Of leprechauns and computers
Mention Ireland to the average North American and thoughts turn to leprechauns and Celtic folklore, rich green landscapes and the rain that produces them, Guinness and the pubs that serve it. Ireland also may be the home of an ancestor or two. Those are the features that tourism promoters lean on.

Ireland was, until recently, poor by European standards. But, beginning in the mid-1990s, the economy has boomed. A part of that growth resulted from software development. As a result, the fabled Emerald Isle is also called the Silicon Isle in certain circles.

About Ireland
Beautiful scenery and interesting, friendly locals are top attractions for travelers, and, in those areas, Ireland reigns supreme. You can see poets call Old Eire the Emerald Isle for a reason. And, this isn’t sissy scenery. Complementing kelly green meadows, the rocky coast is as rugged as any shoreline, and the seas can deliver wild waves.

On the gentler side, there are countless small towns and villages to enchant visitors.
Then, there are the Irish themselves. These Celts are funny and wild, admirers of good horses and pretty women, happy to share drinks. Ireland is a land of laughter and, historically, tragedy; a land of legend and, today, a booming economy.

The “troubles” in Northern Ireland, or Ulster, have prevented those six northern counties from being as popular as the larger Republic of Ireland, but tourism is looking up now, as the truce endures. For many Americans of Irish descent, a trip to the Ould Sod is a must. They find a great variety of activities and sightseeing attractions. And, the Irish pubs deliver traditional comfort food and drink: Irish stews, shepherd’s pie, Irish soda bread, Guinness, plus high-quality live Irish music.

Authentics find the Irish lifestyle quirky and interesting, but are relieved to communicate in English (although the Irish language can be heard). Visitors find the green countryside tranquil and relaxing.

Irish history and sightseeing appeal to centrics. They explore old castles, have drinks in village pubs, shop for crystal or sweaters, watch a breeder exercise his fine horses.
They want to soak up the atmosphere of Ireland’s religious, artistic and literary history as found at Dublin’s Trinity College, the National Theatre and the pubs that hosted Samuel Beckett, Brendan Behan, James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde.

Venturers identify with the Irish people’s vitality and energy. They enjoy the scenery as they jog or walk through it. Those who ride find great mounts and plenty of company in a land of horse lovers. And of course, Irish history is turbulent enough to involve any venturer in seeking out the sights associated with it.

• Tour the Irish countryside in a horse-drawn caravan that sleeps four and is equipped for housekeeping. You’ll be briefed on the care of the horse, then left on your own. See www.irishhorsedrawncaravans.com.

• Charter a cabin cruiser and explore Ireland via the clean, clear Shannon River, tying up at a different village each night. The boats are safe and easy to handle — you’ll get instructions.

• Look at Ireland’s scenery from the seat of a bicycle. Follow part or all of the Causeway Coastal Route, which offers 80 miles of rugged coastline in the north.

• In County Clare, in the west of Ireland, your choices include: caving, hill walking, mountain biking and rock climbing.

• Take sailing classes. Or, if you are experienced, choose between skippered and bareboat charters for sailing off the south, southwest or west coasts.

• Kiss the Blarney Stone, which legend has it will bestow eloquence on any who kiss it. The stone is set in the wall below the battlements of Blarney Castle and, to kiss it, one must lean backwards from the parapet walk.

• Attend an old festival well understood in modern terms: the Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival, described as Europe’s biggest singles event.

• Take a hang gliding or paragliding lesson.

• Scuba dive to see shipwrecks and admire craggy coastlines. Sample options, in a season that usually runs March to October, include the Atlantic coast of Cork, Donegal, Galway and Mayo.

• Waterski on the River Shannon, or shoot the rapids in a canoe on the River Liffey. 

• Go fishing. One suggestion: Take a look at magnificent Ashford Castle (now a hotel), and fish for salmon in uncrowded streams nearby. Or, make that deep-sea fishing off the Antrim coast of Northern Ireland. Other sites and other fish abound, and all the settings are beautiful.

