Category: Uncategorized
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The Early Irish Wire Strung Harp
Road trip to Dublin The early Irish wire strung harp precedes the modern day pedal harp or orchestral harp by approximately 400 years. It has a clear bell like sound when properly played with the fingernails rather than the pads of the tips of the fingers. It was a strong Irish tradition that existed for…
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The Kilkenny adventure continues…
The days flew by and suddenly it was over! The conflation of harp school and sight seeing was a delicate balance with the days running out of hours and the week of days. I’ writing this sitting in a lovely B&B in Waterford looking back on everything that happened in such a short period of…
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There were two cats of Kilkenny..
Saturday July 27 2024 As the old song goes … there were two cats too many…and the one left has taken up residence in the garden of the school. The cats and Kilkenny has a current reference to the local hurlers and their fans: they are known as the Kilkenny cats. And they’re very proud…
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Kilkenny: a city of Irish charm
Friday July 26, 2024 Jet lag was definitely affecting me on Friday. I was awake before the birds but managed to hang out at the hotel until the sky brightened. I had noticed the evening before something on a map entitled The Canal Walk. It appeared to be an urban walk that encircled the castle…
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Kilkenny
Thursday July 25, 2024 The train trip from Dublin was very pleasant. I had an interesting chat about Ireland with a lovely couple from Dublin who were escaping to the smaller city for a bit of a break. Now that I have been here for several days, I understand why. It is absolutely beautiful, very…
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An Irish Adventure Begins
Dublin Thursday July 25, 2024 For reasons that can only be imagined and because of a life-long desire to visit the Emerald Isle, I decided to enrol in the summer Irish Harp School held every year in Kilkenny at the end of July. I also decided this would be a good moment to return to…
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IN MEMORIAM
JACKSON – March 31, 2024 It is with a broken heart and deep sadness I announce the death of Jackson. We said our final goodbyes at the Faro Animal Hospital where he was being treated for kidney failure. He would have celebrated his 13th birthday this coming summer. I had the joy and honour of…
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Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Tuesday
Faro was my destination on Tuesday -I needed to do some grocery shopping – and decided to add in a tour of the old part of the city. I was hoping the Cathedral would be open as well as its museum and garden. What I didn’t realize is that it was a holiday for Carnival.…
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Achieving new heights
Sunday was a literal washout with the rain but Monday Feb 12 was sunny with the mercury hitting 20 degrees Celsius by early afternoon. it was high time for a decent hike, so Jackson and I set off up the hill behind the quinta toward the shrine. Three quarters of the way up, there is…
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From a Birthday Celebration to Shrove Tuesday
Birthdays come but once per year and mine is February 9 – this year a Friday. A huge thank you to Randy and Marc who treated me to lunch at Gunther’s Restaurant. What a great way to start the celebrations! Friday was a mix of rain, wind and sun but there were plans afoot at…
Five Feet, Nine Inches Above Ground 