Non-nationals and culture in the city?

igesio

Hi,

I plan on going to university in NUIG this September. I'm thinking about Galway because I want to go do a decent university but I also think the city is a good place because of its culture.

I don't like them big multicultural cities - everything is washed down, there's not many Irish values, and I find that in rural areas people are much more extroverted and friendly whereas in cities people keep to themselves. This steered me away from Dublin and Cork.

Galway is a small, new city in an rural area. They also speak a lot of Irish there (though I doubt I will ever use it on campus) and I like speaking Irish.

For this reason I thought Galway would be the city for me but I'm after reading that almost 20% of the population is Irish... now I've no problem with this as long as they know and enjoy the culture as well. But I'm guessing these people would never have heard Irish music, seen a gaelic match, eaten ham and cabbage or seen the Hardybucks - I know it sounds silly but its the little things! I just want some quality Irish craic.

Can someone who lives in Galway address my thoughts? Are the foreigners good craic or do they tend to form ghettos and shut themselves in? Where I live it is the latter but there's little of them so it does not really affect the social life.

Also what is Limerick like in this matter?

Arghus

There can be strong winds around here, perfect for flying kites.

gordongekko

igesio wrote: »

Hi,

I plan on going to university in NUIG this September. I'm thinking about Galway because I want to go do a decent university but I also think the city is a good place because of its culture.

I don't like them big multicultural cities - everything is washed down, there's not many Irish values, and I find that in rural areas people are much more extroverted and friendly whereas in cities people keep to themselves. This steered me away from Dublin and Cork.

Galway is a small, new city in an rural area. They also speak a lot of Irish there (though I doubt I will ever use it on campus) and I like speaking Irish.

For this reason I thought Galway would be the city for me but I'm after reading that almost 20% of the population is Irish... now I've no problem with this as long as they know and enjoy the culture as well. But I'm guessing these people would never have heard Irish music, seen a gaelic match, eaten ham and cabbage or seen the Hardybucks - I know it sounds silly but its the little things! I just want some quality Irish craic.

Can someone who lives in Galway address my thoughts? Are the foreigners good craic or do they tend to form ghettos and shut themselves in? Where I live it is the latter but there's little of them so it does not really affect the social life.

Also what is Limerick like in this matter?

Go to Limerick please

mmg0305

Oh dear, it appears I have failed the Irishness test - having never seen a Gaelic match or Hardybucks. What shall I do?

Arghus

I will say we're a fairly agreeable bunch overall, but stay away from the hot topics - traffic, what constitutes "good" pub food, and never, ever, under any circumstance, no matter what, mention The Grass. Jaysis, we're liable to go stone cracked when we hear of it.

Mrs OBumble

igesio wrote: »

But I'm guessing these people would never have heard Irish music, seen a gaelic match, eaten ham and cabbage or seen the Hardybucks - I know it sounds silly but its the little things! I just want some quality Irish craic.

Can someone who lives in Galway address my thoughts? Are the foreigners good craic or do they tend to form ghettos and shut themselves in? Where I live it is the latter but there's little of them so it does not really affect the social life.

Well some of the best irish music performers in Galway are foreign. And there are plenty of irish people everywhere who like both kinds of music: country AND western.

I cannot speak for any other froms of whay you regard as craic but suspect that some of us foreigners will be pretty handy at GAA too.

Part of me wants to say: come to Galway, there's no better place to open your mind up. Another part thinks you'd fit in better in Limerick. And another part is wondering if theres not a small local IT near where you live and if that wouldn't be better still.


And it's not a new city: has been a trading port since 1500 ish.

beardybrewer

FanadMan

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Well some of the best irish music performers in Galway are foreign. And there are plenty of irish people everywhere who like both kinds of music: country AND western.

pq0n1ct4ve8zf5

Oh be the hokey shur there's shamrocks and craic and seisiúns and GAA and bacon and cabbage all over Galway, from the top of the marning right down to the bottom of it! Largely because the Americans love it and they have money, god love them, they make the place so authentic.

The non Irish population is integrated to different extents, same as everywhere. I live across the road from one primary school and sometimes pick my friend's child up from another and they look like bloody Benneton ads, personally I think it's great. I mean, there's plenty of exotic restaurants you'll have to look at and accents you'll have to hear, but it's as Irish as anywhere else. I would say it's friendlier than the other cities you mention, but that's down to size. It's closer in vibe to a rural place because it's closer to literally being a rural place, not because there are fewer fordiners.

ScumLord

I don't think Galway is particularly "Irish", Galway plays up the Irish thing for the tourists so you will find trad sessions and Irish speaking clubs but ask your average Galwegian to speak Irish and you probably won't get past basic greetings.

I don't think there are any ghettos full of foreigners, it's the locals you need to worry about in that regard.

Galway likes to think it's progressive and full of hippies but it's not really, it's a town, the hippy stuff doesn't go any deeper than wearing the right clothes.

GalwayGrrrrrl

Come to Galway and go to Murty Rabbitts - it's the epicentre of Irish culture.

I'm a non-national who lives in Galway. I don't live in a ghetto, my children go to gaelscoil and I enjoy all kinds of music. The students in any city tend to socialise among themselves anyway so you'd be better off looking at which course is best and which uni has societies you'd enjoy. Slán!

ben.schlomo

xfactorfan23 wrote: »

Come to Galway and go to Murty Rabbitts - it's the epicentre of Irish culture.

I'm a non-national who lives in Galway. I don't live in a ghetto, my children go to gaelscoil and I enjoy all kinds of music. The students in any city tend to socialise among themselves anyway so you'd be better off looking at which course is best and which uni has societies you'd enjoy. Slán!