• See the mummies which lie in open coffins at St. Michan’s Church in Dublin. A likely earlier visitor to the crypt would have been Bram Stoker, the 19th century creator of the fictional Dracula. Some Stoker relatives were buried at St. Michan’s.

• On Valentia Island in western Ireland, visit the Tetrapod Trackway — a trail extending about 50 feet — to see footprints of tetrapods, Earth’s oldest four-limbed creatures. Predating the dinosaurs, these prints were made between 350 million and 385 million years ago, making them the oldest prints ever found in the Northern Hemisphere.

• Go to Irish pubs, listen to Irish music and don’t be too shy to dance a jig yourself. The top town for this kind of entertainment is Doolin on the west coast, called the traditional music capital of Ireland. Three pubs — McDermott’s, McGann’s and O’Connors — have music year-round. Doolin also is home to the Micho Russell Festival in February, which commemorates the life of Micho Russell, a world-renowned traditional musician.

• Visit Ireland’s ancient Newgrange mound tomb, which dates from about 3200 B.C. Located in County Meath, it covers more than an acre, and a 62-foot inner passage leads to a cruciform chamber. The passage and chamber are illuminated for each of five days a year, at the winter solstice. The rest of the year, visitors are shown, with artificial lighting, what it looks like to see the totally black tomb interior brighten at a solstice sunrise.

• Plan a self-drive tour themed around haunted houses and haunted castles in Ireland. Also, stay at Ross Castle in Killarney, which is reputed to be haunted.

• Sample pub meals. Try Irish stews, shepherd’s pie, carving board service, Irish soda bread — plus the less-well-known colcanon (cabbage, potatoes, cheese and eggs). And don’t forget the Guinness. (Standard restaurants are less fun, with their frequent insistence that patrons eat at set seating times.)

• Take a torchlighted tour of the Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh, County Tyrone, at Halloween. Hear ghost stories and sample traditional Ulster and American fare such as bambrack, pumpkin and shoofly pie.

• Trace your ancestry in church records across the country.

• Watch local sports. Opportunities include Gaelic football and hurling in Parnell Park and cricket on the Trinity College campus in Dublin.

• Attend the Bunratty Medieval Banquet, held twice nightly at Bunratty Castle near Shannon Airport, for a good look at a 15th century castle, a four-course dinner and period entertainment by the appropriately attired Bunratty Singers.

• Ireland exports Waterford crystal. Ask about facility tours in Waterford, then buy crystal to carry or ship home.

• Play golf. The country claims 30% of the world’s links courses and says all of them are accessible to visitors.

• Take the Dublin Ghost Bus Tour and let your guide tell the stories and provide a promised “crash course in body-snatching.”

• Drive the Ring of Kerry, a 100-mile circle of meadows, mountains, moors, beaches and coastal views. When people talk about “beautiful scenery,” this is what they mean.

• In Dublin, attend a performance at Abbey Theatre. See the “Book of Kells,” too.

• Attend the Puck Fair in Killorglin, County Kerry, in August. There are plenty of cattle and horse fairs in Ireland, but this one has a twist all its own: Festivities include the coronation and dethronement of a mountain goat. No kidding.

• Go shopping on Lisburn Road in Belfast, described as a shopper’s mecca.
Regardless of where you shop, buy a fisherman’s sweater. It will last a lifetime.

• For rainy-day entertainment, immerse yourself in the National Museum of Ireland (three of four locations in Dublin, one in County Mayo), which tells the Irish story through the lenses of several disciplines: archaeology, history, natural history and decorative arts.

• Tralee is a real place, and each August the town stages the Rose of Tralee Festival, a talent contest at which a winner is selected as the Rose of Tralee.
Also, see the national folk theater of Ireland, Siamsa TÃ re, while in Tralee. It offers performances most evenings and, in high season, May to October, it offers a choice of four shows that capture the Irish story.