Category Archives: Dublin
Afternoon Tea in Dublin ~ The Westin Hotel
Whenever I get the chance, one of my favourite things to indulge in is afternoon tea. Munching through delicious miniature treats and sipping tea from delicate cups is a delightful way to spend a couple of hours, and there are so many lovely places in Dublin that serve their own unique version.
A couple of months ago I decided to start a new blog series, visiting different establishments around the city and photographing their afternoon tea. So here is the first offering, and I hope to have many more posts to come in the future!
I decided to start in The Westin Hotel, right in the heart of Dublin’s city centre on Westmoreland Street. One gloomy Sunday near the end of November the city was bustling with Christmas shoppers, but The Westin’s Atrium Lounge provided a welcome tranquil space, away from the crowds, comfortable and warmed by a blazing fire. Dublin photographer Elisha Clarke joined me in a quiet corner and we tried The Westin’s unusual take on this traditional treat, A Most Peculiar Afternoon Tea.
This option comes with the classic three tired stand filled with delicious morsels, but what makes it peculiar is that the customary pot of tea is replaced with a cocktail made from Hendrick’s Gin served in a tea pot and drunk from tea cups. It felt unusual but charming to savour a mojito from a tea cup!
The food was delectable, my favourite being the middle tier of banana and walnut bread that came with a little pot of cinnamon and honey butter to slather deliciously all over it. Of the desserts the popcorn panna cotta and popping marshmallows left me wanting more, they were fun to eat as well as being just the right sweet taste to finish off our meal. Have a look at the menu to check out all the options for yourself, as well their traditional afternoon tea which looks just as enticing.
I must say thank you to The Westin for being kind enough to allow me to take some photos. And to Elisha for being such wonderful company and showing me how to use her incredible 5D Mark III camera (the first shot in this post must be credited to her!).
I wish that I had taken more photos, but it is to The Westin’s credit that I was too absorbed in the food and atmosphere of The Atrium that I didn’t take as many as I should have! If you decide to visit The Atrium, or if you have any favourite spots around the city for afternoon tea please do let me know so that I can check them out for future posts in this series!
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Posted in Dublin, food
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A Touch of Autumn ~
With chilly mornings and rust coloured leaves strewn across the footpaths, autumn is making herself known in the city. We’re not yet at the stage where all the leaves are falling, there’s still quite a bit of green left, but what was once a hint of colour has blossomed into a full array of yellows, oranges and reds seeping through the trees. A friend and I took our cameras out on Sunday to try and capture some of the colour. We wandered around Dublin’s St Stephen’s Green park and the Grand Canal, sipping hot chocolate and enjoying the afternoon sunlight. I’ll try again in a week or two, when we’re deeper into autumn and there’s a little more colour in the trees.
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Bloom in the Park 2012 ~
Had a wonderful day at Bloom in the Park with my camera, although it was hard to get shots of the gardens with so many people milling around them. There were many beautiful flowers and plants to shoot, with gorgeous sunshine to boot, it was heavenly.
People keep telling me that the bee in the photo above looks Photoshopped, I can guarantee you he’s not! I think it’s just that he looks so sharp against the blurred background, and his peculiar pose is simply a result of constantly snapping with the camera to try and get the right shot. For this one decent photo I got of him I also took about ten others where he’s completely out of focus, it was a tough capture!
Anyway, hope you like this set of shots and that it gives you a rough idea of the gardens. Already looking forward to next year’s festival!
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Bee & Bloom ~ Sneak Peek from Bloom in the Park 2012
I just spent a wonderful couple of hours wandering around Dublin’s Bloom in the Park festival with a friend and our cameras. It was a LOT of fun, Bloom is one of my favourite Dublin events! This speedy little bee was hard to capture, he was so overexcited with the amount of flowers that he wouldn’t stay still for a decent photo (and honestly I don’t blame him, there were so many to choose from!).
Many more photos to come! Bloom is still open for the rest of the bank holiday weekend, see their website for more information.
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Posted in Dublin, Photography
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