Gogarty’s Pub in Dublin is one of the most popular places for residents and visitors to gather. The Irish are ready for a series of reunions in 2013. (Terry O’Neill/Vacay.ca)
Story by Janine MacLean
Vacay.ca Food Columnist
DUBLIN, IRELAND — It’s 8:30 am and I’m zombie-walking through the Dublin Airport after an overnight flight from Toronto. Soon, it will be Christmas. I’m jet-lagged and in the nauseous throes of early pregnancy. I can’t wait to reach Maynooth, where a bed, hot shower and full Irish fry-up await at an auntie’s house.
Before that pleasure, I must trudge through the airport walkways, dragging carry-on bags and doing my best to remain vertical. Cameras are flashing bright lights, however, and they jolt my sleep-starved and slumping body upright. Was Daniel Day Lewis on our flight? Is this the paparazzi?
No, it’s us. They’re photographing us, my husband and me. As we see Aunt Joan from Maynooth ready for our embrace, the photographers snap away. After our emotional greeting, they rush over to my husband, asking his permission to use the images for promotional purposes — for The Gathering.
My husband, like many other young Irish citizens, has been living abroad for the past three years. We originally planned to settle in Ireland when we married, but in the end couldn’t resist the lure of full-time work in Toronto.
The Gathering — The World’s Ultimate Homecoming
You see, during the past few years Ireland has lost a lot of its citizens — mainly to countries with higher employment rates. Mourning parents appear on Irish talk shows to discuss why their children have moved to Australia or Canada to find work. A popular TV series, Dublin Airport: Life Stories, chronicles the lives of the departing Irish.
It has become a nationwide pastime, discussing the diaspora. In towns and villages all over Ireland you hear the exasperated sighs of those who have stayed to tough out the economic hard times and the proud exclamations mingled with sadness of those whose family members have gone.
But 2013 in Ireland will be different — the gloom is replaced with optimism. This year all of those who left, all who claim Irish ancestry and all who love Irish culture have been invited back for The Gathering — the world’s ultimate homecoming, running from Galway to Dublin, Cork to Londonderry.
The Gathering is not an event. It’s a year-long series of events and happenings developed by the Irish government and since supported by Fàilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland. The massive undertaking kicked off at the New Year’s Eve party in Dublin with a fireworks show that has sparked the nation. Everyone is encouraged to create a gathering, whether it’s a small family reunion or a gala fundraiser. My husband, who moved to Canada from Tipperary, adored our recent gathering, which reunited him and his family. Of the dozens of large-scale public events planned, many revolve around sports, culinary showcases, and annual favourites like the Irish Redhead Convention and the Rose of Tralee.
More than 70 million people worldwide claim Irish ancestry; most reside in North America. Several airlines have teamed with Tourism Ireland to offer promotions and extra transatlantic flights to this festival of a lifetime. Each household in Ireland has also been given blank postcards to mail as invitations to friends and family abroad.
If you’re Irish, or ever wanted to be, consider yourself invited. Arms are spread wide, waiting for your RSVP and news that you soon will make it home.
More About The Gathering 2013
Website: Visit the Tourism Ireland website for a full list of events.
For Canadians: The Canada Come Home event takes place September 13-14, 2013 at Coolattin Estate in County Wicklow. The event “charts the experiences of Irish families that left for a new life in Canada.”
