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Dublin, Ireland: Where Life Slows And Simplicity Wins
How a city with no rush taught me to appreciate life’s simplest joys
When I first set out to travel the world, I had no idea just how deeply a place and the journey could shape my sense of self. Leaving home at 18 and spending my early twenties in America, I thought I had seen enough to know what travel and living abroad meant. But moving to Dublin at 25 showed me something unexpected: The deepest transformations come not from grand adventures, but the quiet, everyday moments.
First impressions of Dublin
When I arrived nearly three years ago, Dublin greeted me in the way it greets most visitors: with grey skies and a soft drizzle that seemed to hold a quiet secret. It wasn’t the bustling, exciting city I had imagined. At first, everything felt cold, grey, and dull. The city seemed small and simple.
But the more days I spent here, I realized that Dublin’s beauty isn’t in flashy monuments or dramatic vistas — though it can offer you some of it if you want. It’s in the details: the way the rain gives the streets a gentle shimmer, the warmth of a pub where strangers share stories and sing songs over pints, and the sweet sound of a street musician’s tune floating through the wet air at Grafton Street. There’s a quiet…