Author Archives: andypollak

In praise of Irish villages (under the summer sun)

Posted on Monday, 16 July, 2018

Earlier this month I spent a week walking along back roads and across hills through a relatively unknown part of the rural north and west of Ireland. I started at the village of Tynan, west of Armagh city; walked across … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Republic of Ireland, The island environment | 2 Comments

I wish the Taoiseach would shut up about a united Ireland

Posted on Tuesday, 26 June, 2018

I wish our Taoiseach would shut up about a united Ireland until he has something sensible to say on the subject. According to the Irish Times he was at it again earlier this month, telling Fine Gael parliamentarians after a … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Northern Ireland | 1 Comment

10 beautiful and interesting places off the Belfast to Dublin road (part two)

Posted on Friday, 15 June, 2018

Regular readers of this blog will remember that last month I left you in the excellent Strandfield cafe just north of Dundalk, which was my fifth beautiful and interesting place just off the Belfast to Dublin Road. This month I … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Republic of Ireland, The island environment | Leave a comment

10 beautiful and interesting places off the Belfast to Dublin road (part one)

Posted on Tuesday, 29 May, 2018

The road and railway between Belfast and Dublin have been an important part of my life. Over the past 50 years I must have travelled between Ireland’s two major cities several thousand times. Given the millions of people who make … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, The island environment | Leave a comment

In Prague: Memories of my Czech father and my Irish mother

Posted on Monday, 14 May, 2018

My wife Doireann and I spent a long weekend in Prague earlier this month. For me, it was a sentimental journey into my family’s past. 71 years ago this month my Czech father Stephen and my Irish mother Eileen were … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Views from abroad | 4 Comments

Time to face reality? A new hard(ish) border is on the cards

Posted on Tuesday, 24 April, 2018

It is an outcome filled with deep dangers for this island, but I wonder if it is time to face the unpalatable reality that a new, hard(ish) Irish border is the most likely outcome of the current labyrinthine talks between … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Ireland, Europe and the world | 1 Comment

Sadly, rugby is one of the few things that unites all Irish people

Posted on Friday, 23 March, 2018

I was intending to write about Brexit again this month, but the dreadful conundrum of Brexit and the Irish border is going to be with us for some time, so I am going to turn to a far cheerier and … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland | 3 Comments