Some people go to Europe for the highbrow art and culture. Others for the low-cut bikinis on the Riviera.

Then there are the sentimental types who've always dreamed of getting up close and personal with their ancestral homeland. Not to mention their ancestral firewater.

Alas, these days, an extended European trip can be even harder on the wallet than the liver. Fortunately, there's always Fauxrope, which is affordable and —- if you overlook the gnats and group sweet tea jones —- remarkable for how closely it mimics "the Continent."

It's been a month since I set out on a summer of traveling to European capitals without ever leaving the state. Already my journeys to this alternate place called Fauxrope have included the "ancient" wonders of Rome up in Floyd County and the (circa 1841) Old World charm of Vienna down in Dooly County.

My latest stop: Dublin. If you have to ask why, you obviously don't know that the town of 17,200 is propitiously located smack dab in between Atlanta and Savannah on I-16. And that it's home to the "World's Largest Pot of Irish Stew," cooked up annually at Christ Episcopal Church one Saturday in March.

Meanwhile, I'm of Czech-Irish heritage. And since the chances of finding a "Prague, Georgia" are about as good as Ivan Lendl becoming a carhop at the Varsity, it seemed Dublin was it if I wanted to connect with my roots.

We're not exactly talking hardship duty here. The cheapest round-trip flight to Dublin, Ireland, costs $1,191 and takes 10 1/2 hours due to a stop in —- hide the kiddies! —- Philadelphia. (See note.) Getting to Dublin, Ga., involves little more than driving south on I-75 and turning left at Macon. Before you can say "Erin go bragh!" you're there.

Irish, with a drawl

At first glance, Dublin appears all-American to the core: impressive courthouse, fine fishing spots, inviting new visitors center, a nice array of chain eateries along the busy roadway to the Dublin Mall. But even when it's not St. Patrick's Day (which actually lasts a month in Laurens County), this place still knows how to get its Irish up. Compare it to the real thing:

> There: Dublin is the capital of the Republic of Ireland. It borders on Northern Ireland, site of three decades of bloody fighting between Catholics and Protestants (aka "the Troubles").

> Here: Dublin is the Laurens County seat. It borders on East Dublin, site of an annual competition with events like Bobbin' for Pigs Feet, Mud-Pit Belly Flop and Seed Spittin' Contest (aka the "Redneck Games").

> There: The Blarney Stone is thought to possess certain mystical powers, including imparting the gift of gab to anyone who kisses it.

> Here: The female Order of the Blarney Stone —- along with its male counterpart, the Order of the Shillelagh —- possesses the mystical, all-volunteer power needed to mount the monthlong Dublin-Laurens County St. Patrick's Day Festival. Including a parade, the Shamrock VII NBRSA Rifle Competition and the Little Miss Colleen Pageant.

> There: The shamrock is the registered trademark of the Republic of Ireland, seen in the air (on Aer Lingus planes), in cyberspace (official tourism site www.shamrock.org) and on truly sacred turf (the Irish Rugby Football Union logo).

> Here: The shamrock is a quirky signature item, seen underfoot (painted on Academy Avenue, in front of Theatre Dublin), in midair (on the city water tower) and in the, um, greater marketplace (Shamrock Pawn is on Rice Avenue, not far from Leprechaun Car Wash).

All this in a place where folks have always been more likely to speak with a drawl than a brogue.

"We probably had the same percentage of Irish settlers as other towns in the Southeast," says Katy Edwards, tourism coordinator for the Dublin-Laurens Chamber of Commerce. "There's nothing overly Irish about [the populace]."

Railroads, weevils and mansions

On the other hand, there's plenty about this Dublin that's just right.

> (Don't) Take Our Name . . . Please! Incorporated in 1812, Dublin was named by local notable Jonathan Sawyer in honor of his wife, an Irish native (legend has it he wanted to ensure she'd be "buried in Dublin"). Early on, there were two Dublins in Georgia; only one could have the name on a post office, however, and Butts County's Dublin became Cork. By the early 1900s, five railroads went through Dublin; boosters crowed it was "the only city in Georgia that's doublin' all the time." (How did Atlanta's legendary civic marketers not think of that first?)

