Landscape and people are what bring
most visitors to Ireland - the
Republic and the North. And once
there, few are disappointed by the
reality of the stock Irish images:
the green, rain-hazed loughs and
wild, bluff coastlines, the inspired
talent for talk and conversation,
the easy pace and rhythms of life.
What is perhaps more of a surprise
is how much variety this very small
land packs into its countryside. The
limestone terraces of the stark,
eerie Burren seem separated from the
fertile farmlands of Tipperary by
hundreds rather than tens of miles,
and the primitive beauty of the west
coast, with its cliffs, coves and
strands, seems to belong in another
country altogether from the rolling
plains of the central cattle-rearing
counties.
It's a place to explore slowly,
roaming through agricultural
landscapes scattered with
farmhouses, or along the endlessly
indented coastline. Spectacular
seascapes unfold from rocky
headlands, and the crash of the sea
against the cliffs and myriad
islands is often the only sound. It
is perfect if you want space to
walk, bike or (with a bit of
bravado) swim; if you want to fish,
sail, or spend a week on inland
waterways. In town, too, the
pleasures are unhurried: evenings
over a Guinness or two in the snug
of a pub, listening to the chat
around a blood-orange turf fire.
But there is another Ireland
growing at a phenomenal pace
alongside all of this. The
extraordinary economic boom enjoyed
by the Republic since the early
1990s has brought growth on an
unprecedented scale. A country
notoriously blighted by emigration
is, at last, drawing people home
with the lure of work. The
conspicuous new wealth of many makes
itself felt in every quarter of
Irish life, but most especially in
cities like Dublin and Galway where
a proliferation of new bars, cafés
and restaurants reveals a generation
determined to enjoy life to the
full. The cosmopolitan flavour of
these cities is informed, in part,
by the complex array of experiences
brought home by returning ex-pats,
more familiar with the ways of
Melbourne and San Francisco, London
and New York, than with those of the
Aran Islands. The boom has its
downsides - notably, spiralling
property prices and the tensions
brought about by increased
immigration - but as a visitor
you'll probably be most struck by
the tremendous energy and palpable
sense of confidence in the future,
most especially in the young.
To act as a backdrop, there's a
wealth of history. In every part of
the island are traces of a culture
established long before the coming
of Christianity: sites such as
Newgrange in County Meath or the
clifftop fortress of Dún Aengus on
Inishmore (the biggest of the Aran
Islands) are among the most
stupendous Neolithic remains in
Europe, while in some areas of Sligo
almost every hill is capped by an
ancient cairn. In the depths of the
so-called Dark Ages the Christian
communities of Ireland were great
centres of learning, and the ruins
of Clonmacnois in County Offaly, the
Rock of Cashel in Tipperary and a
score of other monasteries are
evocative of a time when Ireland won
its reputation as a land of saints
and scholars. Fortifications raised
by the chieftains of the Celtic
clans and the Anglo-Norman barons
bear witness to a period of later
turbulence, while the Ascendancy of
the Protestant settlers has left its
mark in the form of vast mansions
and estates.
But the richness of Irish culture
is not a matter of monuments.
Especially in the Irish-speaking Gaeltacht
areas, you'll be aware of the
strength and continuity of the
island's oral and musical
traditions. Myth-making is for the
Irish people their most ancient and
fascinating entertainment. The
ancient classics are full of
extraordinary stories - Cúchulainn
the unbeatable hero in war, Medb the
insatiable heroine in bed, or Fionn
Mac Cumhaill (Finn Mac Cool) chasing
Diarmuid and Gráinne up and down
the country - and tall tales,
superstition-stirring and
"mouthing off" (boasting)
play as large a part in day-to-day
life as they did in the era of the Táin
Bó Cuailngè, Europe's oldest
vernacular epic. As a guileless
foreigner enquiring about anything
from a beautiful lake to a pound of
butter, you're ideally placed to
trigger the most colourful
responses. And the speech of the
country - moulded by the rhythms of
the ancient tongue - has fired such
twentieth-century greats as Yeats,
Joyce and Beckett.
Music has always been at the
centre of Irish community life.
You'll find traditional music
sessions all around the touristed
coasts and in the cities, too - some
of it might be of dubious pedigree,
but the Gaeltacht areas, and
others, can be counted on to provide
authentic renditions. Side by side
with the traditional circuit is a
strong rock scene, that has spawned
Van Morrison, U2, Sinéad O'Connor
and more recently The Divine Comedy
and Jack Lukeman. And ever-present
are the balladeers, fathoming and
feeding the old Irish dreams of
courting, emigrating and striking it
lucky; there's hardly a dry eye in
the house when the guitars are
packed away.
The lakes and rivers of Ireland
make it an angler's dream, but the
sports that raise the greatest
enthusiasm amongst the Irish
themselves are speedier and more
dangerous. Horse racing in Ireland
has none of the socially divisive
connotations present on the other
side of the Irish Sea, and the
country has bred some of the world's
finest thoroughbreds. While
association football is as popular
as in most parts of the world now,
Gaelic football, sharing elements of
soccer and rugby (which itself has
its hotbeds, notably in Limerick),
still commands a large following.
Hurling, the oldest team game played
in Ireland, requires the most
delicate of ball skills and the
sturdiest of bones.
No introduction can cope fully
with the complexities of Ireland's
politics, especially the dramatic
changes in Northern Ireland in
recent years. However, throughout
the guide we have addressed the
issues wherever they arise and
included pieces that give a general
overview of the current situation.
Suffice it to say that, just about
everywhere hospitality is as warm as
the brochures say, on both sides of
the border.
