Athlone

[syriana]

I have a friend who's moving to Athlone for a year on a work placement, she asked me if there are any areas to avoid in and around the place and I couldn't answer her (I haven't been there for ages).

She's also a bit worried that she could get some hassle because she's muslim.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[JoeyFantastic]

Commute from Galway.

[RobbieG]

I have a friend who's moving to Athlone for a year on a work placement, she asked me if there are any areas to avoid in and around the place and I couldn't answer her (I haven't been there for ages).

She's also a bit worried that she could get some hassle because she's muslim.

Any advice would be appreciated.






Avoid Athlone

True, Socks is there now.smileys/sad.gif

[taz]

Reconsider.

[JoeyFantastic]

Here's a typical day in Athlone.

http://www.lateformass.com/?p=78 (http://www.lateformass.com/?p=78)

[John123]

Here's a typical day in Athlone.



http://www.lateformass.com/?p=78



One of the funniest vids ever. Athlone's alright, lived there for a year but it was a pure Monday-Friday thing.

[Baloo]

Its a dump, tell her find somewhere she can commute from. I ended up driving from Limerick every day.

[tickettout]

Is it full of pikies? was never there thankfully. Is it far from Limerick?

[Paulie Walnuts]

I recall reading this peice from another site, I don't think it bwas published in any Athone vistors guide, but might give your friend an indication of what to expect. All I can say is that it looks alright from the train going to Galway.


------------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------


I lived in Athlone for four years, worst four years in my life

The places is full of settled travellers and small farmers who lost their farms and a new cross breed of travellers and farmers, the perfect mix of scum and redneck, that commonly have addictions to the heroin the army brings through the barracks from the Lebanon on the sly. Athlone has a raging smack problem, but is a totally landlocked town, so nobody could understand how such huge amounts of smack was getting into this small provincial town... why go to the trouble of bringing it from Dublin, Cork or Galway to some midlands dive when you could sell it in these big coastal city, this was along the lines of the general thinking on the matter.

Turns out some soldiers coming back from the Lebanon were loading the tanks full of Heroin, at this time Athlone was where everything coming and going from the Leb was cleared. Rise in smack problem Q.E.D.

The culture shock, especially from somewhere civil like Dublin, is intense. The place was bloody feral back in the 90s.

One year Scheer and Watercress came to Athlone RTC... it was poorly attended so for the next three years of my time there they had Abbaesque on instead...

*mimes slashing wrists*

And you have that lovely country thing of the locals hating students EVEN THOUGH the students are one of the few things bringing money into the town.

Of a friday, in Athlone, around 9pm you would hear for miles around the trundle of taxis coming from every farm house and tin roofed shack in the surrounding counties... all heading for "BOZO'S" night club in Athlone.

Where once in side all the men, identically dressed in blue jeans and white blue check shirts with the back of the collar flicked up (why?!?), they would savage an unholy feed of booze, molest women in the most base manners, savage more booze, puke on each other, puke on everyone else (it's amazing how socially accepted vomit is in Athlone), then all the ones who weren't off to sexually assault some poor lass down a side street, would head up to Supermacs to beat several shades of sh*t out of anyone who looked liked they deserved it.

I assure everyone these boys were all country stock true and true. Best friends would paste each other into the pavement using their fists. But by the next week it'd all be forgotten.

Granted most of these sorts generally move to Dublin for college, go to DCU, TCD or UCD or somewhere sh*te like that, doss around on the grant, and generally become the sort of assholes who ring up looking for last months invoice, or the sort of schmucks the bank sends you too when you havn't paid you student loan in a year or two. This would point to while older pubs in the country are superior, supposidly cause all the ass holes have moved to Lucan and are trying to outdo each other with gimicky kitchens and spoiled children.

I lived with a country fella down in Athlone who used to cook two dinners when he was cooking, he'd lay both dinners out on two plates, just as if he was serving to people... then he would eat one and put the other one in his press (not the fridge.. the press) where it remain till dinner time the next day when he'd pull it out bing it in the microwave and tuck in.

