5/14/06 - The Celtic Tiger Roars On

Kilkenny City, Ireland

As much as I've written paeans to the pastoral landscapes & quaint drinking atmosphere in Ireland, after a few weeks here you start to get the feeling that these romanticized stereotypes of Ireland are gradually fading into the past. Much has been made of the vaunted 'Celtic Tiger' economy, and rightly so -- in the past decade, Ireland has seen tremendous economic expansion, and the big kitty hasn't stopped purring yet. Although GDP growth isn't quite at the 8+% levels seen in the second half of the 1990's, most current estimates put it around a healthy 5%. One of the most visible aspects of this growth is the fact that - much like in the US - the Irish property market is booming, having been fueled by both the economic growth of the past decade and relatively low interest rates (standard mortgages here are currently just south of 5%).

This means that in all of the cities I've been to, you can't look around without having the horizon interrupted by giant construction cranes; even in smaller towns like Tralee & Kinsale, large new complexes are being built, and beautiful older row houses are being gutted and refurbished. Road work is everywhere, and even cycling down quiet country lanes, cement trucks rumble by on the way to the construction sites that dot the countryside. After pubs, the most common buildings here seem to be real estate agents (although for some reason, the "real" is dropped, meaning they're actually just called "estate agents"), who advertise new and existing homes, apartments, and commercial buildings, both in Ireland and vacation hotspots like Spain and the south of France. In Killarney, one of the locals told me he had become a "multimillionare" practically overnight, simply because he had inherited a modest house smack in the middle of town from his parents, and it was now worth a significant amount - and I think he was more surprised at his newfound wealth than I was.

So promoting the classic view of Ireland as a lush landscape with cosy little pubs and friendly, folksy people while ignoring the tremendous rate of change felt throughout the country would be misrepresenting modern Ireland. And I haven't even got to Dublin yet...

Daily Summary

• Thurs, 5/11 - bus from Cork to Kinsale. My first really beautiful day in Ireland (not a cloud in the sky, at least until a thick fog rolled in off the ocean in the early evening). Walked around town, across the Bandon River and out to James Fort overlooking the harbor, then relaxed on a small beach for a few hours in the afternoon. In the evening, hiked out to Charles Fort, a very well-preserved 16th century star fort overlooking the other side of the harbor.
• Fri, 5/12 - woke up with a vicious cold, meaning I was blowing my nose pretty much nonstop all day. bus from Kinsale to Kilkenny via Cork. toured Kilkenny Castle. few pints in a local pub.
• Sat, 5/13 - rented a bike, cycled south to Kells Priory (extensive ruins of a 14th century monastery), then to the nearby Kilree cemetary & round tower (basically a 30m high watch tower). watched Liverpool play West Ham in the English FA cup final. saw a hurling game at the local GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) field here in Kilkenny - more on that below.
• Sun, 5/14 - in another fit of piety, decided to go to church at St. Canice's Cathedral (actually went last Sunday but forgot to include it in my original blog post - it's there now), the seat of a Church of Ireland (i.e. anglican) diocese. far more painless than my experience last week. rode the bike to Inishtioge, a small village on the river Nore.

Overall Highlight

Watching Liverpool beat West Ham in one of the best soccer games I've ever seen. The Reds were down 2-0, battled back to 2-2 on two fantastic goals, went down 3-2 on a fluke goal, then levelled at 3-3 in stoppage time on an amazing goal by Stephen Gerrard before winning on penalty kicks. The bar I was watching the game at was going absolutely nuts the whole time.

Runner-up: lounging on the beach outside Kinsale. After a week & a half of off-and-on clouds & rain, it was nice to soak up some uninterupted sunshine. even managed to get a little sunburnt...

Random Observations:

• If hurling isn't the roughest sport on the planet, it's certainly near the top of the list. It's tough to explain without seeing it (and having seen it, I'm still far from having a good grasp), but imagine a cross between rugby, lacrosse, and field hockey where 15 players a side (completely without pads except optional helmets & facemasks) whack a hard rubberized ball roughly the size of a baseball - and themselves - with large curved wooden sticks. It's pretty damn intense. I have some pictures, but unfortunately the internet cafe i'm at right now doesn't have a facility to hook up my digital camera...

Photos

Next Stop: Dublin