For the love of the game (pardon the cliché)

Posted by Hooff Cooksey

82,000 roaring fans cheer on their boys, their boys in blue.  The game comes down to wire, as the rain pours down.  Players dive for loose balls, knees buckle from bone crunching hits and every fan can barely stay in the stands.  The whistle blows, the game is over, the home team has won the All Irish Championship.

Dublin beats Laois 17 - 11 in croke Park on Sunday, June 5.

Oh, and by the way, no player on the field was paid a cent for this game, or any before for that matter.

The game described above was a Gaelic Football game at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland, hosted by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA).  The GAA is an amateur organization; therefore its players and coaches do not get paid for their time and effort dedicated to winning their county or town a game or a championship.  Specifically, Gaelic football is played on a field larger than a soccer field, with 15 players on the field for each team.  To score a player can either kick the ball into a soccer goal or the uprights above the goal.  A ball in the netted goal is worth three points and a ball kicked through the uprights is worth one point.  Players can advance the ball by carrying it, bumping/passing it to a teammate or by soloing (dropping the ball and kicking it up to yourself).   

Check out this video to get a better understanding of how Gaelic football is played.

The GAA was founded in an effort to separate Irish sports from the English, and help to solidify the Irish as a very tough, resilient peoples.  Irish sports, like Gaelic football and Hurling, involve a great deal of physicality and require the players to have an endurance most human beings could never handle. 

It is interesting to note the impact GAA has on Ireland; one that far exceeds it being just an amateur sports organization.

Edelman’s annual trust barometer ranks a population’s trust in its government and private institutions of that country.  The Irish have very little trust in most organizations, however the GAA consistently ranks as one of the most trusted organizations in Ireland.  It is an untarnished sports organization that unites all of Ireland.  For these reasons, the GAA will most likely remain amateur for years to come. 

Jake Baranek talks about his thoughts on Gaelic football and the GAA.

GAA players and coaches participate for the love of the game and for the chance to represent their homestead.  Some of the players are actually unemployed.  Ireland currently has a very high unemployment rate, and all of these players have regular jobs during the day, between morning and evening practices.  This unemployment issue amongst players has raised concerns regarding player salaries.  However, the GAA means too much to the Irish people, and for the game to be changed with salary earnings, would only take away from the history and tradition of the organization that has been their for the Irish for over one hundred years.           

The Melting Pot of the EU

Posted by Hooff Cooksey

Of all the things to be worried about before coming to Ireland, I seemed to focus on the food situation.  I knew potatoes were popular, but that was about it.  I have to say I have been pleasantly surprised.

Centra on UCD campus in Dublin.

Every Irish meal I have had thus far has been delicious.  Granted, it is very basic; the portions are big and usually consisting of a large piece of meat such as chicken or beef, with many vegetables sides, such as potatoes or carrots.  The soups are very good and filling, as is the Guinness pie, which is actually a stew with beef and a thick broth.  I also love two sandwich toppings that are not customary in the States: stuffing and butter.  Yes, stuffing like you have at Thanksgiving.  It is really quite delicious.  These two ingredients can be found at Centra on their signature Chicken Fillet Roll, a sandwich I wish I could have everyday for lunch.

Ireland is also very unique in its drink selection.  Guinness beer and Jameson whiskey is different from another of its kind across the world.  The Irish take great pride in Guinness being poured the proper way, and the fact that Jameson is much different from scotch.  

At the Old Jameson Distillery in Dublin.

I have been most astounded however, by the many different types a food offered from all across the world, making it very similar to the area I grew up in outside of Washington, D.C.  Dublin has proven be more of a ‘melting pot’ than I ever imagined (See 'The Melting Pot Festival' in Co. Donegal, Ireland) 

From Lebanese to Italian; American to Mexican; Asian to Indian; almost every food imaginable is served somewhere in Dublin, and even in the smaller cities around Ireland.  The food seems to be representative of the growing influx of outside culture into the major cities in Ireland, especially Dublin.  Not to mention with the rise in emigration of the young Irish, the multicultural environment seems even more apparent. 

 

Irish musicians play 'Kashmir' with an Irish twist at The Storehouse in Dublin.

This came as a great surprise to me.  I always imagined Ireland to have at least some outside influence from some parts of Europe, but not to this extent.  It is interesting to note that the Irish culture itself does not seem to have been affected by the steady rise in cultural diversity in the country.  The tradition and pride that makes Irish people unique seems to be strong, and potentially growing with the change in demographics.         

 A traditional Irish jig, with three traditional Irish instruments.

Just have faith...or not (contd.)

Posted by Hooff Cooksey

A follow up to my previous blog entry. 

This past weekend I spent time in Belfast and Derry, two cities in Northern Ireland which have experienced a great deal of violence in the conflict between Catholics and Protestants.  My thoughts from last week still remain the same, but I now have an even better understanding of the religious culture of Ireland.

Peace wall in Belfast.

The visual divide in both cities is very apparent.  In Belfast there is a large peace wall separating the Catholic and Protestants areas of town, with gates open during the day, but closed by 10 P.M. every evening.  Catholic businesses do not operate on the Protestant side and vice versa.  In Derry there are 500 Protestants living on the west bank of the river running through town, surrounded by 75,000 Catholics.  The curbs in the Protestant neighborhood are painted red, white and blue to honor England and everywhere direction you look there is a Union Jack flying. 

