| It's the undoubted lure of the
landscape, along with the easy pace and rhythms of life, which draw
the majority of visitors to Ireland. Once there, few are
disappointed: the green, rain-hazed loughs and wild, bluff
coastlines, the inspired talent for conversation and the place of
music and language at the heart of Irish culture all conspire to
ensure that the reality lives up to expectations. More surprising
perhaps is just 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 harshly beautiful west coast, with its
cliffs, coves and strands, looks as if it belongs 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 where 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, or if you want to fish,
sail or spend a week on inland waterways. In the smaller towns, 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.
In every part of the island are traces of a culture established
long before the coming of Christianity while, in the depths of the
so-called Dark Ages, the Christian communities of Ireland were great
centres of learning. 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 just 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 oldest
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 Cúailnge, 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 – fired such twentieth-century
greats as Yeats, Joyce and Beckett. Yet, while almost half of
Ireland's population claims to be able to speak the Irish language,
fewer than ten percent use it on a daily basis and a fair proportion
of these only do so during school hours.
Music has always been at the centre of Irish community life.
You'll find traditional music sessions in all the popular coastal
counties (especially Antrim, Donegal, Sligo, Galway, Clare, Kerry,
Cork and Waterford) and in the cities, too (particularly Dublin,
Belfast, Cork and Galway); 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, Thin Lizzy, U2, Sinéad
O'Connor and The Corrs, alongside up-and-coming young hopefuls such
as Damien Dempsey and Gemma Hayes. 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.
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