WELL, yes, they do build them the way they used to - sometimes. Anyone who has ever bemoaned the drop in building and finishing standards can take heart at this Kinsale, Co Cork, home, constructed 10 years ago for the long haul.

COURTRAY is a bit like the ducks on the nearby Lough in Cork city - all may seem quiet up front or above the water, but there's a lot going on underneath, or, in this house's case, behind the facade.

EU enlargement is in force just a week, but a strip of Cork city recalls an earlier time and a different act of union - the days of the British Empire.