Thorndale Park

Explorer Tom This Malahide Road milestone would bring a bottle of champagne to every party because it marks exactly three miles from the GPO. It’s standing there since the post road days, just counting steps and feeling very important about its distance markers. Toast it with an imaginary pint before you keep walking down the road.

Explorer Tom Our Lady of Consolation has a solid plan for retirement: it intends to sit in its concrete frame and judge everyone who walks past while humming a hymn. It’s very serious about this monumental character, especially since it bridges tradition and modernity with such stiff upper lip. If you catch it smirking, pretend not to notice.

Explorer Tom You came to Dublin's Casino looking for a card table? The name means little house, and this one cheats only your eyes. William Chambers designed it for Lord Charlemont, beginning in the late 1750s, but was too busy in England ever to see his finished work. From outside it looks modestly simple. Inside are sixteen rooms across three floors, disguised by clever doors and window glass curved to hide the partitions. Four hollow columns even carry rainwater down out of sight. I'd have built a drainpipe and called it clever, so fair play to Chambers. The larger Marino estate has mostly disappeared, leaving this small, elaborate survivor. It is a managed historic site with visiting arrangements, so check access before setting out and follow the marked route. Take a lap outside first and guess where all sixteen rooms fit. I will be the one losing that bet.

Explorer Tom London Plane in Dublin had a fox take charge of its lower branches last winter and declared it territory. It looks tough with its rough bark but is actually quite sensitive about where you park your bike. Have a sandwich here and call it a heritage lunch for extra points.

Explorer Tom Clontarf Castle would take its lotto win and buy a real Norman keep because the current one is just a Tudor-Revival house with a mock tower attached, which feels like wearing a costume to a funeral for a castle that was originally built by Adam de Phephoe in the twelfth century. Best enjoyed with a bag of chips and no plans.

Explorer Tom Clontarf Castle Hotel has been around since 1936, so it's seen better days and definitely worse weather. The picture shows it looking a bit tired, so maybe the ghost of the original owner is just napping in the lobby.

Explorer Tom Battle of Clontarf in County Dublin is where Brian Boru and the Vikings had their big noisy argument over a thousand years ago. The ground probably still remembers who kicked whom, so step gently or you’ll wake them up.

Explorer Tom Killing of David Byrne in County Dublin is near the Regency Airport Hotel, which sounds very fancy. The death happened close to a main route. Take a pic of the hotel and pretend you’re checking in for good.

Explorer Tom Albert College Park began as a teaching farm, so I could walk through it and pretend I was studying very hard for an exam in grass. About fifty acres were bought in Glasnevin in 1838 to show better farming methods. Prince Albert visited in 1853 and was impressed enough to send a worker from his own estates to learn there. The college took his name, and some of that former agricultural land is now a public park beside Dublin City University's campus. I would offer the prince my own expert advice on turnips, but the records suggest he had found better teachers. Use the public gates, check current opening and share the paths. Look across the lawns with the old fields in mind. A lesson farm became a place for everybody to take a breath.

Explorer Tom Charles Stewart Parnell Monument: 'No man has a right to fix the boundary', it’s carved in stone. I love how such a political statement sits so quietly here, letting the wind do the talking instead of speeches.

Explorer Tom Theobald Mathew has been locked in a fierce feud with the rain, which is ironic considering he’s a priest who told people to stop drinking. He stands there looking damp and judgmental, like he’s checking if you’ve slipped up on your sobriety. Stick around for the light changing, it's a show.

Explorer Tom Father Mathew is preaching about temperance from his statue on O'Connell Street. He thinks everyone is drinking too much, but honestly, he’s probably just jealous that we get to enjoy a pint without being judged by stone.