IRELAND, DOORS OPEN

 DOORS OPEN

Source of the picture: www.destinoviagem.com

Source: www.speakup.com.br

Language level: C1 Advanced

Standard: British accent

U2 WERE HERE

In recent years Ireland has enjoyed an economic boom, even IF that stopped with the credit crunch of 2008. Yet life goes on in Dublin’s redeveloped docklands area. Here you will find the headquarters of financial and high-tech companies, such as Google, Facebook and Linkedin. The area also has plenty of new housing and there is a massive concert venue, the O2. Yet, as Loretta Lambkin of the Docklands Development Authority explains, the current economic crisis presents a challenge:

Loretta Lambkin

(Irish accent)

We also run a lot of events during the year, we have a huge event called the Docklands Maritime Festival, where we have tall ships and markets and street entertainment, so that we try and…enliven these areas all the time. So it’ll take a long time, and for Ireland to climb back out of the recession, it’s gong to take some time as well, and that has had a huge impact on us, but, you know, we continue to try and programme things to try and…and run things within our own capacities.

TOWER RECORDS

And it seems that even the legendary Dublin rock group U2 have felt the effects of Ireland’s current economic downturn:

Loretta Lambkin

U2 have always been synonymous with the Docklands area, they’ve always recorded all their albums down here. They started off in Windmill Lane, which most people would know. They now record most of their albums down in a studio in Hanover Quay. The plan was that we  would build a building called the U2 Tower and it would be one of the tallest building in the city, and at the top of that, the top two floors, would be where U2’s recording studios would be based: hence the name the U2 Tower. Now unfortunately, given the current climate, the economic climate in Ireland, we’ve had to postpone the project. So it is very much a live project in our plans for the future: however, it will be a couple of years away at this point. 

DUBLIN...DOWN AT THE THE DOCKS

Source of the picture: www.panoramio.com


Source of the article: www.speakup.com.br

DUBLIN DOWN AT THE DOCKS

The regeneration of the Dublin Docklands started in the late 1980. Today, many banks and companies have their headquarters on both sides of the River Liffey, and Spencer Dock is the country’s largest urban regeneration project.

The Docklands Development Authority, founded in 1997, at the height of the “Celtic Tiger,” is in charge of prosperity development and regeneration. It makes great effort to capitalize on the Docklands’ maritime heritage and to breathe life into the sea. There are sports and cultural events, such as the Maritime Festival in June.

CHARACTER BUILDING

Yet much of the Docklands still feels soulless. The chq building, for example, is a historical wine and tobacco warehouse. Today it houses nice shops, a tea salon and a Starbucks, but it has very little atmosphere. Visitors should walk along the quayside to understand the contrasts of Dublin old and new: a bronze statue of a dockworker pulling a rope and urban graffiti, a mobile coffee stall on the river by glass office buildings.

On the opposite side of the Liffey, bronze statues of starved immigrants appear to be waiting to board the Jeanie Johnston, the replica of an immigration ship. Just a bit further along, a floating restaurant represents the new gourmet Dublin.

LITERARY CONNECTIONS

Two beautiful new bridges over the Liffey were built in recent years (in honour of famous Irish writers): the Sean O’Casey Bridge swing bridge and, in 2009, the Samuel Beckett suspension bridge. From here, you can see one of the Docklands’ iconic developments: The O2, a gleaming new concert venue for big acts like Rod Stewart or Beyoncé. U2 were the first to perform there when it opened in late 2008.

SCANDAL

It is no secret that Ireland was hit by the recession, and the Docklands, as the centre of the economic bubble, were badly hit. The U2 Tower which was going to be Ireland’s highest building and house the band’s new recording studios, is on hold. Also, he Docklands Development Authority has been accused of mismanagement. Important files on the purchase of a € 420 million site in 2006, and now worth much less, strangely disappeared!

IRELAND OLD AND NEW

While in a sense, the Docklands represent Ireland’s recent obsession with properly, the new projects also designed to bring “normal” Dubliners and visitors into the area. Next to the O2 concert hall, the Point Village has just opened an all-year weekend market that, in the words of the organizers, “encourages everything the Celtic Tiger forgot, and is an outlet for all of the people most affected by the recession.”

