Ireland and the Ryder Cup are great, but this is the most expensive place I've ever been.
Hotel room: $400 a night
Cup of bad coffee in the lobby about the size of a small Dixie cup: $3.10
Diet Coke: $3.10
Snickers: $2.50
Small muffin: $2.50
Breakfast/lunch in the media center: $12.80
Pint of Guiness: $5.10
On and on it goes. Fortunately, it's not my money, but I still feel guilty about spending it.
I've also never seen anything like the weather here. In the span of a half hour, it goes from bright and sunny to black as night and raining sideways to back to bright and sunny. It goes through that cycle about four times a day. The Irish people are quite apologetic about it. They worry that the Ryder Cup will never return because of the weather.
I was thumbing through one of the papers the other day, the Irish Examiner, when I came across a 20-page special section on the upcoming National and World Ploughing Championships. I'm telling you, it rivaled any Eagles season preview section the Inqurier puts out. I had no idea there were 17 categories of ploughing (or plowing, as we spell it).
A word about the Guiness over here. It is so superior to anything I have ever had back home, it's not funny. Thick, rich, dark as motor oil, goes down so smoothly I almost had a tear running down my cheek.
If you don't like potatoes, don't bother coming to Ireland. Potatoes for breakfast, two or three different kinds of pototoes for lunch, more potatoes for dinner. Order a pint of Guiness and you half-expect them to ask, "Want a side of potatoes with that?"
TV sucks. It's 20 years behind the U.S.
I'm staying in one of the official media hotels, the Green Isle. So is Rick Reilly from Sports Illustrated, who sits directly behind me in the media center. He keepings calling it the "Green Mile," from the prison movie of the same name.
1 comment:
Joe, having recently visited Ireland and taken the time to prepare my trip, I have to disagree with your analysis. Do you really belive that attending the premier golfing tournament in the world is representaive of Irelands quality, prices and people.
Lets take a quick look at attending an Eagles game:
Hotel room: $250 a night
Average ticket: $200
Millar Lite in plastic cup: $7
Dry pretzel: $4
Hot dog: $4
Yes, this all represents great value. Now, multiply some of the items listed by 10 for the Superbowl.
Next, nothing irritates me more when I read educated people perpetuating stereotypes, come on Joe: "if you don't like potatoes, don't bother coming to Ireland". Yes Joe, all Americans are fat. I found the variety of cusine available in Ireland to be excellent.
I will agree with you on one point - the Guinness is outstanding.
Come on Joe, lets see journalism that reflects a man that took the time to scratch below the surface of a country that he visited; because when I did I found a whole lot more than the sub-standard quality and rip-off mentality that you reported.
Regards
John Claymore
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