http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/09/travel/christmas-in-dublin-good-cheer-and-great-deals.html 2014-12-09 22:52:19 Christmas in Dublin: Good Cheer and Great Deals In the newly energized city center, you’ll find thrifty gifts at seasonal markets and perhaps a street caroler better known as the frontman of U2. === During a recent production of “The Watchman” at Bewley’s, a historic Having moved to Dublin in August, this is my first holiday season, so it seemed fitting to devote a few days marveling at what it had to offer, all while sneaking in some culture and terrific food and drink along the way — and with a budget in mind. What I found was a newly energized city rich not only with jovial cheer, but also an abundance of artisan offerings and a creative, literary spirit. Better yet, much of it can been enjoyed frugally, all in the city’s compact, eminently walkable center. I started at St. Stephen’s Green, which covers 22 acres in the heart of the city with immaculately manicured lawns and flower beds, a meandering duck pond and a William Butler Yeats Garden. This season, the park is hosting its first Christmas market, with 60 vendors in wooden chalets installed along its northern edge. On a visit a few weeks ago, throngs of revelers sipped warm brandy-spiked punch out of plastic flutes (4 euros, about $4.84 at $1.21 to the euro) and feasted on soft baps (bread rolls) filled with tender roast suckling pork, stuffing and sweet apple sauce (6.95 euros), while Louis Armstrong’s gravelly voice bellowed from outdoor speakers. From there, I could spot the dazzling rows of white chandelier-style Christmas lights of Grafton Street, a pedestrianized shopping avenue set over newly installed granite slabs quarried from the nearby Dublin and Wicklow Mountains. The repaving is part of a 4 million euro face-lift initiated by the Dublin City Councils completed in October and representing the most significant refurbishment project undertaken by the city in nearly a decade. But it’s the street’s numerous buskers who charge the air with energy. Come Christmas Eve, that energy might be positively electric as the crowd awaits the most recognizable busker of all, the hometown rock star Bono. The U2 lead singer has given a free performance near Fusilier’s Arch each year since 2009 — though it is still anyone’s guess whether the streak will continue, particularly given “It’s something that happens organically and it’s not organized through us,” said Annmarie Brennan, a spokeswoman for Dublin Simon Community, the homeless organization to which Bono donates his busking proceeds. Indeed, Grafton Street is also noted for its shopping, and the fantastical window displays at the high-end department store Nestled among the pubs and vintage clothing shops of nearby Temple Bar lies the weekly The next morning, I explored another kind of brew that is having its moment here: coffee. The first annual For a quick respite from Christmas shopping, there’s no better place than Kaph, which serves its flat white (2.80 euros) in a modern two-story space lined with colorful prints overlooking the boutique-lined Drury Street. But my smoothest cup was at Nearby is the Afterward, I enjoyed the original Winding Stair experience — a browse through the ground floor bookshop, one of the oldest independent bookstores remaining in the city. It was pouring rain, so I grabbed a seat at one of two tiny tables by the front window, ordered a pot of tea (2 euros) and soaked in the decidedly singular smell of a roomful of books and the calming creak of old wooden floorboards. After visits to a charming exhibit at the After the show ended, I headed back out into the Christmas card that is Dublin.