A Sense of Place

Dos and Don'ts in Ireland

ehalvey — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 10:51:00 GMT

When you say you're visiting Ireland, you are sure to hear lots of "ooh"s and "aah"s and "you're so lucky, I would LOVE to go there"s. It has developed this magical connotation thanks to Victorian writers and Americans who have a long line of Irish ancestors forced to leave because of famine or lack of work. After living there in the fall of 2004 and five subsequent visits, I've created a bit of a personal Do and Don't list that I happily share with anyone I come across planning a trip. Of course, ultimately it's your decision of what to do and what not to do, but I think my tips are pretty handy regardless.

Ireland Don'ts:
These are either things that I learned from, are pet peeves, or are just good ideas to keep in mind. As always, take with a grain of salt since these are my personal dont's.
DON'T: forget that the roads are narrow, and you drive on the left!

I openly admit that I have no desire to drive in Ireland ever. I don't want to remember to make a sharp left turn and a wide right turn. I still have no earthly idea how to get to my sister-in-law's house from my in-laws' house even though it can't be more than 5 miles away. Roads outside of Dublin are not well marked name-wise, so it's very easy to get lost. Add to the fact that most side roads are a narrow lane even though it's a two-way street, and you have the makings of a bad travel moment. So if you are not a confident driver, or a very careful driver, you might want to skip the car rental and just take the bus or train to other towns.

DON'T: just go to Dublin and the Cliffs of Moher/Galway/Aran Islands!

There is SO much more to see in Ireland than Dublin and the Cliffs of Moher (which I still haven't seen). There is so much more than the leprechaun covered shite of the tacky tourist shops. Go to the Ring of Kerry, go to Donegal, try out Wicklow with Glendalough and gorgeous mountains, go to Meath, etc. All of these places are accessible by bus or train or a combination of both from Dublin. Wicklow, Meath, Wexford, Cavan, Louth, and Kilkenny are all easy day trips from Dublin with lots of beautiful towns and sights. If you're in the Shannon area, Kerry, Donegal, and Cork are close by. There are ruins sprinkled all over, so try renting a bike if the weather is nice to see what you stumble upon. You'll have a richer, more unique experience than going to the same pubs in Temple Bar and taking the same photos of the West as everyone else.
DON'T: try to mimic the accent. No one says "aye shoremegoran". ~~No one uses "wee" to describe anything and everything that is little.~~  Ed. Note- I've been informed that my own personal experience is actually a bit of an anomaly in that I've never heard "wee" used in a conversation. Do not try to replicate The Quiet Man. You'll sound like an idiot. This is more of a pet peeve to me specifically. I find it irritating when someone tries to mimic what they think is an Irish accent or to use phrases that they think are Irish. Oscar winners failed at it, so my bet is you're going to fail miserably, too. Just talk like a normal person from wherever you're from. If you want to sound more local, check out some idioms that are unique to Ireland over at Benny's article on how to to speak English like the Irish. I crack up every time I read it. Just don't try to sound like the actors from Circle of Friends.Please?

Ireland Do's:

Again, these are things I think you should do or try, but I wanted to make it more about traveling than things to see.

DO: bring lots of layers and a brelly!

My first trip to Ireland brought me from the upper 90s of August in Atlanta to the low 60s (at best!) of Ireland. No matter what the season is, I always pack lots of layers and an umbrella. I have seen many sunny days in the summer, but you can never really predict if a shower will pop up. The temperature doesn't drop dramatically at night, but homes and businesses are kept cooler than I'm used to, and a breeze can make 60 degrees feel much cooler. So I usually end up with 2 or 3 layers on. Leave the flip flops at home because it really is never warm enough, and they're not great for walking through fields with sheep shit. Forgot my advice? Pop into a Penney's for a cheap umbrella or sweater (jumper in Ireland), they'll never be more than 10 or 12 euro.

DO: go to a small pub.

The atmosphere of non-touristy pubs is so different from the raucous foolery in Temple Bar. If you're in a tiny town, they may just have two taps: stout and lager. Or they may have a more authentic, less contrived music session. If it's not a tourist spot (just listen for the accent you hear the most), try a pub for lunch. Many offer hot lunches that are delicious, filling, and a good value.

DO: try the after-pub fare.

Chippers are the Irish diners or, if you're Southern, Waffle Houses. Need some grease to soak up your drinking session? Head to one for an array of fried options such as curry chips, battered sausages, taco chips, and burgers. Definitely try one of the chip options whether it's curry, taco, salt and vinegar, or spicy wedges. I've never had a bad curry chip. Remember, in general, nothing is spicy so the curry and taco sauces highlight the other flavor profiles of the sauce more than the heat.

