MY HOLIDAYS

Fintan McGrath TD

Fintan McGrathTD

Earliest holiday memory?

When I was a young kid I went to Salthill, in Galway, with my family. We rented a house for a week right beside the beach. It was a super adventure for the whole family. It wasn't all good weather, but, hail, rain or snow, we'd be out on the rocks, looking for shellfish and swimming.

Worst holiday?

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In France one year, camping with my wife and two daughters in St Jean de Mont. We arrived at the campsite and our eldest daughter, Caoimhe, who was four at the time, wandered off to the playground. We got an awful fright. She disappeared for 25 minutes, and it really rattled us. I suppose we had been reading about child abduction and we were paranoid parents. The joy of finding her afterwards was a total relief.

Best holiday?

Last summer, after the general election, we went down to Portiragnes, in the south of France, beside the Spanish border. It's like

Dingle with great weather. We had a fantastic time. I was exhausted after the election talks and the deal with the Government, and I spent the time on the beach playing with my daughters. It was bliss.

If budget or work was no restriction, what would be your dream holiday?

I think I would go back to France, to a rented house or campsite beside the sea. I love the sea and the sand, and I have very happy memories of rearing the girls there. Even Caoimhe still has great memories of that time.

If you had your pick, who would you bring on holiday with you?

I'd like to bring my whole extended family.

Your favourite place in Ireland?

Tuam, Co Galway, where I was born. Tuam is a small town with a great sense of  warmth you'd find hard to track down anywhere else across the globe, and Galway has so many attractions.

What book would you recommend on holiday?

I'm always reading books on James Connolly when on holidays, and I love political biographies. I like to read the papers. I'd travel 20km if I heard about somewhere that sells The Irish Times.

Where will you spend your next holiday?

We're going back to Portiragnes next. I also plan to bring a gang of family and friends to Cuba in a year or two.

Finian McGrath is an Independent TD for Dublin North Central