Episode 4 Ar Bhealach na Gaeltachta

THEY SPEAK IRISH

We discovered that my husband, Brian, and his grandparents had Gaelic,

in the 1911 census, it said that they had English and Irish,

living on the Newtownards Road.

We found out later they'd come up from Rathlin Island

and we did a bit of research and discovered that there was still

remnants of the language about there.

So we don't know how fluent they were,

but they had enough to record it.

What importance do you place on learning Irish yourself?

I feel it's very important.

The Irish language is part of our heritage,

yet we don't know a word of it,

we never have the opportunity to engage with it.

I discovered that the language is all around us.

It's part of the heritage of Unionist people, as well,

so it's my language, and I think it's shameful that I don't know it.

I'm going to make it my business to learn it.

And we're here on the Sli Cholmcille.

Colm Cille himself perhaps has been

an inspiration in the work you've done.

Again, Colm Cille is a shared saint,

it's something that brings people together.

He's a person who both communities can look up to and respect.

I think that's very important in our divided communities.

He's a symbol of unification.

Is there anything you've learnt, do you think,

-on this course you'll bring back home?

-Absolutely. Just more...

It's been a lovely week. I've really enjoyed it.

Even just to take the message back to people that this course exists

and they can come and be part of it.

Rosario, tell me about your journey from Italy

to working with seaweed products in Ireland.

I started to be passionate in seaweed in about 1996

when I was working for a company that was dealing with organic wine making.

I knew that the seaweed was good as a fertiliser.

Then I decided,

"OK, maybe this is the time in the day I can leave the job

"and try to do something on my own just with seaweed,"

because it was a great passion that I had at that point.

So, I just left Italy, and I ended up in Aran Islands,

this was my favourite place in Ireland,

so I started there.

When I was still in the Aran Islands,

a company wanted to start making instructions for agriculture.

So I decided, "OK, I accept the task." Also, I needed money, anyway!

What are the range of products that you're making?

We make spelt cake with seaweed, instead of salt.

We make a condiment, a mix of nuts, almonds, sesame seed,

sunflower seeds, garlic, chilli, so it's kind of a mix.

Then we make extraction in organic olive oil.

If you eat just, you know, the condiment,

vegetable and the oil, you would have all the nutrients that you need.

Then the cosmetic side.

We make soaps. The soaps are only coloured with the seaweed.

So green seaweed for the green soap and so on.

Then they will be sold in a net like this one,

so you can use them as a scrub.

The soap has the advantage that, with the seaweed oil,

it never dries the skin.

Do you think the Irish people understand the benefits of seaweed?

I think the Irish people are more and more into health food.

They understand that diseases can be prevented

and everything that comes from the sea is good.

It's easy also even to old people.

Normally, if I go to Italy, for example, where I come from,

and I say to an old person, "Would you eat seaweed?",

she would stare at me.

But the old people here, they know about seaweed,

more than the young ones, actually.

At least, all of them have a memory

of the childhood with Carrigan.

So that's a good start.

HE RECITES BEAN NA GLINNE