Dublin Diaries #4: Pausing

I’ve been doing more very long walks and continuing to explore new parts of Dublin’s coast. This weekend, it was Clontarf to Dollymount and Donabate to Portrane. There’s something so peaceful about getting up at the crack of dawn while the world is still quiet - just moving my body outside, breathing in the fresh air, and listening to the birds chirp. It sounds so cliché and cheesy, but it’s true.

This week, my central theme has been pausing. I'm learning to recognize when my mind and body are pushing me to hurry up and rush, simply because that’s how I’ve been hardwired for so many years. I’m trying to unlearn that impulse by choosing to pause instead: stopping to read a few pages of my book, stopping to jump into the water for a quick sea plunge, stopping to actually take in the view rather than just walking past it, and stopping to process what I’m feeling or experiencing in the moment. My biggest reflection this week is realization of just how fast I usually move through life, and I’m trying to slow things down - one pause at a time.

My weekend adventures were amaazing (minus a crazy painful sting I got right through my leggings on the back of my leg while walking through a forest yesterday!). Aside from that, I clocked over 30 miles on foot. I got back from London on Thursday night and was so excited to spend the weekend in Dublin.

On Saturday, I headed out to Clontarf and Dollymount Strand. My favorite part was walking across the wooden bridge and taking a morning sea plunge. It was freezing, but so incredibly refreshing. I felt completely alive, and I was proud of myself for going all in - especially with no one else around. Afterward, I walked to St. Anne’s Park to wander through the farmers market, then walked all the way back into the city center for a mani-pedi. It was the perfect Saturday!

On Sunday, I decided to explore Donabate. Sunrise is starting to get a bit later now, so the first part of my walk was still dark and deeply peaceful. I did the Donabate cliff walk up to Portrane, then kept heading north for a while before cutting over to Newbridge House and Farm (where the notorious sting happened!). I caught the train back to the city center and checked out the Herbert Park Farmers Market, which turned out to have many of the same vendors as St. Anne’s on Saturday. It was so charming, and the absolute perfect way to wrap up the weekend.

Clontarf, Dollymount and St Anne’s Park

donabate, portrane and Herbert park