The Real US v the exported images the rest of the world see

Check out my Historic Bed and Breakfast Website
www.theironhorseinn.com



One of the greatest and most pleasant surprises I had when I came to the US was just how pretty it is and how nice the neighbourhoods are. Unfortunately- the images that most people outside of the US see daily on the TV and Movie screens are of run down cityscapes and violence. I remember seeing nice neighborhoods in the movies and thinking that they were only where the extremely wealthy lived and were not typical of life over here. Well now that I am living here, I find that the common images portrayed in most of the TV shows and movies could not be further from the truth. I was really surprised by the attractive diversity of the homes people live in over here. Each neighborhood has hundreds of different style homes from small and simple to large and extravagant. I particularly love the older style wooden homes in most historic districts across the country.



In Ireland all of our modern housing estates have rows and rows of similar
houses ,with little diversity among them. I am so delighted to actually be able to live in one of the most beautiful historic homes in this part of Texas - the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, in Granbury.

OUR LOVELY OLD HISTORIC CRAFTSMAN STYLE MANSION IN GRANBURY TEXAS


Also the impression I had was that the American people were not a religious people. Again how wrong I was. I was immediately struck by the large number of different churches and denominations there are over here. Also, the rates of church attendance are much higher here. Particularly living in Texas, I am pleasantly surprised about how open people are about their faith - here at our bed and breakfast, we have many people who say grace before their breakfast, and while religion is seldom a topic of conversation, a matter of fact way of mentioning their faith is common here. I remember how private people were about
their faith in Ireland and how disillusioned they were in the church there.
The America I live in is far from the America I grew up seeing on the TV and in the movies!

Irish Foods and their American translations!

Take a look at my historic bed and breakfast website at
www.theironhorseinn.com

What are the things an Irish woman in Texas misses about home? Despite the fact that Irish food is not considered particularly exotic here in the US, (folks ask me regularly what is typical Irish food) I miss the items I can't get here. King Crisps - or in translated to US English -chips! I remember as a small child a real treat was for my dad to bring home a pack of king crisps from a pub - because back then they could only be bought in pubs. They are still delicious and my mouth waters thinking about them - especially cheese and onion flavor!




Another food item I miss is long ray and chips from the chipper - or in US English skate and fries from the fish and chip shop! Long Ray is a Dublin delicacy and is hard to get outside of Dublin - if you ask for it in most towns in Ireland you will be asked "Are you from Dublin". It is one of the first things I order when i go home on vacation .

Of course a good Irish fry is something most Irish folks miss when they come to the US. Sausage, rasher and black and white pudding is just the best food. A rasher for those who don't know is a piece of bacon similar to Canadian bacon, a sausage is similar to the US link sausage and black pudding is a blood sausage. Delicious. It would often be served with potato cakes and eggs. I serve potato cakes here at the bed and breakfast some mornings and they are very popular.

There is a great resource for finding some familiar foods not too far from here in Grapevine Texas, called the British Emporium. I can get a regular supply of Heinz baked beans , which are not at all like US baked beans.We used to have them on toast, most people I say that to here, think it is really weird!

Dublin Texas

Take a look at my historic bed and breakfast website at
www.theironhorseinn.com

As a an Irish woman from Dublin, living in Granbury Texas, I have been aware that not too far away is the city of Dublin Texas, the place where the Dublin Dr. Pepper is made. I have wanted to check this place out since I moved here, and finally got a chance to go a couple of weeks back. It is a small city, no comparison with my home city, which by the way is one of the most wonderful cities in the world!
We decided to visit the local historical museum to find out about the Irish people who founded the city, where they came from originally and when they got here. Imagine my surprise to find that it was not founded by anyone from Dublin at all! Apparently there was a hotel in the area called the Double L Inn, and when the town was incorporated they decided to call it after the hotel - the double l inn or Dublin! I have to admit I am little disappointed, I suppose I was hoping for some kind of a wonderful coincidence that would link me to the city through my past - no such thing happened!
Anyway, it is a pretty little town, with a lot of evidence of the importance of the Dr. Pepper manufacturing. The Dr. Pepper factory has its own museum, which is quite interesting to visit.

Well now, when our guests at The Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast ask me if I have ever been to the Dublin here in Texas, I can say - "yes I have actually!"