Things to know when visiting Dublin

There is a lot of history in Dublin, and subsequently, a lot to see. I present to you a few words of advice that are sure to prove useful if you happen to find yourself in Dublin:Coins are worth more in Europe.
The first day I was in Ireland, I was on my guard against locals who try to cheat you out of your valuable Euros - just as every travel book in the world will tell you to be. After I purchased my first meal in Dublin, I was due about _8 in change, so I was a little suspicious of the muscular, bald cashier who handed me my change. I politely informed him of the amount of change that I was due. He informed me that he had given me the correct amount. I insisted I was owed more. He glared at me like he was going to punch me in the face. Suffice to say, I learned on my first day in Dublin that there are coins worth both _1 and _2. I just wish it had happened sooner, so I could have avoided angering the locals so early.

Irish people do not all have an accurate perception of the US
Most Irish people have a good knowledge of American geography and practically everyone has an "America story" from a vacation or foreign study trip. Nevertheless, such widespread familiarity with the States is by no means a guarantee of complete knowledge of our exotic way of life.
A man in church asked me and a few friends about the recent hurricane scares in the southern US. When we explained to him that most of us have been in or near tornadoes or hurricanes, he got an incredibly frightened look on his face.
"America must be a frightening place, with all of those deadly storms to worry about all the time," he said.
I imagine he was picturing the entire country as a hellish landscape, constantly ravaged by powerful storms and wicked witches. I almost said "they don't call it the Home of the Brave for nothing," but I refrained.
This exchange was both preceded and succeeded by questions about the Presidential election. Everyone in Ireland seems to follow American politics religiously. You can guess who they all want to win (Hint: I've heard the same bad joke about "O'Bama" being Irish multiple times).

Traveling in large groups, going into small-town pubs will get you unfavorable reactions
A group of about 12 of us traveled just outside Dublin's limits to the suburb of Inchicore for a soccer game. We had the bright idea of going to a pub to get some food and beverages beforehand.
When we walked into our pub of choice, it was dark and there were about five people in the room, all laughing at us, glaring at us, or managing to do both. We asked the bartender if they served food, but the response was negative. "There's a beer garden out back," he told us. We filed into an open-air area surrounded by cement walls and filled with mostly empty picnic tables. The few tables that happened to be in use were filled with people enjoying a beer or two and laughing/glaring at us. We were never served beer, or anything for that matter, in the beer garden. My only guess is that we were effectively herded into a concrete cell and paraded in front of the rest of the patrons for their entertainment. Unfortunately for them, our stay was brief.

Sometimes your questions just do not make sense
There was a lot of confusion before our soccer game trip over whether or not we would be allowed to bring our all-important backpacks into the game. In the US, large bags are seen as a security threat and are consequently prohibited from sporting events. If the same held true in Ireland, we would have to make it across Dublin without them. To us, it seemed reasonable that stadiums would be concerned about security, but you never really know in Ireland. The first person we asked about the backpack rules was one of the housekeepers in our dorm at Trinity College. Eager as she was to help, the only thing I could really decipher from her answer was something about people getting glass stuck in their heads, which was not very reassuring before heading off to a soccer game in a part of the world notorious for their soccer fanaticism. The next person I asked was the girl working at the Trinity bookstore. When she heard my question, she did nothing but glared at me. When I repeated it, she got a confused look upon hearing the phrase "sports stadiums."
"I went to a concert last week and they didn't let us bring bottles in," she finally said, "but I don't think I'm the right person to ask." Strike two.
Finally, a member of our group had the enlightened idea of calling the stadium. Their answer, simple and definitive: "No bottles.