Dublin’s Phoenix Park is the largest enclosed City-Park in Europe, perhaps even in the world. The opportunities for sightseeing, playing and watching sports and visiting places are vast. Nearly everybody has been to the Zoo, this year complete with a number of very thick-skinned babies (of the elephant and white rhino varieties), or the Papal Cross, where Pope John Paul II held the Dublin mass during his visit in 1979 (mainly, because that car park is THE best place to leave the car). Most Dubliners will have passed the gates of the American Ambassador’s residence and of Áras an Úachtaráin, the residence of the President of Ireland. These two gates are on opposite sides of the roundabout with Lord Chesterfield’s monument of the bird Phoenix. There are 5 roads altogether coming onto the roundabout, take the smallest one for a change and follow the sign to the Phoenix Park Visitor’s Centre. A little gem! The old Ashtown Castle (find out the history yourself) with what looks like a maze, but is the “blueprint” of the former building; the little museum that is well worth visiting, and please take the 15 minutes or so for the Audio-Visual presentation; the coffee shop (the scones are said to be the best in Dublin, but do try some of the other food as well). Right next to it is a large walled “enclosure”, until about 18 months ago a sort of junkyard. This year half of it has been transformed into a delightful “Kitchen Garden”. I enjoyed watching it all during the year changing and maturing into something absolutely stunning! If the plans for next year for the other half work out, it’ll be even better! Everybody from the number of tour-groups, that I brought for a short visit to the garden marveled about what had been achieved in a less that average summer. The sweet peas were a spectacular display (the usual comment: ‘my granny grew them like that, I have tried numerous times, but never succeeded’). Now some things have already been sown for next year and in keeping with the old style, are being watched over by this beautiful old-style scarecrow.