A YOUNG American couple on their honeymoon ended up in West Cork for the festive season where they were made very much part of the community in Courtmacsherry.
From Maine, Jordan Henry, a social worker at the local school and Andrea Steward, a policy advocate at the local state government, the trip fulfilled a desire to visit Ireland, with the possibility of a future return.
Speaking after they participated in the annual New Year’s Day swim in aid of the Courtmacsherry RNLI at Broadstrand on Monday, Andrea said: ‘I’ve been in love with Ireland for a while now and I wanted to move here in 2020 but unfortunately I stayed in the States.’
The couple have known each other for over three years and their honeymoon provided a special opportunity to visit Ireland where they stayed at an Air B&B in Dunworley.
Jordan added: ‘I always wanted to come here (Ireland) too for sure, but didn’t know how beautiful it would be. We flew in on Christmas Day.’
With their flight schedule, Christmas dinner was cheese ravioli on the plane. It didn’t take long for the young couple to find their bearings and they ended up in Courtmacsherry on New Year’s Eve.
‘We enjoyed the Lifeboat Inn’ remarked Andrea. ‘It was a great feeling and we couldn’t leave. We ended up staying and met a lot of people like Emma and John (O’Donovan) and we ended up in the parade up and down the street.’
Jordan, a drummer of note, played his part. ‘I’ve been playing drums for over a decade, I started very young. Seems like I have set the bar now, we had a blast out there, playing the bass drum.’
The couple also met former local man John Joe Fleming (82), who was home from Boston.
At the swim, they also chatted with Tánaiste Micheál Martin.
‘We seem to find a way to meet the most incredible people in Ireland, we are thoroughly fortunate. He (Tánaiste) seemed more interested in speaking to us than taking photos, a lot of people wanted photos with him, but he just wanted to talk to people, he seems very humble.’
On their future plans, they added: ‘We would love to come back anytime of the year, the weather is great (as the rain continued to fall). We are looking to move here but I hear houses are hard to find, just like in the States and they’re expensive.’
A hot whiskey after the swim provided further warmth on their unforgettable week in Ireland and they might just return for a longer visit.
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