Irish politician proposes switch to right-hand driving

by Anna Brones on

Driving on the left side of the road while traveling in countries like the United Kingdom and Australia can be difficult, even dangerous, for travelers used to sticking to the right side. The difficulties of those travelers, as well as an influx in immigration from other European countries, are making Ireland debate switching to right-hand driving.

Last week Donnie Cassidy, a senior Irish politician, proposed to move towards a right-hand driving system in order to ease life for travelers, but also for Irish citizens who like to travel abroad. “I know when I go to America it takes me five or six days to adjust,” said Cassidy.

The motoring body AA responded by saying that the idea was completely ridiculous. But the idea is not as crazy as it seems; Sweden switched to right-hand driving in 1967 to align with the rest of Europe.

Even if the proposal doesn’t pass, Cassidy still wants to make things a little easier on travelers from countries that drive on the right hand side of the road by respecting a 80 kilometer per hour speed limit instead of the normal 120 kilometers for Irish drivers.

From green Ireland to the Plastic States of America

by Iva Skoch on

Since I travel back and forth between the US and Europe very frequently, I no longer get a culture shock every time. There are some things that still get me though. One of them are plastic bags in grocery stores.

When I come back to the US, I get really annoyed because I literally get about 5 bags (paper or plastic) for about 10 items of groceries. The excess is staggering. It is a struggle to convince the baggers to NOT give me bags. It is “are you sure?” every time. Come on, is it really necessary to double bag that bottle of cheap beer?

According to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. An estimated 12 million barrels of oil is required to make that many plastic bags (that’s roughly the amount of oil the US consumes in a day). Plastic bags cause over 100,000 whale, turtle and other animal deaths every year when animals mistake them for food.

A lot of European countries are now talking about forcing grocery stores to charge customers for their bags. I mean openly charge them. Of course, the customer pays for them either way, but when bags are “free”, they are actually covered in the cost of the food. The more bags you use, the more expensive your food. Ireland, for example was one of the first countries to pass the plastic bag tax in 2002: 33 cents if you want a bag with your purchase, which is hardly unreasonable. And guess what, within weeks, there was a 94 percent drop in plastic bag use. That is the funny thing about people – they like free stuff, even if free isn’t really free.

Halloween Rituals Around the World

by Martha Edwards on

For most of us North Americans, Halloween conjured images of mountains of candy, jack-o-lanterns, cheesy decorations and music at the neighbours house, drunk pubcrawlers wearing completely ridiculous outfits that they would never dream of wearing normally. And for us Canadian prairie kids in particular, we remember with fondness how our moms tried valiantly to fit our costumes over top of our snowsuits and how we would inevitably reach a point where we were just too cold to keep going, despite the 20 more blocks of free candy that was up for grabs. Ahhh, good times.

But, have you ever wondered what they do for Halloween in other countries? I did a little research and here’s a small sampling of what I found:

  • In China, food and water is placed in front of photos of deceased family members to honour them
  • In Belgium, they really believe in the black cat superstition, and it’s bad news if one enters your house
  • In the Czech Republic, a fire is built and chairs for deceased people are placed beside it.
  • In Ireland, where Halloween originated, bonfires are lit across the country and many people hold parties, complete with festivities like apple-bobbing.
  • In Latin America and Spain, they celebrate El Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) — and though it might seem like a sombre day, it’s actually quite the celebration — it lasts three days and commemorates the return of the dead to the earth.
  • In France, Halloween is a commercialized American holiday brought into the country by Coca-Cola.

So I’m curious — what happens on Halloween where you live?

Which European Country has the Worst Drunks According to YouTube Videos

by Neil Woodburn on

Europe has a long tradition of drinking. While this may not be such a bad cultural norm, there are a few bad apples who embrace their love of alcohol just a little too enthusiastically.

If you’ve been to Europe, you know what I’m talking about. Sure, my home country of America has its share of drunks, but for whatever reason I always see far more stumbling, incoherent, word-slurring reprobates on the streets of Europe than I ever do back home.

So which country is the worst? Which European country is plagued with too many drunks encountering difficulty riding bikes, crossing the street, holding a tune, or otherwise trying to go about their daily lives while debilitatingly inebriated?

Well, now thanks to YouTube, you can be the judge. Just click the play button on any of the below videos and then vote for Europe’s most intoxicated country at the end of the post.

Cheers!

Poland

Poland #2

Russia

Germany

Switzerland

Czech Republic #1

Czech Republic #2

Slovakia

Croatia

France

England

Ireland

Scotland

Ukraine #1

Ukraine #2

Romania

%Poll-3050%

Dublin’s Wax Museum Vandalized; Teletubbies go Missing, Madonna Loses Limbs

by Neil Woodburn on

I’ve never really understood the appeal of wax museums, but apparently there are many tourists in this world who enjoy gazing upon wax replicas of history’s villains, heroes, and stars.

That being said, the National Wax Museum in Dublin was recently shut down to make room for a hotel. Its relocation has been delayed due, in part, to city officials “citing the wax museum’s lack of cultural merit.”

Ouch.

But that’s not all. Dublin’s array of wax figures recently suffered further indignation when the warehouse in which they were being stored was broken into and used as a venue for an underground rave party. The ravers were not kind to the wax figures. According to a recent AP report, Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Charles de Gaulle and Winston Churchill were all stripped naked, Madonna’s limbs were broken off, and The Edge lost his guitar.

Other wax replicas went missing altogether, including Hannibal Lecter, Bob the Builder, Gollum, and the entire Teletubbies quartet.

I’m sorry, but the thought of some stoned Irish kids, giggling and tripping over themselves as they spirited Hannibal Lecter through the dark streets of Dublin really makes me laugh.