Indeed, MfH. We have a lot of diversity in the beautiful seaside resort town of Balbriggan, although in more recent times we're getting swamped with immigrants from Dublin! When I moved here socialising revolved around pubs and once you entered one everybody wanted to know your business. North County folk are naturally inquisitive, often described as clannish but once you're accepted into the community you're one of their own. Local culture has changed quite a lot in the last decade or two, though. There's a huge population, both immigrant and indigenous, that doesn't frequent the pubs and a lot of folk that you might not see from one end of the month to the other so the extent of the small town feeling of everybody knowing everybody else has eroded significantly, probably being largely restricted to residents of older housing schemes and the drinking classes.
I guess most adult friendships these days are formed through children, meeting other parents at schools, clubs, scouts, the beach, etc. I've had the pleasure of experiencing a variety of cultures through such friendships, something that has certainly enriched my life to some extent. Of course, not everyone is open to such integration with many (particularly older folk) genuinely opposed to multicultural experiences. In general terms, children integrate and mingle a lot more freely than adults so integration in real terms is something that will happen naturally rather than something than can or should be forced by well meaning groups and politicians.