> Live Like a Millionaire —- for a Night: Bellevue Avenue is a link both to Dublin's present-day downtown and its gracious past. White-columned forerunners of McMansions once lined Bellevue, aka "Millionaires Row." When the boll weevil nearly destroyed Georgia's cotton industry after World War I, some prosperous residents were wiped out and their houses eventually met similar fates. Those that survived are mostly used for professional offices or private residences today.

Then there's the sumptuous Page House, a 7,000-square-foot Classic Revival house purchased in 1905 (two years after it was built for the princely sum of $11,000) by J.M. Page, a doctor, state senator and bank/department store founder. It's now a bed-and-breakfast with enormous fireplaces, stained-glass windows and wireless Internet. "Luckily he didn't put all his eggs in one basket," owner Janice Canady (with her husband, Kelly) says of the well-diversified Dr. Page.

> Break Out the Good Silver: Don't let the Dublin-Laurens Museum's limited hours (Tuesday-Friday, 1-4:30 p.m.) fool you. There's plenty to see inside the high-ceilinged building that opened 104 years ago as a Carnegie Library (a plucky group of citizens obtained a $10,000 grant from New York philanthropist Andrew Carnegie).

For starters: photos of the old Bellevue mansions; one family's good silver, which it buried far from Sherman's invading forces in a nearby swamp; the largest single collection of paintings by noted floral and landscape artist Lila Moore Keen; military-oriented displays running the gamut from the Civil War (dolls made from old Confederate and Union army uniforms) to Vietnam (photos of three Dublin brothers who served there at the same time and came back alive); and a recently acquired portrait of Gladstone Williams (a pal of Margaret Mitchell), where the eyes appear to follow you around the place.

Popcorn and pickles

A person can get awfully hungry soaking up so much culture. Fortunately, the Market on Madison is an open-air farmers market offering a mouthwatering array of local produce and foodstuffs. I was this close to buying a giant watermelon right off a truck and buckling it into my passenger seat (take that, HOV lanes!). But I pressed on, searching for something authentically Irish to eat.

Sadly, there's no House o' Cabbage or Cod Lodge lurking anywhere among Dublin's more traditional dining options. Nor did I have handy the 50 pounds of potatoes, gallon of burgundy wine or boat paddle (for stirring) the "World's Largest Irish Stew" recipe calls for. The closest thing I found was the large coffee with a shot of Irish cream flavoring and the bag of Irish Crunch caramel corn at Scoops, a very fun ice cream and candy emporium on West Jackson street.

On my way out of town —- which included a side trip to the Shamrock Bowl, home of the Dublin High School "Fighting Irish" football team —- I made one more stop at Michael's Deli & Seafood for fried dill pickles.

Munching them on the drive home, I didn't feel overwhelmingly Irish. Just authentically, happily Southern.

And that's no blarney.

A note on travel costs: To the various travel industry professionals who have made contact to assure me better itineraries can be had: I use the layperson's methodology —- searching Travelocity and Delta.com for 21-day advance, midweek travel, staying at least a week —- to find the cheapest option at the time.

DUBLIN DATA

Dublin is located off I-16 in Laurens County about 130 miles south of Atlanta. Take Exit 51 onto U.S. 319/441 south toward Dublin. For more about Dublin attractions:

> www.dublin-georgia.com: Home of the Dublin-Laurens County Chamber of Commerce (478-272-5546), including the Welcome Center (478-272-5766). Includes a schedule of upcoming events/performances at Theatre Dublin (478-277-5074) —- and the megastew recipe.

> www.saintpatricksfestival.com: Everything you need to know about the Annual St. Patrick's Festival of Dublin-Laurens County.

> www.ocrl.org: Oconee Regional Library site. Includes the Dublin-Laurens Heritage Center at the Laurens County Library (478-272-5710), with its extensive collection of books, computer databases, microfilm and other historical records pertinent to Middle Georgia and genealogical research.

> Dublin-Laurens Museum: Located at 311 Academy Ave. (478- 272-9242), the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.

> Oatt's Drug Co.: Get your local history at a colorful glance —- check out the mural depicting Dublin's early history painted on its wall at 132 W. Jackson St.