Life in Limerick - what's it like?

Vanquished

Indeed. I understand that Limerick has a long rugby tradition etc and that Munster has generated a fair old bandwagon following since the late 90s. But we really do undersell the city by pushing the rugby narrative at the expense of other attractions!

Hopefully that's beginning to change now though.

squonk

I throw Galway into the post to offer a sense of perspective as I don't know anything about the OP and whether they are flexible or not. I've lived in Dublin, Galway and now Limerick so I've seen the merits and demerits of all these cities.

Truth be told, I find Limerick very dead compared to Dublin or Galway. The city revolves around Sport and while I agree with other posters that there's more to define Limerick than the Munster team, it's very, very hard to get away from it. Dublin or Galway are much more interesting for anyone who's into their music. You get plenty of bands around the city but the vast majority are cover bands. Limerick borders Tipp and North Kerry which have some of the liveliest and awe inspiring traditional music in the country yet it's almost impossible to find a decent lively trad session in the city.

There are some things Limerick does very well. There are some brilliant restaurants here and you won't get value for money in any other city eating out like you will here. There are plenty of shops, and a lot of the bigger stores to visit. Galway is limited in that regard for sure. Dublin, has more understandably.

I really don't hate to see people listing off positive points about Limerick. The more positive points the better and I'd be very happy indeed to get more life around the city center and more positivity which would bring in even more new businesses.

Silentcorner

squonk wrote: »

I throw Galway into the post to offer a sense of perspective as I don't know anything about the OP and whether they are flexible or not. I've lived in Dublin, Galway and now Limerick so I've seen the merits and demerits of all these cities.

Truth be told, I find Limerick very dead compared to Dublin or Galway. The city revolves around Sport and while I agree with other posters that there's more to define Limerick than the Munster team, it's very, very hard to get away from it. Dublin or Galway are much more interesting for anyone who's into their music. You get plenty of bands around the city but the vast majority are cover bands. Limerick borders Tipp and North Kerry which have some of the liveliest and awe inspiring traditional music in the country yet it's almost impossible to find a decent lively trad session in the city.

There are some things Limerick does very well. There are some brilliant restaurants here and you won't get value for money in any other city eating out like you will here. There are plenty of shops, and a lot of the bigger stores to visit. Galway is limited in that regard for sure. Dublin, has more understandably.

I really don't hate to see people listing off positive points about Limerick. The more positive points the better and I'd be very happy indeed to get more life around the city center and more positivity which would bring in even more new businesses.

Galways music scene is just like it's cultural scene, it exists purely to attract tourists, lets be brutally honest, it is very successful at attracting tourists but Galway does not produce or export music or culture in any way shape or form. The venues for gigs in Galway are terrible. It has no cultural infrastructure. Apart from a 200 seater theatre and a Salthill bingo hall....

Limerick will always appear dead to Galway as long as Galway keeps attracted more tourists than Limerick, it's city centre is tiny, Limerick city centre is 3/4 times bigger, and we attract way less tourists.

But please, save all your cosmopolitan/cultural/music scene nonsense for the yanks.

seachto7

Plenty of original music in Limerick. Way more than Galway has or will ever have.

squonk

With respect, you're wrong. Yes, Galway has it's tourist music hell holes. There are plenty of those but there are genuinely good venues as well. I list The Crane and The Western Hotel as great venues with genuinely good sessions attended as much by the locals along with a few tourists as well.

Galway does not produce or export music or culture in any way shape or form

LOL, just LOL! De Dannan, Stunning, We Banjo 3, Julie Feeney, Sean Keane, Mairtin O'Connor, Sharon Shannon is based in Galway and I could go on. I'm not getting into a tit for tat argument but I'd say that beats an oul' rugby team any day of the week.

Galway has more than it's fair share of theaters. Yes, it doesn't have a UCH, I'll give you that but it matches anything else Limerick has in terms of venues. They're using the Bingo Hall as you call it because Leisureland got flooded I believe so they need somewhere while it's being renovated. That's another thing Galway has, a sea front.

I'm not knocking Limerick but it's the same every time anyone mentions anything mildly critical of the place, there are people who just seem to take it personally and it feels like you've insulted several generations of their family.

zulutango

This thread is supposed to be about comparing Limerick and Dublin as places to live. Can a mod delete these posts about Galway as they are completely irrelevant?

Silentcorner

squonk wrote: »

With respect, you're wrong. Yes, Galway has it's tourist music hell holes. There are plenty of those but there are genuinely good venues as well. I list The Crane and The Western Hotel as great venues with genuinely good sessions attended as much by the locals along with a few tourists as well.



LOL, just LOL! De Dannan, Stunning, We Banjo 3, Julie Feeney, Sean Keane, Mairtin O'Connor, Sharon Shannon is based in Galway and I could go on. I'm not getting into a tit for tat argument but I'd say that beats an oul' rugby team any day of the week.

