Ireland

Ireland – the Emerald Isle is a beautiful land of mountains, rivers, lakes and green fields. It´s also a land of contrasts – of dramatic coasts exposed to the wild, wet, winds of the Atlantic ocean.
Like their land, the Irish have two sides to their nature: they are friendly people who love to talk and tell stories, but they are proud and independent. The Irish are famous for their music, songs and dance an relaxed way of life. For hundreds of years this has been the land of the Connemara pony. It is c…., furious and intelligent and friendly, but loves to be wild and free.

Ireland is west of Great Britain. It´s about 480 km from north to south, and about 320 km from west to east.
All over Ireland are ruins and ancient monuments like Dun Aengus on the Island of Inishmore. This forts was built to protect the country from foreign invaders.
Rock of Cashel in Tipperary in the south is a holy place, where people worship for centuries. St. Patrick brought Christianity and built churches.
Religion has always been important and almost all the churches are Roman Catholic and the Irish honour St Patrick as their patron saint.
Irish monks were famous for their excellent schools. They had problems with the Vichings, who sailed in and attack monasteries. The monks built special towers like the Clonmacnois, with enterance high above the ground.

Ireland is a land of music and dance and it is a tradition passed from generation to generation like the Irish language.
If you love horses, you´ll love Ireland! Horse riding is the national sport. Many people come here on holiday and see the countryside from a brightly-painted horse-drawn caravan.
Ireland’s rivers are full of fish – people come here for a relaxing holiday fishing for trout and salmon. Fishing is also an important industry.
Hurling is one of the fastest games. The ball is very small, you can hit it hard and far. You score goals by hitting the ball between the goal posts and you can also score points by hitting it over the bar.

Gaelic football is a little like football and a little like rugby. You score goals and points the same way as in hurling. Both games have 15 player a side.
Green hills are perfect for golf.
Framing is the most important part of economy. The mild and wet climate is good for cows and sheep. Irish wool is of high quality and made into warm woolen sweaters. People use peat for fuel, they cut it out of the ground and dry it. It is also used to produce electricity.

History

Ireland is divided into 2 parts. The larger part is the Republic of Ireland – Eire with the capital Dublin. The smaller part is the province of Northern England – part of the UK with the capital Belfast.
Other big cities are Limerick and Cork in the south. For many years British ruled Ireland and the Irish worked their land. In the 16th century Britain became protestants, the Irish catholic. The British couldn´t buy the land, hold the office or join the army. Many of them emigrated to North America, Australia or Canada. In 18 40´s there was a terrible famine. Ireland lost almost half its population over the years.

Dublin
is a city of over half a million people, on the river Liffey. The atmosphere is friendly an relaxed. It has some beautiful architecture , especially squares and terraced houses. It is famous for its pubs, where you can enjoy heavy and dark beer of Ireland. There is many churches, the oldest is St. Patrick´s Cathedral, where Jonathan Swift is buried.
Trinity College is one of the oldest universities in the world. Here you can see the Book of Kells - written and painted on animal skins, by the Irish monks 1200 years ago.
Phoenix Park is the President´s House, one of the biggest parks in Europe. In the Parliament are two political parties – Fianna Fail and Fine Gael.

Industry
There is very little h…. industry, they are developing their economy by initiating high-technology companies.

Conclusion
Ireland is a land where traditions are important. The government is keen to keep crafts like wood carving. It is a land of music, where children are taught to play the traditional instruments. There is always time to relax and enjoy life! It is a small country with a variety of beautiful scenery. There are people who enjoy good conversation and who are warm and welcoming.