It's not just the obvious - Ireland is a breathtaking beauty - it's also the culture and spirit that lives here that makes Ireland so attractive. Life is a little different here than in the rest of Europe. In fact, I think Ireland is one of the freest countries I have ever experienced.
From the sandy shores of the east to the rocky shores of the west, Ireland is full of varieties. I haven't seen all of it, yet, but what I have seen and experienced so far is making my heart beat fast. How many times I just stood there staring at the sheer beauty that unveiled in front of me. My heart wide open, with love overwhelmed. Despite the fact that you find many signs of human dwellings, nature is dominant. It quickly takes back what people had wrested from it.
Ireland is green and it's grey and it's blue and it's yellow and generally colourful. It is surrounded by water and water is everywhere. There are lakes and ponds appearing and disappearing. Rivers flow without being enchained by artificial borders. The water runs free. Freedom, that is what flows in Ireland.
The Irish I meet every day are friendly and nice. Always a “How are you?” or “How are things?” or a hand raised in greeting to me, a stranger, from someone driving past me in their car. And if you're open to it, you can always have a quick conversation. I feel welcome in this country.
In this land are only little constraints. You do not have to have every insurance, you can if you wish, but you don't have to. You are simply not forced to pay for a service you don't need. Water is for free – why shouldn't it be? Well it is different in many parts of Europe. Taxes? Yeah, but reasonable. Education – is in the parent's responsibility, that's what the Irish constitution says. This is freedom.
You decide what is the best for yourself and for the ones you love. No patronizing.
And the Irish state their will. If they don't want something even politics can not make it happen. That sounds decent and very democratic to me.
This energy, this freedom that surrounds you, unleashes your true nature. Creativity, long forgotten, floats to the surface. In the Morning Dew Cafe in Corofin, at the foot of the Burren, one can find examples of this creative energy unleashed. Paintings, sculptures made of felt, photographies and books, flower wreaths, soaps and herbal teas. The artists are not always visible, like elves and gnomes, but they are here and in amounts you would not expect.
Last week we went for a little adventure trip, visiting the Poulnabrone dolmen one of the many relicts of the ancient Celtic past. On the way to this place we were accompanied by heavenly beings that showed us that we were on the right track.
After we had visited the dolmen we followed a sign 'Burren perfumery'. We had to pause on the way to marvel a valley, so unexpected and beautiful to us. And down there in the middle of a narrow road, behind bushes, there is the Burren perfumery, an oasis with its garden, even now in winter beautiful.
And our next stop on that journey – who would expect a chocolate manufactory in the rocky landscape of the Burren? If I hadn't known where to look I could have missed it. An old farm transformed in a little chocolate factory – Hazel Mountain Chocolate. It may be a little place of creation but it is a fascinating one and the chocolate is worth the way.
The will to do something new and special, that is the sense I get here. The Irish are open-minded and attract other open-minded people. Thus, this country is getting richer and richer in my opinion.
The unexpected everywhere. And always, just around the corner. What a lovely place to be – yes, Ireland.
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