The Nazi Soc? The Trump Soc? The Murtys Soc?

Utopia Parkway

ScumLord wrote: »

I don't think Galway is particularly "Irish", Galway plays up the Irish thing for the tourists so you will find trad sessions and Irish speaking clubs but ask your average Galwegian to speak Irish and you probably won't get past basic greetings.

Depends on how you define Irishness really. As a native speaker I definitely hear more Irish spoken on the streets of Galway than any other urban area in the country but then again why wouldn't you? The largest Gaeltacht area in the country is only out the road from it. Galway city natives are not particularly known for speaking Irish though. Mainly it would be Connemara folk in town doing their bits and pieces.

However you are still more likely to hear Polish or Chinese being spoken by people walking past you on the road than Irish.

Peregrinus

University towns are generally fairly cosmopolitan places, and Galway is the nearest thing that Ireland has to a university town.

So, if you're looking for a monoculturally Irish town, Galway is a poor place to start.

On the other hand, if you're looking for a town where Irish culture and Irish identity is strong, Galway is an excellent place to start, for reasons that are pointed out in post #1.

The thing is, unless you're deeply insecure about your own culture, a healthy, thriving Irish cultural scene is not at all inconsistent with a healthy, diverse, multicultural environment. Once the OP grasps this, a lot of the concerns they have about Galway will be easily resolved.

OP, go to Galway. Have a ball. And learn to stop thinking about culture as an either/or thing.

ronnie3585

Ham?

Redhairedguy

ronnie3585 wrote: »

Ham?

Unless it's in sandwiches, because then it's 'hang'.

Mrs OBumble

ronnie3585 wrote: »

Ham?

Bacon with grandiose ideas about itself.

ronnie3585

Redhairedguy wrote: »

Unless it's in sandwiches, because then it's 'hang'.

I think you'll find it's pronounced 'sangwidge'.

demello

Go to Galway, but consider GMIT instead of the Uni. Far more student-friendly, low student:staff ratio, you are taught by lecturers, not be post-grads (as happens in many unis), and a real concern shown by the academics for the students.

Redhairedguy

ronnie3585 wrote: »

I think you'll find it's pronounced 'sangwidge'.

Jaysus, you're right! :eek: I let this multi-cultural utopia of Galway dilute my Irish values.

It's time I went on a rural retreat to get in touch with my roots again.

Galway_Old_Man

Non-nationals and culture in the city

The less successful spin-off from Sex And The City.

bodhrandude

ScumLord wrote: »

I don't think Galway is particularly "Irish", Galway plays up the Irish thing for the tourists so you will find trad sessions and Irish speaking clubs but ask your average Galwegian to speak Irish and you probably won't get past basic greetings.

I don't think there are any ghettos full of foreigners, it's the locals you need to worry about in that regard.

Galway likes to think it's progressive and full of hippies but it's not really, it's a town, the hippy stuff doesn't go any deeper than wearing the right clothes.

I'll give you this, Galway does have some of the best Irish traditional music session pubs in the country, its one of the reasons I'm here, following some of my Irish heroes who play a part and are still part of the Irish cultural history of traditional music. Your are always guaranteed to find a session any day of the week at 5.30/ 6pm and 9.30/10 pm in at least three pubs in close proximity, bar Good Fridays and Christmas Days.

maudgonner

Those bloody Spaniards! Coming over here and taking our arches :mad:

GalwayGrrrrrl

Hardybucks? Is that like Buckfast? Or Starbucks?
It's official - I'm a foreigner who's no craic:(

Mrs OBumble

xfactorfan23 wrote: »

Hardybucks? Is that like Buckfast? Or Starbucks?
It's official - I'm a foreigner who's no craic:(

Google suggests s/he means Hardy Bucks, a short lived comedy series.

In Galway i think we prefer Ros na Rún.

ongarboy

igesio wrote: »

For this reason I thought Galway would be the city for me but I'm after reading that almost 20% of the population is Irish... now I've no problem with this as long as they know and enjoy the culture as well. But I'm guessing these people would never have heard Irish music, seen a gaelic match, eaten ham and cabbage or seen the Hardybucks - I know it sounds silly but its the little things! I just want some quality Irish craic.

Can someone who lives in Galway address my thoughts? Are the foreigners good craic or do they tend to form ghettos and shut themselves in? Where I live it is the latter but there's little of them so it does not really affect the social life.

Also what is Limerick like in this matter?

You can't be that Irish if you say "ham and cabbage". Every Irish person I've ever known says "bacon and cabbage". I've never seen a menu advertise it otherwise either.

Ironic that you talk about others shutting themselves in when that seems exactly what you want to do by avoiding anyone that is culturally different to you?? Who's creating their own narrow minded ghetto now?

Your Face

Ghetto life be tough y'all.

inisboffin

Every year Galway has a traditional hair-braiding festival. It's a forgotten art in much of Ireland, bate out of us by the English, but Galway has always remained proud and rebellious and continued this tradition for centuries. It is mainly done by women these days but you will find the odd man in traditional 'bráidóir' trousers and cloth shoes, weaving on Shop Street in the summer. Fáilte.

irishgeo

What bubble is the op living in?

Mrs OBumble

inisboffin wrote: »

Every year Galway has a traditional hair-braiding festival. It's a forgotten art in much of Ireland, bate out of us by the English, but Galway has always remained proud and rebellious and continued this tradition for centuries. It is mainly done by women these days but you will find the odd man in traditional 'bráidóir' trousers and cloth shoes, weaving on Shop Street in the summer. Fáilte.

Billy is just sore cos his own hair is too short to braid.

Your Face

This is very similar to another thread awhile back.