My perfect day in Dublin starts with me opening my eyes and finding myself sitting in the middle of Merrion Square, having sidestepped the gruelling commute I usually have to make. So I lie there for a couple of minutes stretching like a lazy house cat in the morning sun

I stand for awhile admiring what is in my opinion the greatest statue of all time. I then read some of the best Oscar Wilde quotes from the columns directly facing the beaming face of Wilde, while he lounges lazily on a huge rock. Statues don’t usually do a good job of communicating the subtleties of the personalities of whom they represent. Usually statues exaggerate qualities like “courage” or “bravery”. Wilde’s smirk hints to the timeless wit that made him not only one of the greatest writers this country has seen but a phenomenon all over the world

Leaving Merrion Square, I can see my next destination just across the road. There are few things in this world that beat wandering around the Natural History Museum, or as most Dubliners call it the “Dead Zoo”. I’m always stunned by the size of the Giant Irish Elk remains that are exhibited in the main entrance. Strolling through the lower level of the museum you will see all the animals native to Ireland including the hulking behemoth that is the Basking Shark. I quite enjoy when you see life drawing classes seated about the museum sketching their favourite animals. I’m waiting for a beautiful artsy type woman to grab my hand and say “I need to sketch you”….. A man can dream

It’s a long walk back towards the Northside of the city but a man will go through hell and back for a halfway descent cup of coffee, well at least this man will. Sipping on a flat white from “Wake Cup” just off Talbot Street I begin heading toward the river

I take off for a stroll along the Liffey and down toward the Docklands. I wander around looking at the modernist buildings that line the quays like the National Convention Centre. You can’t help but smile when you look at the Beckett Bridge, a bridge shaped like a harp the national symbol of Ireland. This bridge should have been a total disaster but I think it’s a testament to Beckett himself, a weird concept turned into a brilliant work of art. I continue across this bridge and chill out over by the Grand Canal Theatre and eventually take a stroll down to the abandoned ship that sits at the end of the canal

Strolling back toward the city centre on Pearse Street, I pop into the Science Gallery to expand my mind a little. My stomach guides me just 10 minutes down the road to O’Neills which serves a meal that I regularly wake up dreaming about. This place’s fish & chips are in the opinion of this foodie one of the best in the city centre. I eat my meal outside in the open top smoking area glancing up at the brilliant blue of the skies above, because it’s my perfect day in Dublin and there are no clouds in sight

I stroll through the enigmatic front gates of Trinity College and within minutes I’m decked out on the green grass of Trinity’s cricket pitch enjoying a nice can of whatever cheap cans Trinity colleges Pavillion bar have this week. I sit, I drink, I learn, I love and then I blink and I’m in bed, back in the country side far from the hustle and bustle of the city

Daniel Maguire