Irish Times

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

In 2012 I was lucky enough to go to Ireland to visit one of my best friends and I have to tell you, dear reader, it was even better than I imagined. For as long as I can remember I have been obsessed with Ireland. At 4 and 5 years old I used to talk about wanting to visit the Emerald Isle and that love has stayed with me my entire life.

I was only there for a week so I sadly did not see as much as I would have liked, though I was able to visit the two places I have been obsessed with almost my entire life. The Cliffs of Mohr and The Giant’s Causeway. (And for those of you planning a trip to Ireland, they are both totally worth checking out.) Also, I was able to sample my fair share of pubs.

Now I have grand plans to go back for a longer visit and cycle around, touring the country to my heart’s content. The trip is a few years down the road as Ireland is expensive and the Canadian dollar is not at its best, but I know that when I do make it back I will love it all the more for having waited. (This, dear reader, is a lie we tell ourselves to make waiting less annoying. It has never worked for me, though I still try. Does it work for you?)

Alas, since I cannot be in Ireland to celebrate both St. Paddy’s Day and my friend’s birthday I will instead list my top five favourite things to do at home to celebrate the Irish!

• Drink beer! No, dear reader, I don’t mean any of that green beer shit that young’uns love to drink and pretend tastes good. No, it’s a nice pint of Kilkenny for me. Kilkenny has been my beer of choice since I became old enough to have a beer of choice.
• Eat Potatoes (Most likely salt ‘n’ vinegar chips, but those still count, right?)
• Wear Green (And not just because it brings out the green in my eyes)
• Listen to the Dubliners and Flogging Molly all day long (Yes, I know Flogging Molly are not really Irish, but neither am I)
• Day Dream about Chris O’Dowd all day long (Really, all year long … just don’t tell Kevin)

I know that my ways of appreciating the Irish are cliché and possibly a little insulting in their stereotypes (Potatoes? That’s a thing, right?) but I hope any Irish readers out there see it as the pure and sincere love it is.

Ireland is the home I wish I had, the place I would move to in a heartbeat if the opportunity presented itself. It is the most beautiful country I have ever seen with some of the warmest people I have ever met.

And I can’t wait to go back.

A moment of reverence for those late great Irish Times