Sir, – As first-time visitors touring through parts of both the Republic and Northern Ireland, many things were evident to my wife and I as we made the first two weeks of November a treasured part of our memories that we will take to the grave.
There was plenty of discussion in your media about economic doom and gloom, and undoubtedly some of these negatives will take some time to sort out.
However, the term “recession” tells only part of the story. There is no recession when indicators of personal qualities are measured. The warmth, care and hospitality shown to these two ordinary Australians by so many folk we encountered, when combined with the natural beauty in the cities, towns and countryside indicated a boom that many nationalities can only dream of. Both states are surely among the world leaders when these factors are considered. – Yours, etc,