{"id":210232,"date":"2025-12-25T12:47:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-25T12:47:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/210232\/"},"modified":"2025-12-25T12:47:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-25T12:47:08","slug":"the-irish-spending-christmas-in-county-coogee-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/210232\/","title":{"rendered":"The Irish spending Christmas in \u2018County Coogee\u2019 \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Christmas<\/a> day, Irish expats gather in their droves on beaches across Sydney<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cCounty Coogee\u201d, as the suburb has been dubbed by Irish dwellers, is no different, as hundreds celebrate under a blue sky thousands of miles from home.<\/p>\n

At a first glance, the Irish diaspora appears full of festive cheer in GAA jerseys and Santa hats. On closer inspection, Coogee beach is filled with emigrants missing their hometowns and family members, waiting for Christmas morning to arrive in Ireland to FaceTime home.<\/p>\n

Despite cooler weather than recent days, crowds took to the beach for a swim before heading home to recreate Christmas day dinners inspired by the ones prepared by Irish mammies \u2013 there\u2019s just one small problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a difference in the potatoes. I know that\u2019s the most Irish answer possible, but there\u2019s definitely a difference in the spuds here compared to at home,\u201d Cork city native Eoin Good (27), says. <\/p>\n

Sinead Carley (33), from Wexford, makes the same observation, describing them as \u201cwatery\u201d. However, she reassures that Kerrygold butter is available in Sydney, so not all is lost. <\/p>\n

Katie Curtin (27), from Mallow, might disagree.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t have Yorkshire puddings here and I was like, \u2018Oh my God, meltdown. Christmas dinner, over\u2019. But thankfully my boyfriend was able to make them. Having dinner together just made it feel a bit closer to home though. So, a few differences, but we managed to scrape together a kind of makeshift Irish Christmas anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"RebeccaRebecca McGuirk and Sinead Carley at Coogee beach. Photograph: Jody Coffey <\/p>\n

Spending the festive period away from Ireland is nothing new for many living in Sydney. For Rebecca McGuirk (30), from Kildare, this is her sixth Christmas down under. Sitting under the sun on a sandy beach,, Rebecca says you have to create that special Christmas magic yourself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like you need to have the rooms dark and have a little fire lighting on a TV almost just to get the atmosphere going,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone\u2019s at home is having a different type of Christmas to you. Not being able to see everybody that you normally would is sad, but thankfully, we have the phone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roisin O\u2019Carroll (29), from Wexford, says that while Sydney doesn\u2019t lean into the festivities in the same way that Ireland does, it\u2019s the Irish community that makes up for the lack of nostalgia and cosiness she associates with home.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re so far from home, your friends become your family, so even though you\u2019re not at home with the fire absolutely blaring, you still have your friends.\u201d <\/p>\n

The terror attack on Bondi beach on December 14th weighed heavily on the minds of many on Christmas day. For the Irish community, it was a time to come together to enjoy a moment of camaraderie after a week of fear, grief, and community heartbreak.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think a lot of people are more conscious of celebrating and being in crowds, which is totally understandable,\u201d Denise Curtin (30) said. <\/p>\n

\"DeniseDenise Curtin. Photograph: Jody Coffey <\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a scary and unprecedented time. I think because a lot of people don\u2019t have their families here, your friends become your family. Everyone is watching out for each other and celebrating how they can, which I think is important. People are trying to battle through it as well as they can, you know, heal and move on from the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others commended the uprising of support for all those affected by the attack, from free meet-ups to regular messaging within the Irish Facebook groups.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was great to see how people pulled together in such a terrible situation,\u201d Eoin says. \u201cThe Irish are just one big family over here.\u201d <\/p>\n

As the day stretches on in Sydney, some would head for barbecues, others for dinner with friends they call family, and many for quiet, intimate video calls back home. <\/p>\n

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