My Ireland Bubble Burst

WARNING:  I wrote this post a little hastily while feeling kind of down, but decided it was important to post the good the bad and even the ugly.  I'm feeling better now after a lovely afternoon sipping tea and munching on delicious corn-beef sandwiches with my friend Evin.  So this is the post:

I realize I haven't said much about Cork in general.  I guess I've just been waiting, and thinking, and trying to get a better feel before I put in down in writing.  I'm also trying to repeat the "this is not America, and it is going to be different so suck it up" mantra in my head.  I am a little afraid to give my honest opinion for once in my life because I don't want to offend anyone.  Then again, when has that ever stopped me!  Ha ha!
So here it is.

Cork is not the quaint Irish city I expected it to be.  I guess as Americans we have this fantasy of Ireland.  You know the one.  Lush rolling green hills dotted with sheep.  Old men in pubs drinking pints of Guinness.  Wee ginger haired lads and lasses milking cows or dancing a jig.  Rainbows with pots of gold, and Leprechauns of course!

Hate to burst your bubble, but that's not it at all, at least not here in the city centre (no not a typo, it is in fact centre, not center).  Cork city is like most big cities, lots of concrete, shopping, people moving quickly from one place to the next, buses, taxis, teenagers loitering.  Not so different than most big cities I know, but still far from the charming I was hoping for.  Of course if I wanted charming we might be living in the country and you all know I am NOT a country girl.

I guess my biggest hang up about this place is it just seems dirty.  Now you must be thinking I've gone crazy, because how many big cities are clean and pristine?  Answer:  Not many.  I may have been am spoiled.  I have had the pleasure of living on the Near North side in Chicago, and in cute bungalow ITB (for those of you not from Raleigh, that's "inside the belt line".  I even had the unique opportunity to live for six months in Aix, which was an absolutely charming fairy book town in the south of France.  Were any of these places perfect?  NO.  They all come with their sketchy alleyways and bad parts of town.

Please don't misunderstand, Cork is not a dangerous crime filled city.  In fact it's not even close to dangerous.  I don't think there will be much need to fear for my safety.  It's just I feel there is a lack of pride.  There seems to be lots of graffiti and trash.  I even witnessed a man peeing into the river today, which was upsetting needless to say!  Dog poop goes uncollected in the middle of the sidewalk. The teenagers swarm the town once school is out, and even in tidy school uniforms they just seem disrespectful.

I guess it's no different than the stereotypical idea that New York city is loud, dirty, crime filled, etc.  Most New Yorkers, and visitors alike will tell you otherwise.  New York is an amazing city filled with culture, charm, and beauty around every corner.  I imagine I'll begin to find the beauty in Cork soon enough, and in a few months I may look back at this post and laugh at my spoiled American self who has become too comfortable with suburbia.  Then again maybe there is some truth to what I am saying.  I am entitled to my own opinion, which is why I started this blog in the first place.

Before I wrap this up, let me just try and repair your Ireland daydream bubble. There are loads of  lush rolling hills, just not in the city.  Also, I've seen more red heads here in three weeks than I have ever seen in my entire life in the US; they just aren't adorable Irish children dancing.  The part about the old men drinking pints of Guinness, that one is actually true.  So all is not lost!  As for the rainbows with pots of gold and leprechauns; well I haven't seen them yet, but I'm going to keep holding on to that one.  I hope you will keep holding on to your own personal fantasy of what Ireland is like, because it is a wonderful country and the people really are as friendly as everyone makes them out to be.