We recently paid a visit to Galway in the West of Ireland. 'Fitzy' was on helping hand to show us what the 'craic' was, so here's Shane Fitzgerald....
[*Slang Terminology, see below]
What phone are you using?I’m definitely an iPhone man rather than Blackberry. The standard of cheaper phones is getting better though, but most people that are interested in technology tend to go for either a Blackberry or an iPhone. I love the iPhone, I use it every morning to check Liverpool FC blogs and website, to use Facebook, just to see what the craic* is with everybody, what people are doing. With a Blackberry I’d always be ‘bullin’* myself with the complex technology.
What would you say is the typical style in Galway?Well nobody wears skinny jeans [points at my skinny jeans and laughs], they’d get called a batty-boy. Everyone wears comfortable, practical stuff. People wear tracksuits, hoodies etc, cos’ the weather is shite.
So does everyone call you “Fitzy”?Yeh, nicknames are important over here, it’s always a shortened version of the surname.
*Tell me more about Galway slang terminology…Different counties have different sayings. Slang is primarily based on the county you’re from. For instance, “good buzz”, “wirey” and “fried”, which meand ‘good’, are all quite towny sayings. I’m rural, from the countryside, more traditional, we say stuff like “what’s the craic”, meaning ‘what’s up’ or ‘what’s good?’ or ‘what is going on’. I’d say something was ‘unreal’ or ‘mighty craic’ If I thought it was really good. The rural slang is far more positive than the slang of the city, more positive people in general I’d say, but If I’m ‘bullin’ about something, I;m frustrated and angry. An ‘eejit’ means ‘idiot’.
What brands do you think are popular?Jack & Jones Jeans are the rage. Ben Sherman jeans too. People take pride in their jeans, they’ll spend more on jeans than anything else. Sports jerseys are massive too, whether it be soccer, rugby, or Gaelic Football. I never wear t-shirts, just sports jerseys. Rugby shirts are big because you can get into clubs wearing them, but you cannot get in wearing soccer jerseys, its weird like that. At night I’d wear button-up shirts or polo shirts, like Tommy Hilfiger or Ralph Lauren. Cotton Jumpers, Shirts, Jeans and brown shoes, probably a River Island shirt or something. This is what a majority of lads will be wearing when they head into town.
What music is popular in Galway?Well there are 4 people living in my house, two are mad into trance, one is mad into pop music, I’m mad into Rap music. So, nothing that is everyone’s favourite.
What do you do for work?When I am not at Uni I go back home to work in a bar. Out of about the 30 or so lads in our friendship group here at Uni, I would say about 28 of them have worked in bars before, it’s the done thing as a young lad. The one business that will never decline, recession or no recession.
[That's 'Fitzy' on the right holding the pint glass]
What would you say is the Galway scene?Galway is very cultured. If you went to other cities in Ireland it’s always shite. Galway has the film festival, the arts festival, it’s the venue for culture rather than making money. It’s extremely sociable. Music is big here. Buskers, lots of buskers, If you walk down Shop Street in Town there will be playing music 24/7 and people love it, they appreciate it, If it were anywhere else, people wouldn’t piss on these buskers even if they were on fire.
Also, in Clare, the county I come from, there are always ‘hoodies’ causing trouble, but not in Galway. People see Galway as a home away from home, and often end up staying here after they graduate.
What are some of the good music venues in Galway?The Roisin Dubh is a great live music venue. You get all sorts there, from stoners to townies and everyone really, all types of music, all types of crowds. Somewhere like ‘The Quays” is good for music, but more for 25-30 year olds, the venue is designed for an older crowd. There’s Monroes Live Bar, great for music acts too.
What about nightclubs?It’s closed down now, but GPO was one of the major clubs. It shut down, the owners had some problems. Fibber McGhees, it’s a good late bar, full of students, good DJ’s. You get a lot of younger ones here as its less strict on ID, so you’ll get some 16/17 year olds here.
How are you using Social Networking?I use Facebook, on the laptop and on the iPhone, mainly to arrange events, see the craic, birthday parties etc. Facebook only really exploded last year here. Now, there’s no longer a need to send out text messages, just Facebook people. Nobody uses Twitter, its for c*nts. One of my lecturers advised us to follow him on Twitter for updates on classes etc, what an eejit.
Any last words…?“Drink Buckfast get fucked fast”…[Buckfast is a very strong, cheap wine that many young Irish folk drink to get slaughtered].
Remember that quiet little weekend recently where a couple of kids got married? That weekend where we were bound by bunting and showed [in my mind] how brilliant the British can bloody well be? Well, the Royal Wedding showed up some other interesting insights, namely that the British Youth seemed, suddenly, vociferously patriotic [although, uh, it's not necessarily a word they know]... As my My latest article for Canvas8 shows:
