Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1090027
NORTHSHOREMAG.COM 40 MARCH 2019 PHOTOGRAPHS BY SHUTTERSTOCK (LEFT), COURTESY OF SHELBOURNE DUBLIN (RIGHT) Surrounding the mouth of the River Liffey is the city of Dublin, with a past as storied as they come. It's no wonder this quiet Euro- pean powerhouse draws visitors from around the world, and particularly from the Republic of Ireland's "33rd county"—or so a friendly taxi driver jokes as he fondly refers to the city of Bos- ton. While he whisks me along the riverside to my hotel, I see ancient and modern structures collide in the most breathtaking way. We arrive on the north side of St. Stephen's Green, a charming public park in the city center, at the five-star Shelbourne Dublin hotel. Established in 1824, after three adjoining brick Georgian townhouses were converted, it is privately owned and has only CASTLES, COCKTAILS, AND CELTS Visit Dublin, Ireland, a city full of history, prose, libations, and warm welcomes. BY NANCY E. BERRY improved with age and its ownership. Grandeur, opulence, and sophistication are just a few descriptors that come to mind as I enter the hotel lobby that shimmers with Waterford Crystal chandeliers hanging from the 15-foot ceilings while 18th-century artwork hangs on the walls. e original Georgian architectural detailing remains intact throughout the common areas and I am transported to another time. e managers offer a warm greeting to the writers' group I am traveling with. e lilt of their brogue is welcoming, and they invite us to tea in one of the regal dining rooms at the hotel. During tea I learn that the hotel's director of sales and marketing, Yvonne Donohue, is from Glenamaddy, the small town in County Galway where my grandmother, Catherine Canney, grew up in a modest white F A C E S + P L A C E S thatched-roof cottage with just three rooms and no electricity or running water. Peat was cut from the surrounding bogs to keep the fires stoked for cooking and heat. e Shelbourne is a world away from how my grandmother lived, and I can't help but pause and think how thrilled she would be to see her granddaughter in the Lord Mayor's Lounge having a lavish champagne tea complete with finger sandwiches, scones with clotted cream, and a selection of petit fours—and free-flowing Laurent Perrier La Cuvee. e room, which is painted a cheery butter yellow, is flooded with natural light. We sit at the window overlooking St. Stephen's Green and watch Dubliners pass by as we indulge and sip, surrounded by the beauty of this space. After we are satiated, I check into my hotel room. Handsomely appointed, it offers all the luxury you would expect in a five-star hotel, including soothing blue and beige furnishings, down bedding, and a soaking tub. A writing desk overlooks the green and I again think of my ancestry. My great-uncle Robert Patrick Canney was a writer in both Irish (a Clockwise from top left, The River Liffey, Shelbourne lobby, 1824 Bar, and Grafton Street.