Galway and The Claddagh Ring

The Ring of Love and Friendship

Source: Speak Up

Language Level: Advanced

Standard: British Accent

The Ring of Love and Friendship

The Irish word “Claddagh” means “Stony shore.” In century past the “Claddagh” was a famous fishing village, just across the river Corrib from Galway city. Its elected leader, the “King of Claddagh,” ruled the fishing fleet in Galway Bay and settled disputes.

Today visitors still go to Claddagh to see its swans, and to enjoy a good view of Galway city, but the village’s old mud-wall cottages have been replaced by modern housing.

The “King of Claddagh” is now an honorary title.  The current King of Claddagh is Michael Linsky, who naturally wore his Claddagh Ring when we met him in the museum room of Thomas Dillon’s, the longest-established Claddagh jewellers. As Michael explained, the ring consists of a heart held by two hands with a crown on top.

Michael Linsky

Standard Irish accent.

The heart is for love of course, the crown is for loyalty, and the hands are for friendship. Now, love, as you know, will wane, as time goes on, loyalty will always be under pressure, but friendship never dies, it’s the one thing that will linger on.

THE STUFF OF LEGEND

There are many legends connected with the Claddagh Ring. One says that in the 17^th century a young man from Galway, Richard Joyce, was kidnapped by pirates and sold to a Moorish master goldsmith, who taught him the craft. When Joyce returned to Galway, he presented his faithful lover with a gold ring with the now famous design.

The story of Michael Linsky’s family is also very romantic. When Michael’s mother, a Claddagh woman, left for Boston in 1912, she was booked on the Titanic. Luckily, The Titanic was full, and she went to Boston on a different ship. Michael’s father joined the British Army and fought in the First World War and his mother and father wrote to each other for nine years. Later, in the “Hungry Thirties, when Michael grew up, most Claddagh women had a Claddagh ring, as well as their plain gold wedding hand. Life was difficult and many people pawned their rings in order to pay for a ship passage for America. Today the ring remains popular as a symbol of love and friendship. It’s worn by people everywhere and it is said that some 200 Claddagh Rings were found in the rubble of the World Trade Center. In spite of that sad statistic, the Claddagh ring is generally seen as a source of happiness:

Michael Linsky:

Where it originated is a bit of a mystery, but it’s one of the most popular rigns in the world. I mean, any country I’ve been…and I’ve been into quite a few, off and on, and I often met somebody with a Claddagh Ring, and suddenly we’d have a big conservation: “Oh, where are you from?” “Ah, yeah?” So… we’d be starting to talk, and it was the ring that introduced us in its own pirate, silent way.

The Magic Ring

The Claddagh Ring represents marriage, engagement or friendship. It consists of a crown over a heart, which is held by two hands. The crown symbolizes loyalty, the heart is for love and the two hands are for friendship. If the ring is worn on the left-hand ring finger, facing away from the body, then the wearer is engaged: if the ring is worn on the same finger (but the wearer is married. On the right hand, the ring facing outwards means “free,” while, if the ring faces inwards, it means “in love.”

Where to Buy a Claddagh Ring

There are many jewellers in Galway selling Claddagh Rings, but the longest-established (1750) is Dillon’s, now at n° 1, Quay Street, the main shopping street. A room at the back tells the history of the ring and the Claddagh area in photos and memorabilia. It also shows the ring through the ages (including the smallest Cladddagh Ring in the World). Check the website www.claddaghring.ie for a list of their famous client Winston Churchill and Queen Victoria, Grace Kelly and John Wayen. By the way, Jim Morrison of the Doors and his girlfriend exchanged Claddagh Rings during their “Pagan wedding.” 

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LET THE MUSIC PLAY!

Source: Speak Up

LET THE MUSIC PLAY!

By: Kathleen Becker

Most people who travel to Dublin visit Temple Bar, a central area on the south bank of the River Liffey. Temple Bar is undoubtedly a success story. In the 1980s, it was nearly pulled down in order to build a large bus depot. Today its medieval cobblestone streets are promoted as Dublin’s “cultural quarter.” Here you will find institutions such as the Irish Photography Center or Irish Film Institute, but also many trendy clothes shops, cafés, art galleries –and a multitude of pubs and restaurants. Ireland’s largest Irish-owned brewery. The Porterhouse, is also in Temple Bar.