You don't have to listen to a word I say because it is YOUR trip, but I think my tips will help you have a fuller experience that is different from the usual Irish jaunt.

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The Best and the Worst about the Culture of the US

ehalvey — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 04:12:00 GMT

I believe I am meant to be the citizen of another country. While there are plenty of things to love about the US, I seem to click better with Europe and their public transportation, investment in the arts, free healthcare and affordable higher education, etc.

So I decided to interview my Irish citizen husband (who has seen several US cities that I haven't like New Orleans or Denver) to get his opinion on the best and worst of the US. I wanted to see what he viewed as pros and cons compared to what I think they are.

You Can't Talk about the US and not Mention Food

We're a culture of borrowed and blended food histories. What is the best of American food culture to my man? Barbeque and ethnic food. You can find a Chinese or Indian restaurant in Ireland, but the heat is all but non-existent. Fajitas arrive with sweet chili sauce. So to come to the US and experience Thai, Ethiopian (I am not a big fan), spicy Indian and other cuisines has been quite an education in the range of foods that are out there. Barbeque might be its own food group for my husband. We've sampled all the major styles and prefer a smoky, tomato based sauce to vinegar or mustard ones. He's a pulled pork fanatic, just add some hush puppies and Brunswick stew and he's golden.
Worst of American food? Our chocolate and candy selection. To quote, it is "terrible". The chocolate has a weird mouth feel (due to vegetable wax instead of cocoa butter), the candy is super sweet because of corn syrup instead of sugar, and the prevalence of peanut butter and caramel make him run for the hills. I get it. After living in Ireland for a semester, I don't eat much American candy. Maybe a KitKat or a Twix every now and then. Cadbury's is so much better.

Driving in America: You Have to Do It

I have to admit, I'm impressed that my husband gained most of his driving experience before getting his very first driver's license in Atlanta of all places. If you have ever lived there, you know how crazy the drivers are in the ATL. So hisbest of driving in the US are the highway system and the wide roads. Irish roads are generally narrow and curvy at best, heart attack inducing at worst. Dublin's roads are more recognizable to an American as a modern system, and there are some new motorways that mimic a highway system. But it's not quite the same. Having a two way AND two lane road in the country is totally different from Irish roads. Being able to hop on 440 to 65 to go north or south from Nashville and connect to other highways makes getting around by car a whole lot quicker than driving the same distance in Ireland.

Worst thing about driving in the US? The DMV. I laughed at this response as I would've said traffic or SUVs or construction. But because of the special laws in different states, my husband has to renew his license much more often because he is a resident alien. Which means he has to wait in line because it's not a simple renewal you can do online. And he needs like 88464875098 forms of ID every time. I will say though that driving tests are much easier in the US than in Ireland. I just had to park, parallel park, and reverse into a parking spot for my test.
Contract Culture with Cell Phones
In the rest of the world, most people pay as they go and top up their phone credit. In the US, if you want a decent phone and decent service, you basically have to go the contract route. He isn't the biggest fan of this idea. I get it. It's a pain to be locked in for two years at a time. A basic plan is probably more a month than he would spend than just topping up credit as he went. But I also appreciate having a concrete bill to plan for versus a constantly in flux phone budget. The whole SIM card thing would be nice for traveling. The US does need to get on that and stop charging outrageous international roaming fees or ridiculous travel plans that only work for business travel budgets.

Best Thing about the US Hands Down
My husband has a problem. He is addicted to baseball. He became a Braves fan in Atlanta and has been hooked since. The culture of sports in the US in unique. No one else is rabid about their college's team. The baseball and hockey seasons are crazy long with more opportunities to see your team play. Football (not the soccer kind) is a religion is certain parts on the country. None of our fanaticism about sports is equivalent to the kind of fanaticism that soccer holds in the rest of the world. Soccer is more about finesse than stats which is why my husband thinks it's not popular. You can't quantify an amazing soccer player like you can with a baseball player. Baseball is all about numbers. There are some moments of finesse, but you don't need it to win per se.

Coming from an Irish citizen living as a resident alien, these are the qualities that he sees as some of the best and worst about the US. Obviously, there are so many more things that we could have included, but we wanted to view things from a different angle. What do you think?

The ‘Blog your Backyard’ Project

5 Things You Must Do in Nashville NOT Related to Music

ehalvey — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 00:34:00 GMT

When you say Nashville, most people think of country music and songwriting. And maybe cowboy boots. We do have plenty to offer related to all three, but I'll let you in on what we have if, like me, you could care less about country and don't own anything honky-tonk appropriate. If you wander away from the neon lights of Broadway, there is so much to see and do away from the buskers, Dolly Parton drag queens (yes, there are several drag queen Dolly impersonators), and cowboy hats.