I liked living in the country.... however Athlone was the most depressing place on earth, constantly grey of sky and suspicous of odour. But no matter how mental you thought you were going or how drunkly stoned and depraved your life was becoming you only had to have a quick look aorund you and realise that most folk there were a BILLION times worse off then you!

I firmly believe Athlone was built on some bad energy line or something, or a In

[ceemec]

Brother owns a house down there. Rents it, has it smashed to
bits by heroin addicted scrounger. Evicts them. Rents it, has it
smashed to bits by heroin addicted scrounger. Evicts them.
Rents it, has it smashed to bits by heroin addicted
scrounger........

Awful place. The armpit of Ireland. Not only settled travellers
make up a chunk of the population but now a lot of the scum
from the cities has moved there during the boom years when
prices escalated. Athlone is their Mecca.

Paulie, that should be nominated for a Pulitzer. Beats anything Frank McCourt came up with!!

[de berries]

Imagine someone reading that on Trip Advisor about Athlonesmileys/smile.gif

[bosh12]

I wouldn't listen to half the stuff here, reasonably quiet town, any of the
areas around the town are grand. One rough enough estate, but you d
know it by looking at it

[ListryMurphy]

Paulie, that should be nominated for a Pulitzer. Beats anything Frank McCourt came up with!!


+1! Good stuff Paulie!

[John123]

If God was giving the world an enema, Athlone is where he would stick the tube.

[Estuary]

Really not that bad its like most Irish mid sized towns

[gavmurf]

[QUOTE=Paulie Walnuts]


I recall reading this peice from another site, I don't think it bwas published in any Athone vistors guide, but might give your friend an indication of what to expect. All I can say is that it looks alright from the train going to Galway.


------------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------


I lived in Athlone for four years, worst four years in my life

The places is full of settled travellers and small farmers who lost their farms and a new cross breed of travellers and farmers, the perfect mix of scum and redneck, that commonly have addictions to the heroin the army brings through the barracks from the Lebanon on the sly. Athlone has a raging smack problem, but is a totally landlocked town, so nobody could understand how such huge amounts of smack was getting into this small provincial town... why go to the trouble of bringing it from Dublin, Cork or Galway to some midlands dive when you could sell it in these big coastal city, this was along the lines of the general thinking on the matter.

Turns out some soldiers coming back from the Lebanon were loading the tanks full of Heroin, at this time Athlone was where everything coming and going from the Leb was cleared. Rise in smack problem Q.E.D.

The culture shock, especially from somewhere civil like Dublin, is intense. The place was bloody feral back in the 90s.

One year Scheer and Watercress came to Athlone RTC... it was poorly attended so for the next three years of my time there they had Abbaesque on instead...

*mimes slashing wrists*

And you have that lovely country thing of the locals hating students EVEN THOUGH the students are one of the few things bringing money into the town.

Of a friday, in Athlone, around 9pm you would hear for miles around the trundle of taxis coming from every farm house and tin roofed shack in the surrounding counties... all heading for "BOZO'S" night club in Athlone.

Where once in side all the men, identically dressed in blue jeans and white blue check shirts with the back of the collar flicked up (why?!?), they would savage an unholy feed of booze, molest women in the most base manners, savage more booze, puke on each other, puke on everyone else (it's amazing how socially accepted vomit is in Athlone), then all the ones who weren't off to sexually assault some poor lass down a side street, would head up to Supermacs to beat several shades of sh*t out of anyone who looked liked they deserved it.

I assure everyone these boys were all country stock true and true. Best friends would paste each other into the pavement using their fists. But by the next week it'd all be forgotten.

Granted most of these sorts generally move to Dublin for college, go to DCU, TCD or UCD or somewhere sh*te like that, doss around on the grant, and generally become the sort of assholes who ring up looking for last months invoice, or the sort of schmucks the bank sends you too when you havn't paid you student loan in a year or two. This would point to while older pubs in the country are superior, supposidly cause all the ass holes have moved to Lucan and are trying to outdo each other with gimicky kitchens and spoiled children.

