Dublin Neighborhoods

Dublin is a very interesting city when it comes to division into good and bad areas. The stereotype is that the South side (south of the river Liffey) is more affluent than the North Side. However, in many cases the difference between a good and a shady neighborhood is one street. For example, my office is located smack in the middle of the center of the city on the South side and there are plenty of tourists and office people always present. However, right around the corner is a methadone clinic so you will occasionally see some “knackers”, or lower class heroin addicts wandering around high or drunk or both.

Knacker originally referred to people of Irish Traveler origin, but now is simply a derogatory term that refers to people of low class. You will be able to recognize them without any problems – the men typically wear track suits, have one of their hands in their pants (right in the front) and talk loudly with a heavy northern accent. Women tend to dress skankily and also speak and sometimes argue very loudly with their mates. I am, of course, being discriminatory and am generalizing here, but these things are mostly true.

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