THE DOWN SIDE

Over the past years Temple Bar have, however, had its critics. The beer is expensive, and at weekends, raucous stag rights and hen parties transform the area into one big drinking contest. Big commerce, in the form of the Hard Rock Café and other chains, is more evident now.

ENTER TRADFEST…

In 2006, an association supporting local merchants, TASCQ (These letters stand for “Traders in the Area Supporting the Cultural Quarter Ltd”) created a new festival to celebrate Irish traditional music.

The Temple Bar TradFest presents a combination of the old and the new. This year, vintage musicians sucha as Clannad will play together with new-wave bands like Brendan Power or Téada (meaning) “strings” in Irish who won “Best Young Traditional Act” at the 2009 Ireland’s Music Awards. Another highlight could be Beoga (meaning “lively”), with their World Music made in Northern Ireland. The Wall Street Journal called Beog “the most exciting new traditional band to emerge from Ireland this century,” while their bodhrán percussionist is four-times All-Irish champion.

Trandionally, Irish Folk music involves violin, an accordion, the tin whistle flute, the guitar, pipes and the bodrhán. The faster jig.

INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS

The classic image of “trad” music is of men in tweed jackets playing a session in a pub. Half of TradFest’s 30.000 visiotrs in 2009, were, however, young and female.

Today, both in Ireland and around the world, traditional music is doing very well. Acts like Riverdance, which began as an interval entertainment at the Eurovision Song Contest, made Irish dancing sexy. Traditional singing is having a renaissance too. Technically, the level is better than ever, as musicians can now learn tunes and techniques from the internet and at festivals. The Temple Bar TradFest is an excellent opportunity to chatch some of the best acts playing today.

TEMPLE BAR TRADEST 2011

tradFest 2011 ( www.templebartrad.com ) runs fromJanuary 26^th to 30^th.

Look out for the two-hour crash courses in Irish song, dance and language run by Gaelchultúr. Flight to Dublin ( www.aerlingus.com or budget www.ryanair.com ) are cheap at this time of year.

Accommodation ranges from the boutique Clarence Hotel ( www.theclarence.ie ), owned by U2 members, Bono and The Edge, to cheap hostels such as Barnacle’s Temple Bar House on 19 Temple Lane ( www.barnacles.ie ).

The friendly Brick Alley Café in Fleet Street serves good snacks with fair trade coffees.

For dinner, Eden restaurant on Meeting House Square ( www.edenrestaurant.ie ) is a classy option for contemporary Irish food. For a good pint and atmosphere, try The Porterhouse microbrewery at 16/18 Parliament Street ( www.porterhousebrewco.com ), the Temple Bar Pub on 47/48 Temple Bar ( www.thetemplebarpub.com ) or the Vathouse in Anglesea Street ( www.vathouse.ie ).

TASQ ( www.tascq.ie ) has a useful information office at 27 Eustace Street. For further information, contact: www.tourismireland.com . 

RADIO DAYS

Source: http://kieranhanrahanbanjo.com/

Source: Speak Up

Language level: Advanced

Standard Justin Ratcliffe British accent

RADIO DAYS

Kieran Hanrahan is a musician who won the All-Ireland Banjo Championship at the age of 18. Since then he has also becomes a radio presenter and his show, Céilli House, is broadcast every week on the national network, RTE Radio 1. The programme concentrates on traditional Irish music and, for this reason, we asked him about the state of traditional music in Ireland today.

Kieran Hanrahan

(Irish accent):

Yeah, it is great, I mean, I travel the country, and what really I find sweet sometimes is that you might get three generations of one family playing together, you know, you get a…a grandfather, a father and a daughter and a son, those combinations. I always find that they’re very special moments when we come across that, and you do come across them in certain parts of the country and it’s just lovely to see the handing down of the tradition. I suppose one great example of that is Chris Droney, a famous Clare concertina player. There’s a recording in the archives in RTE, of Chris and his father, from 1956, two concertina layers. Now, Chris’ father was 70 at the time, so he would have been born in 1886, and he learned the music from his own father, so you’re heading back sort of towards famine times. But, 40 years after that recording was made in ’56, I recorded Chris and his son. And last year, on the music competition on TV here. Chris’ grandson was playing in it. So there’s all these kind of generations, going almost back to the Famine, from today’s generation, playing traditional music, so it’s just lovely to unearth that solid tradition you know. 