I lived with a country fella down in Athlone who used to cook two dinners when he was cooking, he'd lay both dinners out on two plates, just as if he was serving to people... then he would eat one and put the other one in his press (not the fridge.. the press) where it remain till dinner time the next day when he'd pull it out bing it in the microwave and tuck in.

I liked living in the country.... however Athlone was the most depressing place on earth, constantly grey of sky and suspicous of odour. But no matter how mental you thought you were going or how drunkly stoned and depraved your life was becoming you only had to have a quick look aorund you and realise that most folk there were a BILLION times worse off then you!

I firmly believe Athlone was built on some bad energy lin

[gavmurf]

Having lived 3miles outside Athlone on the Roscomman road for 11 years I can honestly say that they were some of the best years of my adolesence. I woudln't live in the town but just outside Athlone are some lovely villages with great communities. I'd say many of the posts you are reading here are sean scéals passed down from the old know all in the pub. Both my parents were in the army in Athlone and both say that there never was any such thing happening in the barracks there. (certainly not in the 90s anyway)

[parnell333]

I'm from a village no far from there - and it's true - it's utter
s**t.
What gavmurf said is partially true - Glasson and some other
villages are good with decent pubs but the town itself is
something else - worse than Limerick possibly.

[sparks]

Newport in Tipp is close to it, about mates beating the s**te out of one another only for it to be forgotten about the next day!

Seen it happen in Nenagh too, where all the country stock head in for the night and actively look to start up a fight.

In fairness, city people can be a lot more civilised than that of the country folk

[Spike]

I live in Athlone and have been there for a number of years.


The comments regarding the town are...like most of Frank McCourts stuff, half right. Athlone has a drugs problem that has nothing to do with the army, rather it has to do with the fact that a dozy Midland Health Board consented to a drugs treatment centre being placed in Athlone sometime in the 90's.Addicts came down from Dublin to be treated..scumbag dealers were losing their customers so they simply moved down to keep an eye on their customers. It's a town with a drug, but not a gang problem. With respect to the comments regarding people getting lairy and drunk etc..name me a town in Ireland that does not have a problem.


I can't see your Muslim friend having a problem as I know plenty of Muslims in Athlone who seem to be getting on fine. I would suggest Bealnamulla or Coosan as nice residential areas close to the town. Glasson as already suggested is a beautiful village close to the lake..the site of 'The Wineport' which is the setting for RTE's 'The Restaurant'. As your friend is a Muslim, I suppose pubs are not really an issue.


Hope that helps your friend and I wish her luck in her new job.

[rathbaner]

Was in Athlone for a few days this week. The centre is pretty and well cared for, plenty of nice restaurants and good looking pubs. I was impressed.

Took the kids to MacDonalds for a happy meal and a woman in a hijab was coming out no one batted an eyelid.

No doubt, like any Irish town, if you want trouble bad enough you'll find it.

[syriana]

I live in Athlone and have been there for a number of years.


The comments regarding the town are...like most of Frank McCourts stuff, half right. Athlone has a drugs problem that has nothing to do with the army, rather it has to do with the fact that a dozy Midland Health Board consented to a drugs treatment centre being placed in Athlone sometime in the 90's.Addicts came down from Dublin to be treated..scumbag dealers were losing their customers so they simply moved down to keep an eye on their customers. It's a town with a drug, but not a gang problem. With respect to the comments regarding people getting lairy and drunk etc..name me a town in Ireland that does not have a problem.


I can't see your Muslim friend having a problem as I know plenty of Muslims in Athlone who seem to be getting on fine. I would suggest Bealnamulla or Coosan as nice residential areas close to the town. Glasson as already suggested is a beautiful village close to the lake..the site of 'The Wineport' which is the setting for RTE's 'The Restaurant'. As your friend is a Muslim, I suppose pubs are not really an issue.


Hope that helps your friend and I wish her luck in her new job.

Thanks for your help, I appreciate it.

[fredom1]

here a blast from the past!!smileys/smile.gif


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8C7ZTbsF-E


smileys/shock.gif

[socks]

been here nearly 2 years. still not sure what to make of the place. whatever about athlone, clara just down the road must have the highest percentage population of skobes in any town in ireland.