While the love affair between Ireland and Canada goes back to St. Brendan the Navigator in the 6th Century when he is reputed to have sailed in a leather boat from County Kerry to Newfoundland (a voyage that was recreated by Tim Severin in 1977), many of the ancestors of present day Irish Canadians reach back to the 16th Century when Irish fishermen came to the teeming waters of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland.

They liked Canada so much that they stayed and by the time of Confederation in 1867, the Irish were the second largest ethnic group in Canada, after the French. Today there are over four million Canadians of Irish heritage. At that time, the great Irish-Canadian politician, Thomas D'Arcy McGee was instrumental in bringing all sides to the table and indeed was reputed to be the person who suggested to Sir John A. MacDonald, Canada's first Prime Minister, that the country should be called Canada. It is no accident then that two of Ireland's historic emblems, the Harp and the Shamrock hold pride of place in Canada's official Coat of Arms.

The relative geographical proximity of Ireland to Canada (1993 miles between Botwood, Nfld. and Shannon), has been another source of linkage between Europe and the new world. From the laying of the first transatlantic cable between Newfoundland and Valentia Island County Kerry in 1858 to the Clipper flying boats that plied the hazardous transatlantic route between Gander, Nfld. and Rineanna (Shannon Airport) in the early 1940's, a flight of approximately ten hours.

Today the transatlantic crossing from Toronto to Shannon is a mere six hours in the super comfort seating of a luxurious Air Canada Boeing 767 that connects Toronto to Dublin and Shannon on a daily basis. This is a seasonal service that in 2003 continues into its second successful program.

Craving for the opportunity to visit Ireland, this last September I traveled with a Canadian friend, Kent, whose mother was born in County Tyrone. This would be his first trip to the Emerald Isle.

As tour guide, I wanted to be an ambassador of the country of my birth and try to envision what a Canadian would enjoy and appreciate during a ten day whirlwind tour that took us from coast to coast. The overall plan was to play some of Ireland's finest golf courses, take in some sightseeing and enjoy the hospitality of the people.

Arriving in Dublin right on schedule on a bright and sunny late September morning, we immediately headed to Monkstown and the headquarters of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann, the organization founded in 1951 to nurture traditional Irish music and the Irish language. We had the good fortune to meet up with Senator Labhras O'Murchu, the Director General of the organization who then brought us in to the heart of Dublin for lunch and a tour of the Dail (the Irish Parliament). We were already on a path of discovery not only of the warmth of the Irish people but their history that is evident all over the island.

Needless to say, a trip to Dublin, founded by the Vikings in 988, would not be complete without a visit to St. James's Gate, the home of the Guinness Brewery founded by Arthur Guinness in 1759. In the glass-domed visitor's bar on the top floor, the vista of Dublin City and the Dublin mountains is breathtaking. This is where the Craic (fun) really started and my Canadian friend was already hooked after only five hours on terra Hibernia.

In Ireland, word of mouth is always your best guide, although be prepared because it is not unusual for the native to accompany you all the way when you ask for suggestions and directions. In our case, our taxi driver who was just knocking off, so he joined us at The Palace Bar on Fleet Street, when we asked him where we would find a good Dublin Pub. One has to understand, this is a very difficult question for a Dubliner as there are so many. We were not to be disappointed. The Palace Bar was established in 1843 and in the early 1900's became a haven for Irish writers and poets like W.B. Yeats, Patrick Kavanagh and Flann O'Brien. Again, the Irish - Canadian team hit the jackpot when we were invited into the inner sanctum, The Snug, by the gregarious owner Liam Aherne, whose father emigrated from North Tipperary to Dublin and bought the Palace Bar in 1945. Another Canadian link was made when bar patron "Stout (Michael) Gleeson" entered the snug and after establishing the credentials of the two strangers was asking us to update him on Toronto and the characters he knew when he lived in these parts in the 1970's. A small world indeed in the midst of a Dublin pub where in 1920 Michael Collins plotted the overthrow of the British Empire. Slainte Michael.

We finished the evening at the Comhaltas Culturlann where twenty young traditional musicians were having their final session before they in turn headed to perform eighteen concerts all over Canada and the United States.

The following morning, tired but excited, my Canadian ward and I headed down the coast for County Wicklow, the Garden of Ireland.

