Halcyon Nights

or

What's the big deal with sunsets?

One thing that has always puzzled me is the romanticism of sunsets, sunrise and star gazing.  I've often wondered if people genuinely were in awe of them or is it a myth propogated by Hollywood, similar to the notion that everyone will fall in love with the perfect partner and live happily ever after.

Don't get me wrong - sunsets, sunrise and the stars on a clear night can take your breath away and make you pause and take in that perfect moment.  But getting up early to catch the dawn or planning to watch the sunset has always seemed a bit excessive.

Sunset reflected in window

I had come to the conclusion that this is due to our climate.  Star gazing is all well and good but Ireland is too cold and damp to lie out all night holding hands with your lover, having deep philosophical discussions that in the sober light of day you realise equated to talking shite.  And that's if you're looking enough to pick a night sky that isn't obscured by clouds.

Notwithstanding that, it is possible to wrap up warm and appropriately to feast your gaze on the night, dusk or dawn sky.  Indeed, I have on occassion driven deep into the Wicklow mountains, sometimes even accompanied by a telescope or binoculars to view particular astronomical events like a meteor shower.

Sunset 18th August 2012, Kildare

Somehow I never managed to sit through a sunrise or sunset though.  It took a trip to Eqypt over ten years ago to really figure out why.  In Ireland, the sunset, quite simply, lasts too long.  It's not the climate after all, it's our latitude!  If you sit out to watch the sunset in this country, you could be there for an hour and a half.  Where would you find the time?  And it's even worse in parts of northern Scotland where it never quite gets dark around the summer solstice.  In Egypt, the whole thing happens in about 10 minutes.

Admittedly I've had a few good sunrise moments.  There's nothing better than wandering home of an evening, spotting the dawn approaching and lying down on a patch of grass for a while to take it in.  It's the measure of a good night out in the summer.  Somehow, it doesn't seem to happen too often these days.  Must be growing up or something...