekends in the Country”, in which they provided recommendations of areas of the British countryside to visit including places to eat and stay. What I found so great about the selection of books is that they were mostly ones that I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to read otherwise, and they were the perfect companion for when sitting for half an hour or so drinking tea. My inspiration levels grew even more as I found this passage in another book called “Slow Dublin”.

I love the idea of getting away from the electronic correspondence that we are getting so used to these days (I understand the irony of this being online). I have sent a few letters recently and it is a lovely way of keeping in touch with people, and as the passage suggests it can bring people together and can make getting post exciting again!

And so we come to the reason I decided to write this. I’m not usually a big one for travelling, I tend to be a bit of a home bird. But whenever I go to certain places I seem to suddenly catch the “travel bug” that is always talked about. And I caught it big time in Dublin. Just the feel of the city, and the friends that I travelled with, and the inspiration that came from the trip, has given me a fresh perspective on things.

In an interview, Sam Cieri (who played “guy” in Once) said that as long as he inspired someone to pick up a guitar, or go tell someone how they feel about them, or be inspired to make music then it will be worth it. Well you can be damn sure it’s worth it.