Is traveling to Northern Ireland safe?

Traveling & Moving to Ireland?

• I have a few questions about moving & traveling to Ireland. For my Sophomore year, I'm planning to travel to Derry, Ireland for my studies and Planning to move there hopefully in the future. I'm an American who lives in California. I'm currently a Freshman, Although, I've been spending a majority of my time exploring and studying Ireland. I find everything about Ireland fascinating, everything about it is amazing. The first question i'm wondering is how I will be treated if I go there and the people, and especially what they hate. - I know some of the basics about traveling there like Don't say Your Irish, or Don't Do stupid stuff, Don't disrespect Ireland, Be Optimistic. But, Im not clear on this topic.. I heard the people there are very warming and kind, but they do like to talk. I love to talk to, but I do mind myself, and I don't step overboard, and I have a high respect for everyone. Will they treat me different because the way i talk, or the way i am? The second question is Whats the difference.. - I know some of you will say "Oh, there isn't a difference, its just like where you live." But there is always something different.. can someone clarify this? The final question is some of the laws they have in Ireland that we Don't have in America.. - I know that Abortion is illegal, and i've browsed over the constitution, but can someone point out the ones they emphasize on?

• Answer:

  I'm American and was in Ireland (Republic of Ireland) the first week of January and -- honestly -- didn't experience any real culture shock. There were tons of American tourists in Ireland, so I suppose the Irish are kind of used to us coming over there. On the Irish (RTE) and British T.V. channels (Sky, BBC) over there our American films and shows are fairly common. In many of the pubs they played all kinds of American music -- alternative, pop, R&B, etc -- yes, it was strange hearing the Eagles and Lionel Ritchie at one pub in Dublin. They even had U.S. standard electrical outlets in one of the hotels we stayed in. You won't be treated any different for being American, though your American accent will definitely get you noticed. I've lived all over the U.S. throughout my life and developed a somewhat neutral American accent (nothing regionally distinctive) but the Irish obviously will instantly recognize you as coming from North America. I'm sure your Californian accent will stick out and be a good icebreaker when you're chatting with others in a pub. My advice would be not to be overly boisterous or loud, avoid talking too much about the United States and comparing it to Ireland, and try to spend a little more time listening to others than actually talking. I didn't detect any genuine anti-Americanism but there were some Irish guys on our train from Dublin to Galway who were mocking Americans and the war in Afghanistan. They were making rude comments and laughing about the foolishness of Americans they've dealt with -- and I'm certain they had no idea me and my family were Americans and nearby listening to them! Anyway, those guys were definitely not representative of the Irish people we had interactions with. You're going to be in Derry (aka "Londonderry") which is in Northern Ireland and a part of the U.K. Maybe this is too obvious but it is best to avoid conservations in public about the IRA, Catholic vs Protestant, North vs South, etc. There's a possibility someone might get upset if you bring up sensitive subject matter that one takes offense to. I've actually never been to Northern Ireland, but a friend of mine has and told me a little bit about it. There is much to do in Ireland. It's not a tiny island but it's not enormous so you can get around the country pretty quickly. For example, from Galway City on the west coast (Atlantic Ocean) to Dublin on the east (Irish Sea) our train trip was only 2 1/2 hours. Anywhere you go in Ireland you'll experience the craic in the pubs (Google "craic" if you aren't familiar with it) and their beautiful countryside with rolling hills and mountains to behold. I personally thought driving along the Atlantic coast was most impressive. Definitely visit the Cliffs of Moher in Co. Clare and the Giant's Causeway in Co. Antrim (Northern Ireland). They do have different laws in Ireland but I didn't notice anything different in my week there. Unlike in the U.S. it's illegal in Ireland to carry mace or pepper spray -- it's considered a firearm or offensive weapon over there. Of course we didn't carry pepper spray or have any need to use it! I'm sure they had pickpockets or muggers in Dublin, but we didn't encounter any problems with crime. The only unusual thing I noticed is that Dubliners love to jaywalk, which surprised me a little. I'm used to seeing that in our big American cities, but I falsely assumed the pedestrian crossing signals in Dublin would be obeyed much more often. I was completely wrong. I read somewhere that it can be dangerous to make assumptions about another culture before actually experiencing it first-hand. Yes, do some research and educate yourself about Ireland, but bring an open mind and, above all, don't assume things to be a certain way because you may find them the polar opposite. Relax, have a good time, and definitely be sure to know which round (of drinks) you're responsible for (i.e., paying for) at the pub!