Back in Belfast

Well, I'm back in Belfast after a break in the Republic (or doyn soyth, as they call it up here). It's good to be back in town even though I had a great Christmas, including a very pleasant New Year with friends in Limerick, a city that, much like the one I live in, is much lovelier than its terrible reputation.

This was Dublin's first white Christmas in 52 years, although the snow didn't quite cover the grass and then didn't stay more than the day. That said, the defining memory of the year will be events around the Indian Ocean. I've nothing to add on that front, not that I should I suppose.

I'm in the middle of writing a post about attitudes in the Irish Republic towards a united Ireland - lots of musings on opinion poll questions etc. But first I have to find an actual opinion poll that asks the questions I think have been asked. Trinity College Dublin's opinion poll archive seems to be down (I'll link to it in the next post), so I'll have to beg some assistance from colleagues. Expect ranting in the next few days....