Ireland, Dublin. Either the wallpaper goes, or I do!

What Europe is and what it should be is often the subject of passionate debate. A unique concept whereby several nations are brought together under a humane, democratic system? The strongest economy in the world? A patchwork of different cultures? A tolerant home for freethinkers and the persecuted? For Christa Klickermann, a 58-year-old native of Salzburg who now lives in Hamburg, Europe is, above all, somewhere she can call her own extended home. A loveable continent and a great place to live; a place of myriad cultures that shapes and inspires her in her daily life as a woman, mother and entrepreneur in the midst of life. A place so dear to her heart that she has decided to take a fresh look at Europe and, since 2012, has spent her time journeying across its borders. With a great deal of empathy and openness, she sets out to discover Europes people, their culture and their modern, everyday lives up close. Dublin, the modern capital of Ireland, was the twentyfirst capital on her journey.

Christa Klickermann has always been passionate about building good relationships both at work and in her private life. For 25 years, she worked on forming effective partnerships with her business clients during her time as a freelance marketing consultant in the field of customer management. Away from work, the 58-year-old Austrian has been happily married for 37 years and is mother to three grown-up children, as well as being a grandmother. In 2012 she said goodbye to her career and fulfilled a long-held dream by moving with her husband from Bavaria to the very north of Germany. She now lives and works in Hamburg as a freelance author, speaker and blogger. On her travels, in her Europeans at Heart book series and in her intercultural panel sessions/readings, she tries to gain a closer understanding of people and their cultures, whilst promoting a peaceful and humane Europe.

Ireland, Dublin. Either the wallpaper goes or I do!The birthplace of brilliant writers, such as James Joyce, Oscar Wilde and Iris Murdoch, Dublin is today home to the European headquarters of many global internet corporations and a place where students philosophise about the influence of Asian companies over a pint of Guinness.Ireland the first thought that came to my mind was green meadows, wind and Guinness. Oh, and Kerrygold, that gold-wrapped butter produced by happy cows which now enjoys a large share of the market in Germany. So basically the image I had in my head was one of an idyllic landscape with rugged boys and girls with freckled faces, their red hair being tousled by a brisk wind. What I then read about the reality of everyday life in Ireland unceremoniously pulls the rug out from under my romantic, glorified and rose-tinted vision of the island: currently one in three young people aged between 15 and 24 is unemployed, and the gap between the booming capital Dublin and poorer rural areas has become extreme in every respect. And this is all happening in a country which has long been dubbed the Celtic Tiger by our media, and praised as Europes economic model pupil. Enticed by attractive tax rates, business-friendly laws and a modern infrastructure, in the 1980s global corporations began setting up offices in a country which had previously garnered more fame for its agriculture than its business sector. Besides pharmaceutical companies, such as the Botox manufacturer Allergan, most arrivals came in the shape of large IT firms, finance service providers and fund managers who brought employment and decent incomes with them. But in 2009 the economic boom, and the Celtic Tiger itself, ran out of steam; what came next were difficult years plagued by crisis and austerity.Ireland had to accept the EUs bailout fund in order to avoid state bankruptcy. But it got itself back on the track by promoting stability and growth with a strong focus on innovation and research. Google, Microsoft, Facebook, PayPal, Zynga, Yahoo and Twitter now oversee their European operations from Dublinbased headquarters, and the countrys treasurers can write in their books that Ireland is back in the black. When I hear the words write and books, my mind is suddenly filled with images that have nothing to do with cold, hard economic data; thats because Ireland is traditionally known as a citadel of literature and academia. When you walk through the streets of the Irish capital today, you cant help but follow in the footsteps of literary giants both past and present, such as Jonathan Swift, James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, Column McCann, Iris Murdoch or Enda Walsh, as well as Nobel Prize winners like William Butler Yeats, George Bernard Shaw and Samuel Beckett. The city values its current literature scene just as much as its historical cultural legacy, and celebrates the art of writing in a number of ways, including numerous festivals. That is part of the reason why in 2010 UNESCO declared Dublin a Literary City one of only five in the world (the other four are Edinburgh, Melbourne, Iowa City and Reykjavik).

Europeans at heart is a vivid and colourful series of travel and culture books that brings you closer to Europes countries and its people. This eBook is an extended and updated travel account taken from Europeans at heart: a journey of discovery through 28 EU capitals.CONTENT+ The thrill of the unknown+ Ireland (IE) at a glance+ Either the wallpaper goes or I do!+ Christa Klickermann, talking with Melanie Fitzgerald Power+ Additional Links+ He who knows nothing, must believe it all: Europe, the key facts+ In touch with Europe an authentic journey of discoveryPraise for Europeans at heart:Interview with Deutsche Welle TV:After reading this book, you will find it impossible not to fall in love with Europe.Schekker, the German Governments online portal for young people:This collection of accounts delivers a brief but brilliant glimpse into life in Europes incredibly diverse countries, as well as lots of useful information and fabulous pictures that will fill you to the brim with wanderlust. Having taken a literary voyage through the continent via the pages of this book, I can definitely say that I am European at heart. What about you?Polen-pl.eu, online Polish culture portal:The one language that we all understand, and which closely connects all of us Europeans, is the language of the heart: the desire to understand, to empathise, to laugh and find out more about one another. And that, according to Christa Klickermann, is the key to living together in harmony. With her book, the author hopes to inspire us and imbue us with a sense of confidence about Europes future, and she more than succeeds in doing both. Her approach is so effective in fact that as a reader you feel tempted to take leave and embark on your own European journey of exploration.