Are we crazy to get our hopes up? I know there are hundreds of reasons why someone would want to come to Kilkenny but realistically is Barack Obama going to have the time to take a trip to the Marble City when his five-day schedule in May includes a trip to Ireland, England, Poland and France?
But I guess there is no harm in hoping...
It would be a wonderful boost for the city to have someone of such importance visit, and particularly the President of America. There are huge personal and emotional ties between the Irish and the Americans. And more than anyone Barack Obama would be greeted with open arms by the population of Kilkenny. I wonder would the Queen consider us for a visit too? We have the castle which would be a fitting location for a royal feast and there is an amount of history that might well entice royalty to our city.... Somehow I think we have more of a chance with Obama! And I for one am happy that it might be him.
We were right on the money earlier in the year when we predicted that Obama would be visiting Ireland this year — he has been planning it for a while and although Enda Kenny is taking the credit for the visit — this trip was planned well before Enda knew he was going to be Taoiseach.
Kilkenny has a lot to offer. We have it all — history, arts, culture, architecture, entertainment and most of all a stunning little city to showcase. Kilkenny is a strong contender for the Obama visit — if only he had a little more time....
This year’s St Patrick’s Day Parade went down a treat. Finally we are getting to utilise our beautiful Parade plaza for what it was always supposed to be used for — public entertainment.
The music and events up on the plaza throughout the day kept the spirit of St Patrick’s Day alive well into the night and there was a focus for young people in the young local bands who entertained the crowds.
Kilkenny was alive with the sound of music as they say and it was refreshing to see families, young people, elderly people and tourists out in their droves enjoying the city and the weather... The parade itself was a credit to organisers and all involved. St Patrick’s Day appeared to regain some of the old traditional atmosphere that seemed to have got lost during the Celtic Tiger years. The pubs had Irish music and there were children with bottles of orange with straws and bags of taytos running around — ah yes! It brought back the memories of a youth gone by!
In fact Kilkenny is now only gearing up for the onset of festival season. This is the time when Kilkenny really comes to life and I must say — it is not a moment too soon! Although it looks like the festivals may be a little more contained this year, they are still expected to entice foreign and domestic tourism which is good news for local business. The Rhythm ‘N Roots festival is first up for the May bank holiday weekend and this will be closely followed by the Cat Laughs Comedy Festival in June and the Kilkenny Arts Festival takes up the rear in August. We are blessed with the arts and culture scene that Kilkenny has to offer. We often take where we live for granted, but when you think of it we are extremely lucky to live in Kilkenny surrounded by the rich history and arts scene that it has to offer.
Sure is there any wonder that Obama might chose us over Moneygall!!