After many hours in each town it did become apparent however that the divide seemed to be not only due to religion and freedom from another nation, but also one of tradition.  The young people that grow up in Ireland, and especially in cities like Belfast and Derry, are sometimes embedded with the idea of distrust and opposition to the other side.  There is a consistent push for unity in the country, and specifically this is seen in Derry over Belfast.   

During the build up to my time here in Ireland, I only knew what I had heard of the conflicts during the 1970s in Northern Ireland.  I believed that had all come and gone.  However, I could not have been more wrong.  The violence is down, but the reminders of conflict and the mindsets behind the conflict are still very apparent (see photo album).  There is a large push for unity and constant reminders to let the children of Ireland grow up in peace and the freedom to make their own opinions on the situation.  

Canons on Derry wall overlooking Derry neighborhood; during 'The Troubles' the neighborhood was an IRA headquarter.

Just have faith...or not

Posted By Hooff Cooksey

When I came to Ireland, I was under the impression that the majority of citizens were Catholics, with a few Protestants thrown in the mix; Northern Ireland was separate from the Republic but was relatively peaceful; that the Irish are very kind and welcoming people, just to name a few.  I was correct about the last one, but that is about it.

Matt (left) explaining uses of turf from the bogs.

This past weekend, I ventured over to Western Ireland to witness the Cliffs of Moher, see Galway, drive through the bogs and view some castles.  I learned a great deal about the formation of bogs, the many uses of the turf harvested, and the natural preservative the bog water acts as.  The next day we were met with the stunning views and scale of the Cliffs of Moher (photos), which soar 700 feet above the Atlantic Ocean.  However, I could not get over comments made by both of our tour guides on separate occasions.  “I am an atheist?”  

Gravan, our Dublin tour guide, in front of a statue of Oscar Wilde.

Just like that, my assumptions above were instantly proven wrong. 

After doing a little research, it turns out that Ireland has a growing atheists population due to dissatisfaction with the Catholic Church, as well as an impatience with the Catholic/Protestant clashes in Northern Ireland. 

Not only did the guides proclaim themselves to be atheists, but also went on to speak ill of religious establishments.  I could not help but notice a tone of bitterness in their voices.  This reminded me of an earlier comment made by our tour guide Garvan, concerning the state of faith in Ireland.  After the Celtic Tiger in the 1990s, when Ireland’s economy skyrocketed, many Irish lost their faith to materialistic thinking.  However, as the economy began to weaken into the recession in 2006 the church community began to grow again.  

Was the animosity expressed by the guides due to violence in Ireland, the economy, or some of both?

I was thoroughly surprised by the incite into the religious history of Ireland, not to mention that in a few days I will spend a day in Belfast, Northern Ireland where I will be even more enlightened on the subject.  I am slowly learning that to judge Ireland from the outside, at a surface level, does not even begin to allow you to understand the culture, specifically religious.  Not until I actually listened and spoke with Irish men and women did I realize just how much religion impacted this proud and influential country.  

*I will add a short Belfast update to my blog next week, before my regular entry.

Rugby, and then some.

Posted by Hooff Cooksey

The group after a hike up to the lookout over Glendalough.

On a brisk Sunday evening, after a long, yet beautiful, day spent at Glendalough, I made my way to a local pub called Crowe’s with the company of Kenny and Finola, our Irish comrades, and Professor Dave Junker.  I was told that there was a rugby game to watch.  However, little did I know that the game we were about to watch was the Grand Final between two arch-rivals, Leinster and Munster.  Leinster represents the big city team, while Muenster owns the rural representation, kind of like the rat pack team and the Little League team in The Sandlot.

Kenny and Finola, both Irish students from University College Dublin, have been helping out with our transition into Dublin life.  We arrived at the local pub, filled with a relatively calm Irish crowd, grabbed a pint and found seats just as the match began.  Up to this point I had never watched a full rugby match.  Once Kenny began to explain the rules and analyze certain decisions and situations presented in the match, I was able to follow the match.  I guess it also helped that the Final came down to the last few minutes, with Munster, the underdog, taking the title. 

Rugby is different from any other American sport.  Like basketball and hockey, every player and the ball is always moving; there is a large amount of contact, along with rushing and passing, like in football; the match is played on a field about as large as a soccer field.  However, rugby players do not wear pads and can only pass backwards.  The sport involves a lot of very specific rules that shape the game into a hard-nosed, smash mouth sport, that teeters on the edge of a very dangerous 80 minutes.

Interestingly enough, I can say that I learned much more about the Irish culture in that hour-and-a-half than I did about rugby.  The Irish are very respectful towards one another.  You will never see show-boating after a player scores in a rugby match, never a moment of ill intent towards a referee and a great deal of respect towards the opposition, no matter how much hatred a team may have.  While watching the game, both Steve and Sarah showed respect towards each other, acknowledging when a player of the opposing team made a great play, and even in the end, when Sarah's team came out on top, Steve still congratulated her and the winning side.  To have all of these factors play out, on a professional stage, is quite extraordinary. 

Aside from rugby, I was able to get some great incite into the ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland.  Finola filled me on the basic details of the rift and the connection all of Ireland feels with Scotland.  Scotland is also fighting for certain liberties, a connection all of Ireland can make.  She spoke of the continuing cycle of violence in Northern Ireland that erupts when a new generation of passionate teenagers, who do not remember how bad the violence was, begin to rise up. 

The talk was fascinating, and made me realize how resilient the Irish are.  Through all the turmoil and tragedy this country has faced, the people continue the love and embrace everyday they spend on this earth.