Do you daydream of moving to Ireland, especially around St. Patrick's Day? We've pulled together some pretty good reasons to make the move.
The Weather
Say what you want but where else would you get four seasons in one day, a fine soft rain to nourish your skin, a fine brisk morning for a walk in the fall or ferocious summer squalls and winter storms, occasional hurricane-like winds, cute storm names like Storm Kevin or Storm Mary like they are visiting relatives, pink sky sunsets, endless summer evenings, bright to almost midnight and light just five hours later.
The People
The Irish people: Grafton Street, Dublin.
Larger than life, friendly to a fault, rural areas still relatively unspoiled by social media, they still think Twitter is the sound a bird makes, friendly faces that remind you of your Irish grandfather or Granny. Always quick for a joke or a laugh or a bit of mischief.
The Horses
Nothing like horse racing.
Steeplechase racing was invented in Ireland and the sight of magnificent animals hurtling at 30 miles an hour onwards toward a steep fence and soaring over it warms the blood.
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The Past
Inside Kilmainham Jail.
A glorious and tragic history intermingled. Walk through 5,000-year-old Newgrange or through the Kilmainham Jail where the leaders of the 1916 RIsing were executed. Feel the sorrow of the millions who departed at Cobh, in County Cork, and the emigration center there as well as the EPIC experience in Dublin.
The Hotels
Ireland's hotels still hang on to their personality so it's not just another Holiday Inn monopoly. Have afternoon tea at the Merrion, a drink in the fabled bar at the Shelbourne or enjoy the castles, like Adare Manor, Dromoland and Ashford that take you back to a fabled past.
The Language
Your ancestors spoke Irish and you can still hear the beautiful nuance of an Irish speaker or singer. Learn a few words yourself and see how happy people are when you use them.
The Craic
Nothing like the craic in an Irish pub.
Untranslatable word that just means the fun atmosphere, the lilt of Irish laughter in a pub, the sound of the bodhran beating out over the waves in a seaside pub the impromptu step dancing. The heart and soul of Irish personality can be found in a good pub.
The Food
A full Irish breakfast. What could be better?!
The Irish breakfast, filled with enough calories to feed a whale, fresh fish, creamy scones, fresh soda bread, new potatoes slathered in fresh butter, homemade ice cream or trifle. Yum.
The Atlantic
Malin Head, on the Wild Atlantic Way.
The ocean, the broad Atlantic waves crashing into the west coast, the next stop America. The booming sound as you imagine so many who sailed forth to America across that Atlantic wide. On their way to that “isle of hope, isle of tears.”
The long goodbye
Irish people especially on the phone say "Bye, bye now bye, bye now, bye-bye. Bye..."
*Originally published in March 2020. Updated in April 2023.
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