Hurrah for the Celtic Tiger
IN THESE dark days of recession it’s very easy to look back on the halcyon era of Ireland’s Celtic Tiger with a mix of embarrassment and guilt. Although I don’t believe that “we all partied”, I think some certainly did. And of course there were many things that should have been sorted by our Government when we had the money to do so.
However, we did get some things right during the Tiger years. It may cheer us up to be reminded of just some of them.
MOTORWAYS
I remember when it took me most of the day to drive from Dublin to Cork on a route fraught with challenges. The first hurdle was to find my way to the Naas Road, a journey that took me through millions of roundabouts including the ‘roundabout of death’ at Walkinstown.
Once out of Dublin the trip south was scenic but peppered with blackspots. Portlaoise was a nightmare of very narrow streets, choked with juggernauts and heavy traffic. Arriving into Co Cork meant the infamous T junction in Fermoy. Sure a girl would be exhausted when finally arriving in the southern capital.
Nowadays Dublin to Cork takes on average two and a half hours — motorway all the way, with the M50 now just a mile from my front door. And the story is the same for journeys to most of our cities from the capital.
The first sections of motorway roads were actually built in 1983 when the M7 Naas Bypass and a section of the M1 opened. But it was in the first decade of the 21st century that most of the motorway expansion occurred, with activity peaking in 2008. At one stage we had the largest road building programme in Europe.
We are still a bit short of motorway services ... but sure can’t we bring our own coffee and a hang sanger with us. It’ll remind us it was far from motorways we were reared.
DUBLIN CITY
In the last recession, in the 1980s, Dublin looked suitably depressed. Many of our beautiful public buildings were covered in city grime; we had precious few interesting restaurants and certainly none with tables on the pavements. Dublin wore a pervasive air of dejection.
But this time around, we are broke in a gorgeous capital city. We have two magnificent sports stadia — Croke Park and the Aviva, the latter sitting on the south cityscape like a shiny elliptical space craft.
A drive at dusk over the East Link Bridge showcases the beautifully lit Convention Centre, the curved lines of the Sean O’Casey and Samuel Beckett bridges, the myriad of shapes of the IFSC and in the background, marking the city centre, the silver Spire stretches to the heavens.
We have transformed the former coal depot around Dublin’s Grand Canal Basin which now houses the Bord Gais Energy Theatre and plaza, complete with new pubs and restaurants.
North of the river the old area of Smithfield has been regenerated, as has the area around the O2, formerly the Point.
Public transport has improved with bus lanes and the arrival of the Luas. We haven’t quite got the hang of making the systems link up yet, but a bit of walking is good for us.
DUBLIN ZOO
Dublin Zoo is one of Europe’s oldest zoos, and dates back to 1831. In those days zoos were about visitors being able to get as close as possible to the wildlife which often resulted in enclosures that were far from ideal for the animals.
By 1990 Dublin Zoo was in financial crisis and it is generally believed it came to within weeks of closing. The Government then invited the Royal Zoological Society to join with the Office of Public Works in drawing up a plan to transform the zoo. A two stage plan was arrived at; the first stage ran from 1994–2001 and the second from 2001–2005. During this period the zoo received considerable Government funding and the result is that today we have a zoo to be proud of.
The facility has more than doubled in size, providing appropriate space and environments for the diverse animals that live there. Our zoo is an active participant in animal breeding programmes, working towards the conservation of species that are under threat in the wild.
But best of all Dublin Zoo is back to being one of Ireland’s premier visitor attractions. The investment by Government means that we are caring for these animals in a much better way than before, and also that future generations can continue to enjoy a day at the “aZoo”.
MULTICULTURALISM
There are two items on news bulletins that are guaranteed to reduce me to tears: Santa leaving the North Pole on the Six One News on Christmas Eve and coverage of our new citizenship ceremonies.
The joy of these shiny, smiley, newly minted, Irish citizens from all corners of the globe is the perfect antidote to the sad reality of so many Irish people leaving every day to make new lives elsewhere.
As an uncle of mine would say, “All’s not lost yet”. We may be banjaxed financially but there are many immigrants who think this country is a great place to live. It’s good to be reminded of that regularly.
