Sir, – We do want to hear about "flaws in the well-oiled orderly wonderland" that is Germany. (Berlin Diary, Derek Scally, December 16th). It's not nit-picking! (Tracy O'Dwyer, December 21st). Our stressed rusty dear Irish soul needs a little Schadenfreude!Especially now before Christmas. Frank McNally (An Irishman's Diary, December 21st) also even cheers with Schadenfreudeabout the shortage of butter in Norway! – Yours, etc,
Sir, – In response to Tracey O’Dwyer’s praise of Swiss teutonic orderliness (December 21st), it could probably (and unarguably) be concluded that there is no so-called perfect place in which to reside. There is no “wonderland”.
Living in a similarly efficient country, I enjoy the Nordic orderliness, predictability, trustworthiness and transparency of everyday services. In other words, the day-to-day formalities of life here are less stressful than they are in Ireland. However, these benefits seem to have come with the compromise of doing without the spontaneity, camaraderie, ease of getting to know people, the service with a friendly hello and a smile, and so forth, which are a natural part of the Irish life.
Even the mundane everyday experience of the Irish shopkeeper being able to multi-task between various customers at the same time, instead of slowly dealing with one at a time and not apologising for delays; and the hello from complete strangers when out biking or hiking, is something I miss about Ireland.
The perfect country, for me, would be one that combines the Irish natural scenery and the Irish people with the methodological Germanic or Nordic way of running a country. I do not know of any such country, but with Ireland now trying to reinvent itself out of a crisis, perhaps we have the golden opportunity to move in that best-of-both-worlds direction. Merry Irish Christmas. – Yours, etc,