Gráinne Faller went "Irish for a day" on a farm in Co Meath and found it surprisingly good fun, educational - and mercifully light on "Oirish" sentiment
'Are you ready?" The farmer prepares to hurl the wet turf. Up goes the sod and, with a whoop of triumph, Hareth Al-Maskari catches it. On seeing a 10-year-old boy manage the task, suddenly lots of people want to try.
It's a bit surreal. The sun is out and the dusky heather is in full bloom as Irish, American and Omani families get their hands dirty in the Girley Bog, just outside Kells. If they're not entirely successful at making turf, they are certainly giving it their best shot.
We're all being Irish for the day. The bog is attached to Causey Farm, at Fordstown, near Navan, which is run by the Murtagh family. They came up with the idea of being Irish for a day about six years ago. Basically, people come to the farm and do activities such as baking brown bread, playing the bodhrán, ceilí dancing, milking a cow and hurling, among other things. The current group of honorary citizens is chuckling away, having bonded while learning a céilí dance earlier on. Things get competitive during a turf stacking competition and cheating, rife among the grown men, means they all lose to Ellen, a seven-year-old from Delaware.
"It's amazing," says Deirdre Murtagh, who runs the business. "Cultures can be so different and yet everybody, without exception, rushes to the kitchen to taste their bread while it's warm."
It's not just tourists who visit either. Earlier, we met a group of children from a Balbriggan summer camp, emerging from the bog like mini firbolg, bringing a winter's worth of peat with them on their clothes. They declared the experience so far to be "deadly".
The farm is a working one and activities are often modified to take advantage of that. "We had a group sheep-dipping last week," says Deirdre. "I think people enjoy seeing the real side of things." Back at the bog, we pile into a trailer and sit on bales of straw as the tractor brings us back to the farm. With its stone buildings dating back to the 1860s, Causey Farm is picturesque, though plenty of children and animals ensure that it isn't too immaculate.
"Mad cow disease. That's what made us think of this venture." Matt Murtagh's introduction earlier in the day was mercifully light on "Oirish" sentiment.
Everyone was a bit shy about getting up for the set dancing but it proved to be the perfect ice-breaker. Sultan Al-Maskari from Oman sat the dance out, not because he wanted to, but because his daughter, Zena, wanted to dance with someone else.
Having already done some hurling, we settle down to picnic lunches after returning from the bog. Our day concludes with a bodhrán lesson. We got music but we ain't got rhythm and as I leave, the families are still bravely drumming away. The Murtaghs manage to pull it all off without a single begorrah and just the right amount of craic.
The Causey Farm Experience costs €25 for adults and €15 for children. Information about activities and options are available at www.causeyexperience.com; booking at 046-943 4135.
