Wall Street is not Grafton Street, but it’s close. It’s actually the closest thing I’ve seen to Grafton in New York City. It’s funny, almost cruel how certain experiences, however short, can stay with you through life, then re-appear through resonance and transport you back through the years to the place you first experienced them.

For those that don’t know, Grafton St. is on the South side of Dublin’s City Center and is pedestrian only (although this was not always the case). In the summer it’s flooded with tourists and locals all headed somewhere. It’s also a mainstay of the busker community and you can literally encounter five or six relatively good acts as you walk from one end to the other.

In the winter the stores at the North end traditionally put up animatronic displays in their windows. There’s a general "buzz" as folks rush to get the Christmas shopping done which you really just can’t explain.

It’s a long story but growing up in Dublin I often found myself working in the Gaiety Theatre which is at the top of Grafton Street.

Living on the North-side, I would take the bus to the city center and then walk from O’Connell bridge down Westmoreland Street, cross Dame St. and up Grafton. Just before the top of the street there’s a tiny alley-way which you’d miss unless you were looking for it. Duck in there and you’re at the stage door of the Gaiety with all the smells, sights and sounds you can only experience backstage in a very old theatre. To get a sense for what this is like, checkout the U2 video "sometimes you can’t make it on your own" which gives you a from-the-stage perspective.

Nowadays it’s a different story. After an hour on route 78, I take the PATH to the World Trade Center, walk down Broadway and turn down Wall Street, usually around 8:00AM. The sun’s peeking down between the buildings as I listen to U2′s live performance of Stay(faraway, so close). For all you know I could be 3,000 miles away making my way up Grafton St to that stage door.