GOD'S GASTRONOMY

Source: www.speakup.com.br

GOD’S GASTRONOMY

Brother Anselm’s golden rule for cooking at Glenstal Abbey is: variety. At dinner the monks might have Irish Stew, Hungarian goulash, Indonesian Curry –or Italian crespelle as on the evening I arrived. At Glenstal, dinner eaten in silence, only broken by the sound of the cutlery and the daily reading.

MONASTIC LIFE

Glenstal Abbey is a monastery with many faces. The exterior looks a bit like Windsor Castle. Once through the ancient gate. Hogwarts School from the Harry Potter films comes to mind though the church is modern. Glenstal is in fact also a boarding school for boys, at also a boarding school, for boys, although they seem so well-behaved that you hardly hear them. Benedictine rule teaches peace, work and prayer – the famous “Ora et Labora” – and hospitality. Visitors can come to Glenstal for retreats, to work on their own projects or just to relax for a few days.

They can take part in religious services, listen to Gregorian Chants, admire a collection of priceless Russian icons in an underground chapel and walk the beautiful  grounds with many ancient trees. The abbey’s walled 17^th century garden has a Bible Garden, with biblical plant from A to Z. A short walk brings you to a Mass Rock where Mass was said in secret during the period of the anti-Catholic Penal Laws.

FRIENDS AND FAMILY

Brother Anselm’s career as a monk is as unusual as the monastery itself with its relaxed atmosphere, full o Irish banter. Anselm, who was born Michael Hurt, entered a monastery in England after 12 years, he left, married and had children, but realised that religious life was the life for him. So when Anselm officially became a member of the Glenstal community of his 65^th birthday, it was in the company of his family, including his five-year-old granddaughter!

TAVEL INFO

Glenstal Abbey www.glenstalabbey.com is located in Murroe in the north-east corner of Co. Limerick, close to the Co. Tipperary border. The nearest airport is Shannon Airport www.shannonairport.com . Murroe  is a short drive from Limerick and a 3 to 4-hour drive from Dublin. There is a daily local Murroe-Limerick bus, too. Payment for the accommodation is made anonymous and by ability, but a suggested figure is € 65 per day. All meals are provided. For more information: www.discoverireland.com .

U2 ON TOUR

Source: www.speakup.com.br

Language level: Pre-Intermediate

Standards: American and British accents

U2 ON TOUR

U2, the great rock band, is having a busy Autumn. After playing in Europe, the group is now heading to New Zealand and Australia. Earlier this year the group cancelled tour dates in the USA. Lead singer Bono injured his back. Luckily for U2 fans, he has now recovered and the tour is back on the road!

THE CLAW!

The 360º tour is unique. The group performs on a special stage: the Claw 200 trucks transport the stage from city to city. The enormous structure serves as stage, lighting system, video centre and sound system. It’s like a huge spaceship in the middle of the stadium. Lights flash. The music roars. And Bono is in constant motion as he sings and dances. The Claw is a spectacular stage, but Bono is the star.

DUBLINERS

U2 have been together since 1976. What is the secret of their success? Guitarist The Edge explains, “We’re a real band. We’re committed and loyal. And we’re real friends.” The group met as school boys at Dublin’s Mount Temple Comprehensive School. Bono even met his wife Alison Stewart, as the same school.

RELIGION

Incredibly, the group almost never existed. Bono and The Edge attended prayer meetings in the 1970s and their Christian beliefs contradicted the rock’n’ roll lifestyle. They decided to continue, but their Christian beliefs remains important to them.

AFRICA

The group’s religious beliefs are the inspiration behind their charity work. Bono is world-famous as an advocate for Live Aid, ONE and DATA in the fight to end poverty in Africa. He’s a friend of world leaders and receives invitations to speak at events like the 2005 G8 Summit. Some people accuse him of arrogance. He admits, “I’m sick of Bono, and I am Bono!”

FASHION

This autumn is an import time for Alison Hewson, Bono’s wife, and her ethical clothing collection EDUN. Alison and Bono founded EDUN to promote business and create jobs in Africa in 2005. So far the collection hasn’t been a success. But new designer Sharon Wauchob and partners, international fashion house LVMH, should change that, EDUN was recently re-launched during New York’s Fashion week to positive reviews by major media in the US.