Galway has more than it's fair share of theaters. Yes, it doesn't have a UCH, I'll give you that but it matches anything else Limerick has in terms of venues. They're using the Bingo Hall as you call it because Leisureland got flooded I believe so they need somewhere while it's being renovated. That's another thing Galway has, a sea front.

I'm not knocking Limerick but it's the same every time anyone mentions anything mildly critical of the place, there are people who just seem to take it personally and it feels like you've insulted several generations of their family.

To be fair when you are using hotels and leisureland as venues you are scraping the barrel a bit. I mean imagine if Las Vagas suddenly starting claiming to be the Cultural/music capital of America...nobody would take them seriously.

I'm starting to see the issue here, you are a bit of a trad enthusiast, no problem with that, I enjoy a bit myself from time to time, but Trad does not and will never define the Irish music scene, and certainly not the Limerick music scene, I cannot stand cover bands and avoid them like the plague, you'll find me in Dolans or Cobblestones as opposed to smiths or the Orchard. The bands you mentioned are all of trad extraction and have little if any international relevance...including The Stunning, who I liked back in the day. But be under no illusion that list pales in comparison to Limericks. I do not blame you if you don't go tit for tat. I will leave these two links for you, watch the amount of youtube hits they have both garnered.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvPv7nOQtZE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ejga4kJUts

Limerick produces poets/writers/playwrights/comedians/rock music/producers/actors in the last 30 years we have produced an Oscar winner, two Granny Award winners and a Pulitzer prize winner, not bad for a small city. Not to mention a rock band that has filled stadiums as recently as two years ago all over the world.

I mean this sincerely, you will get a lot more out of this city if you make an effort to explore all aspects of it, if sport is not your thing there is plenty more from architectual societies to historical societies. Check out the Limerick Soviet, check out Taits clothing factory, check out Catherine Hayes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_Hayes_(soprano)) all small and arguably insignificant but it is only when you have all the little nuggets of history and culture that a completely different perception of Limerick City emerges.

You are right, we are very quick to stand up for ourselves, not always a pleasant characteristic, but I can only speak for myself on this one, I am sick to the teeth of getting insulted because of where I am from.

seachto7

squonk wrote: »

LOL, just LOL! De Dannan, Stunning, We Banjo 3, Julie Feeney, Sean Keane, Mairtin O'Connor, Sharon Shannon is based in Galway and I could go on. I'm not getting into a tit for tat argument but I'd say that beats an oul' rugby team any day of the week.

I would say the Cranberries put all of those bands in the shade in terms of album sales and profile.

The Stunning and Sharon Shannon aren't from Galway. If that's the case, Limerick can start claiming Pat Shortt etc.

Just look at the Pigtown Fling album lineup. Hands down Limerick city for music.

Too much shaping going on up in Galway.

squonk

The Cranberries were just one band though, all of 20 years ago! I'm just saying...

zulutango

At least we can agree that both Limerick and Galway are better places to live than Dublin. With Limerick being overall the best place to live in the country

Silentcorner

squonk wrote: »

The Cranberries were just one band though, all of 20 years ago! I'm just saying...

You are bringing out the worst in me.

They toured the globe (as in the world) 2 years ago.

The stunning were Galways biggest musical export, they are smaller than the Sawdoctors who are from Tuam.

Your argument is embarrassing us both...leave it go.

seachto7

squonk wrote: »

The Cranberries were just one band though, all of 20 years ago! I'm just saying...

And they still put all of those bands in the ha'penny place for sales and profile, 20 years later.

Procasinator

They should go to Cork. :P

Silentcorner

seachto7 wrote: »

I would say the Cranberries put all of those bands in the shade in terms of album sales and profile.

The Stunning and Sharon Shannon aren't from Galway. If that's the case, Limerick can start claiming Pat Shortt etc.

Just look at the Pigtown Fling album lineup. Hands down Limerick city for music.

Too much shaping going on up in Galway.

Cranberries have sold 45 million albums worldwide, only Enya and U2 have sold more, most well known Irish bands sell around the 200-400k, unless you break the States. For the record Zombie has in total 180,000,000 you tube hits, no Irish song has more...no mean feat....in fact very few bands anywhere in the world especially from that era have anywhere near that.

The Pigtown Fling is an excellent album...couldn't agree more.

Fireball07

To answer the OP's question, I would just say that if you come onto this forum, I imagine people would generally lean in favour of Limerick, I imagine the same is on the Dublin forum. Have to take that into account.


I don't think I'd ever pick Dublin over Limerick, it's too loud, chaotic, etc for my liking. But not everyone would have that opinion. Some people hate Limerick after all..... but I like it.