A one o'clock tee-off time at Druids Glen just outside Newtownmountkennedy was only 40 minutes away and when we arrived we were greeted by the Maple Leaf flying alongside the Tricolour of Ireland and the Stars & Stripes of America. The Irish Diaspora was not forgotten.

Today we were going to enjoy some lessons on Irish golf and also some history with both a comical and a dark side.

Druids Glen a relatively new course established in 1996 has already been home to the Murphy's Irish Open from 1996 - 1999 and in 2001 was voted European Golf Course of the Year.

The course is located on a spectacular estate between the Wicklow Mountains and the Irish Sea. The name originates from the preserved stone altar of pre-Christian worship that stands on a hillside overlooking the 12th green. The clubhouse, Woodstock House was built around the 1760's. In the early 1800's it became home to Lord Tottenham, the Church of Ireland, Bishop of Ferns. In his time, he had his tenantry build a tunnel from the edge of the estate into the basement of Woodstock House so that the comings and goings of his servants "wouldn't spoil the view of his domain". While the tunnel has crumbled ages ago, the entry into the clubhouse is still there located in a not to missed exhibit space that chronicles the history of Ireland. The Bishop was also said to suffer from a rare skin disease, which was only relieved from bathing in red wine. His butler who used to fill the Bishop's nightly bath felt that he shouldn't waste such a concoction and decided to bottle it and sell it to a local hostelry. After some time, the Bishop got wind of the scheme, fired the butler and closed the hostelry. A wine with body has a whole new meaning when you visit Druids Glen.

Joining some friends who drove cross-country from Lahinch in County Clare, we headed out across the Bishop's domain to enjoy probably Ireland's finest inland course. It was Ryder Cup ace, Eamonn D'Arcy who said, "At Druids Glen they have created a complete litany of great golf hole thrills".

In an era where on an everyday basis we hear " World's Greatest, most famous, not to be missed", the superlatives applied to Druids Glen don't even do it justice. At 7026 yards off the back sticks, this is not a track for the faint hearted - as a result we very quickly agreed to play off the white sticks, a mere 6547 yards.

Etched in my memory is the idyllic par three 12th, next to the Druids altar as well as the 178 yard par three 17th, the island hole that claimed a dozen balls from our foursome. The par five 18th (422 yards) is without doubt probably one of the finest finishing holes in the game. Unless you hit a Tiger inspired drive you'd best lay up and trust your wedge.

After the game we had the honour to meet Druids Glen CEO, Denis Kane and resident professional Ciaran Monaghan. This team has been together for many years and they are passionate about their piece of the Garden of Ireland, the development of the Druids Heath, a new 18 hole Championship course, which will open in 2004 and in developing Ireland's state of the art Golf Academy. Ciaran a veteran of the European Tour for many years is also a colour commentator on the Golf Channel and spends part of the year in Florida. Having told him about our underwater adventure at the 17th he told us the story about two years previously when they dredged the lake in front of this spectacular island hole. They found 13,000 golf balls, four golf carts and eight putters, one of which was bent. Golf in Ireland doesn't get any better than this, or does it?

It was now time to head for the west with a brief sojourn in Clonmel, County Tipperary. Here we visited the world renowned Coolmore Stud and had an opportunity to see and touch Saddler's Wells, the son of the great Canadian thoroughbred, Northern Dancer. Valued at $40 million CDN. We were indeed in exalted company. Before departing Clonmel we attended the South Tipperary Club Hurling Final where my Canadian friend witnessed a ferocious contest of skill and determination. Hurling, an indigenous Irish game has been played since ancient times and is without doubt the most skillful and fastest field game in the world. In fact it has been documented that the Canadian game of ice hockey developed from the 16th century Irish fishermen domiciled in Newfoundland, who, for a winter pastime pucked about on the ice with their hurleys which they had brought from the homeland.

Our ultimate destination for the remainder of our brief visit was my native County Clare on the west coast. Here two famous championship links courses, Lahinch, established in 1892 and the newly opened Doonbeg awaited us.

After 27 years in Canada, Lahinch, the "St. Andrews of Ireland" was still home although most of the faces were unfamiliar and the majority of the "auld crowd" was all gone. The few that still remained reminisced about the great golfers and characters of yesteryear that were all a part of this shrine to golf on the west coast of Clare.