Those Names: Bono and the Edge (no audio)

Bono’s real name is Paul Hewson. His first nickname was Steinheg Van Huyse No Leg Bangbangbang. It evolved info Bonavox of O’Connell Street. bonavox was a Dublin store that sold hearing aids. This nickname became BonoVox – terrible Latin for ‘good voice’ –and finally Bono. Guitarist The Edge is really David Evans. Bono gave him his nickname because of the way he observes life from the edge and his angular face. 

THE CLADDAGH RING

The Ring of Love and Friendship

Source: Speak Up

Language Level: Advanced

Standard: British Accent

The Ring of Love and Friendship

The Irish word “Claddagh” means “Stony shore.” In century past the “Claddagh” was a famous fishing village, just across the river Corrib from Galway city. Its elected leader, the “King of Claddagh,” ruled the fishing fleet in Galway Bay and settled disputes.

Today visitors still go to Claddagh to see its swans, and to enjoy a good view of Galway city, but the village’s old mud-wall cottages have been replaced by modern housing.

The “King of Claddagh” is now an honorary title.  The current King of Claddagh is Michael Linsky, who naturally wore his Claddagh Ring when we met him in the museum room of Thomas Dillon’s, the longest-established Claddagh jewellers. As Michael explained, the ring consists of a heart held by two hands with a crown on top.

Michael Linsky

Standard Irish accent.

The heart is for love of course, the crown is for loyalty, and the hands are for friendship. Now, love, as you know, will wane, as time goes on, loyalty will always be under pressure, but friendship never dies, it’s the one thing that will linger on.

THE STUFF OF LEGEND

There are many legends connected with the Claddagh Ring. One says that in the 17^th century a young man from Galway, Richard Joyce, was kidnapped by pirates and sold to a Moorish master goldsmith, who taught him the craft. When Joyce returned to Galway, he presented his faithful lover with a gold ring with the now famous design.

The story of Michael Linsky’s family is also very romantic. When Michael’s mother, a Claddagh woman, left for Boston in 1912, she was booked on the Titanic. Luckily, The Titanic was full, and she went to Boston on a different ship. Michael’s father joined the British Army and fought in the First World War and his mother and father wrote to each other for nine years. Later, in the “Hungry Thirties, when Michael grew up, most Claddagh women had a Claddagh ring, as well as their plain gold wedding hand. Life was difficult and many people pawned their rings in order to pay for a ship passage for America. Today the ring remains popular as a symbol of love and friendship. It’s worn by people everywhere and it is said that some 200 Claddagh Rings were found in the rubble of the World Trade Center. In spite of that sad statistic, the Claddagh ring is generally seen as a source of happiness:

Michael Linsky:

Where it originated is a bit of a mystery, but it’s one of the most popular rigns in the world. I mean, any country I’ve been…and I’ve been into quite a few, off and on, and I often met somebody with a Claddagh Ring, and suddenly we’d have a big conservation: “Oh, where are you from?” “Ah, yeah?” So… we’d be starting to talk, and it was the ring that introduced us in its own pirate, silent way.

The Magic Ring

The Claddagh Ring represents marriage, engagement or friendship. It consists of a crown over a heart, which is held by two hands. The crown symbolizes loyalty, the heart is for love and the two hands are for friendship. If the ring is worn on the left-hand ring finger, facing away from the body, then the wearer is engaged: if the ring is worn on the same finger (but the wearer is married. On the right hand, the ring facing outwards means “free,” while, if the ring faces inwards, it means “in love.”

Where to Buy a Claddagh Ring

There are many jewellers in Galway selling Claddagh Rings, but the longest-established (1750) is Dillon’s, now at n° 1, Quay Street, the main shopping street. A room at the back tells the history of the ring and the Claddagh area in photos and memorabilia. It also shows the ring through the ages (including the smallest Cladddagh Ring in the World). Check the website www.claddaghring.ie for a list of their famous client Winston Churchill and Queen Victoria, Grace Kelly and John Wayen. By the way, Jim Morrison of the Doors and his girlfriend exchanged Claddagh Rings during their “Pagan wedding.” 

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