Starting near the country craziness and working out from the city, here are 5 things you must do in Nashville that are not related to music.

The Frist Center for the Visual Arts

My mom mimicking the portrait of Martha Graham in the exhibit.

Just wander south down Broadway towards the highway, and the giant Art Deco building at the top of the small hill is the Frist. Nashville is unique in that our main art museum does not have a permanent collection. This former post office was converted into a museum ten years ago, and it now brings traveling exhibits to art lovers in Middle Tennessee. Currently, they have a Warhol exhibit themed around his love for performing arts. They have a regularly scheduled architecture tour to explain the importance of Art Deco style, and they participate in the monthly Art Crawl on the first Saturday of each month, too.

Nashville Farmers Market

Purple bell peppers, whodathunk?

I love checking out farmers markets in other cities, and Nashville has a great set up with their primary market. Anything from Amish baked goods to locally produced goat cheese to organic meats to spuds from the next county over are available in two outdoor (but covered!) areas. The next building over has AC and TONS of food options like Greek, Indian, and Jamaican. There's a third building that often houses a small flea market, and there's a garden center for green thumbs. It's a great place to people watch, photograph bright colors and weird shapes, grab some local food, and really see the "real" Nashville. I can spend hours there, and I haven't even been to the Night Market with special tastings and a bar.

Yazoo and Jackalope Breweries

Dos Perros is dark, but not dark like a stout. Yum!

We have some weird liquor laws in Tennessee. Like how you can't sample the booze at the Jack Daniel's Distillery because it's in a dry county, or you can't buy beer from a liquor store unless it's high gravity, or you can't buy wine at the grocery store. There are a few strange laws associated with breweries that I still haven't figured out (related to hours and such), but Nashville is home to several small breweries. Yazoo and Jackalope are about a block apart, and both have great beers on tap.

The cheese plate at Jackalope Brewery designed to pair with their beers. I like the Chocolate Lab cheese, the one on the right in the foreground,

Yazoo has several varieties and can be found in grocery stores and restaurants around town. Jackalope opened its doors in May and is run by two women, the only women brewers in Tennessee I believe. Jackalope is only open on Fridays from 4-8 pm (insert random liquor law for the reason here), and they have 4 beers on tap. One is usually a regional guest beer, and they make the other 3. I like the Bearwalker beer and their cheese plate (featuring regional cheeses) is designed to pair with their beers. A block away, Yazoo is open on more days than Yazoo, and it often has a taco food truck parked outside for a snack. You can get growlers filled here as well. I prefer the stouts and the Dos Perros.

East Nashville

The Base Burner at Holland House: Four Roses bourbon and ginger ice cubes.

Across the Cumberland River and LP Field is the neighborhood of East Nashville. I can't recommend just one spot here, so I decided to recommend the whole neighborhood. It is in the process of regentrifying, but the roughness and amount of artsy folks living here make a great trip to eat, drink, shop, or go to a festival. It's the home of the super popular Tomato Fest every August as well as dozens of other small festivals during the year. It also has tons of galleries and independently owned shops if you want to pick up local art or unique items. East Nashville is the home to many popular bars like Holland House and Bar 308 and restaurants like Marche, Rosepepper's Cantina, The Silly Goose, and Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream (the only outpost outside of Ohio). Definitely make a trip across the river for an awesome cocktail or dinner.

The Parthenon

I'm 5'4 to give you some scale with the columns.

Yep, Nashville has a life-size replica of the Parthenon in Centennial Park on West End Ave. Why? Well, during the Tennessee Centennial Fair in 1897, Nashville had the nickname of "the Athens of the South" because of the number of colleges in the city. So what better way to celebrate that history than to make future monument to kitsch with a to-scale replica of the Parthenon? With sculptures made from casts of the real ones in London museums and everything. Alan LeQuire, a contemporary Nashville-based sculptor, created the ginormous Athena statue on the top floor which evokes how the Parthenon may have looked in 400 BC. Today, it is the municipal art museum with a permanent collection of American art donated by James Cowan

For Extra Credit: Franklin

If you still have some time, take a 30 or so minute drive down I-65 S to Franklin. This is such a cute little town that makes you forget that Nashville is so close by. The town is completely walkable with shops and restaurants scattered around to make it a nice day trip. It has the feel of Small Town, USA without being in the middle of nowhere, and it always has lots of people out on the sidewalks and in the local businesses. If you're into the Civil War, there's a historic site and museum nearby where the Battle of Franklin was fought.

So that is my 5 non-music things to do in Nashville list. There is so much more to Nashville than the tourist trap of Broadway, the Grand Old Opry, and the Country Music Hall of Fame. Let me know if you're in town for a visit!

The ‘Blog your Backyard’ Project