It has become a national pre-occupation to denounce Ireland and its many evils these days. We truly are a country in transition and we do not do things by halves – we jumped from a poor nation to a rich one over night with the Celtic tiger and now we have bungeed back to a relatively poor nation just as fast. There are several well documented and lamented reasons for this but I’d like to concentrate on just one – our gobs!
I believe we do more talking than any other nation in the world. From coffee shops to supermarkets, to outside church and school gates we pour over the doings of politicians, the degeneration of society and the dreaded ‘R’ word. We recreate, dissect and solve the worlds problems every night of the week in the pubs, there’s nothing like a drop of alcohol to induce expert-like status in every one of us. In a nutshell we talk ourselves onto a rollercoaster ride up to the dizzy heights of success and down into despairing depths of depression.
As a result, this poor little island has taken quiet the beating; recession, inept politicians, public strikes, church scandals and not to mention to erratic weather bringing in arctic conditions in March to name a few issues. I’m sure many people are contemplating jumping ship to sunnier climes; I certainly have from time to time. However as soon as the dust settles on the latest calamity I return to appreciating where I live – given the choice there is no where in this world I would rather live.
This is going to be a series of short little posts about the things about Ireland that are great – a bit of positive thinking for these dark times. I will post photographs, stories, people, music and just about anything that inspires me from week to week. If you would like to help with this aim and come across anything that makes you sigh or smile and is typically Irish let me know and I will do my best to include it here! Send any ideas, photos etc… to cottageology@gmail.com
We can try to steer this rollercoaster back upwards again…
This first photograph was taken at the Nuns beach in Ballybunnion, Co. Kerry in March 2010. It is a beautiful, unspoiled beach with absolutely no pedestrian access. To get down there you have to either climb down the rocks or surf in around the cliffs. I really hope it is never developed as it is just a beautiful sight to see any time of the year. The large rock in the center of the water is known as the Virgin Rock – locals will inform you in typically ironic Irish fashion with a nod and a wink as ‘so many people have swam through it’!
The Nuns Beach, Ballybunion, Co. Kerry