Local golfing legend John Burke 1899 - 1974 described in his writings the first day of golf at Lahinch. "The coachman with four in hand halted outside Sharry's Hotel (the current Post office) where an enthusiastic welcome was given to the golfers. It was Good Friday, April 15th, 1892 and one local remarked, " Glory be to God and I hear they are going to eat meat on this blessed day. What is the world coming to at all"It was Good Friday, April 15th, 1892 and one local remarked, " Glory be to God and I hear they are going to eat meat on this blessed day. What is the world coming to at all" The meat was supplied by the Ennistymon butcher Tom O'Loughlin (no relation to the writer), the father of the famous Mick O'Loughlin, a friend of Burke's who was not only a fine golfer himself but also a wag who is quoted to this very day.

When one attempts to scale Mount Everest, a Sherpa guide would be regarded as a wise investment. When a challenge such as Lahinch is in your sights, local knowledge and a veteran caddie can be your best friends. With our veteran, Tommy Leigh we knew we were in good hands. Professional caddies such as Tommy are no shrinking violets, "Keep ye're heads down lads and ye're asses cocked and we'll make the 19th before I develop a real thirst". This was the same caddy who many years ago was asked by his man, who had played military style golf all day - left right, left right, "What do I owe you Tommy". Scratching his head and totally bewildered, Tommy told him in his best Clare accent, "You owe me a f...... apology". Over hill and dale, Tommy guided us intrepidly across the most natural terrain that the Creator ever laid out for the golfing enjoyment of his human race. Off the back sticks (the blues), Lahinch measures 6882 yards. Throw in a stiff September breeze coming off the wild Atlantic and your yardage calculator becomes null and void - "Club please Tommy". Afterwards at Cagney's 19th Bar on the Main Street Tommy paid us a backhanded compliment when he told us we were not the worst Canadians he had ever caddied for. As both a local and a Canadian at that point I felt like a man without a flag, a sort of a Ben Johnson after the steroid test.

After a few days sightseeing around North Clare and Galway Bay we were once again ready for the challenge and headed for Doonbeg just a few miles down the coast from Lahinch. While Lahinch is part of the history of Irish golf, Doonbeg is Irish golf history in the making.

Officially opened in July of 2002, Doonbeg was designed by two times British Open Winner, Greg Norman. During construction Greg was on site on 23 occasions. On opening day Buddy Darby, Chairman & CEO of Doonbeg stated " Greg put his heart and soul into what many have already deemed his masterpiece. It will appear perhaps on his epitaph that this was his finest hour".

Armed with another veteran caddie, Peter "Taba" Garrihy and joined by Mike Waters, one of Doonbeg's courtesy team we headed for another amazing challenge just a few miles down the coast from where several ships of the Spanish Armada perished in 1588. Mike had actually lived in Toronto for over 20 years and had just recently moved back to his beloved County Clare where he now got paid for pursuing his passion for golf.

The 72-par layout follows a course designed by nature along 1.5 miles of crescent-shaped beach and dunes. The ocean is visible from green, fairway or tee on 16 of the 18 holes. Each hole is spectacular in its own way and a true test for a golfer of any calibre. As best we could, we heeded Taba's warnings and directions. The rough he told was verboten and was known amongst the caddies as " the love grass". In his Canadian innocence my friend Kent asked why. " Cause once you go in there, you're f..... - Comprende!". On reaching the 18th green we began to see our first drops of rain after 10 days in Ireland and we witnessed the most exquisite and completely natural rainbow that was pure Disney. Later in the clubhouse, the barman had been ordered by International Membership Director, Ed Tovey, a native of Toronto, that the drinks were on him. A truly incredible end to an amazing day's golf in Ireland.

Our last stop was Dromoland Castle, the ancestral home of the O'Brien Clan and Lord Inchiquin. Just ten minutes from Shannon and our Air Canada Boeing 767, we spent our last evening at this five star property that was certainly worth very Euro. By September 2003, Dromoland's Course of Kings located on 400 unspoiled acres of lush wooded parkland will have completed a multi million-dollar redesign making it one of Ireland's finest inland courses.

As we were about to touchdown at Toronto's Pearson airport, Kent looked at me and said," Eamonn, can we do this again next year". "Why", says I, "Who's going to stop us". At that moment, the self-appointed Irish Ambassador was off duty. The baton had been passed and a newly self - appointed Canadian one was about to take the reins.