It’s a great feeling when Kilkenny suddenly bursts into life and takes on the ‘summer feelin’’!
Summer is officially here and that’s not just because of the dates in the calendar — in Kilkenny it has a lot more to do with the beginning of the most welcome festival season.
This week, festival fever kicked off. The Cat Laughs Festival opened their new box office on High St with a couple of stuffed Easter bunnies doing the honours. Tickets are currently on sale at reduced rates for locals for certain shows so bring proof of your address and get booking!
On top of that John Cleere launched his much-loved Smithwicks Rhythm and Roots festival in the brewery’s Cellar Bar. Always a great night I might add, although I didn’t make the event personally this year. However, the programme as usual has lots to offer music lovers from near and far. Beth Orton is a real coup for festival organisers and not surprisingly her gig is sold out in Cleeres already.
Ticket sales for all the shows are hitting higher levels than ever before illustrating that if there is a quality product on the market — people are not slow about spending their hard-earned cash when it’s something that they really want.
From now on things should be looking up for the business community of Kilkenny as once the weather improves, the festivals get underway and the tourists start moving in, we have a whole different product on offer. And Kilkenny Inc as it has been termed is a fantastic offer.
It’s time for people to look at the glass half fun from now on - take on board the power of positive thinking and as the great philosophers say - put the law of attraction into operation!
It’s been a tough start to the year but with the summer months upon us, good weather to boot surely there is cause for some good news for Kilkenny.
Bring on the Spanish students, load up the Americans — all are welcome to our little city where we have oodles of events, trails, crafts and sites on offer. For Irish people who might normally go abroad and who are thinking this might not be on the cards this year — you will not be disappointed if you come to Kilkenny.
Here there is something for everyone. The Watershed has been entertaining the masses since its opening nearly three years ago, the castle and its playground are a credit to our community and are loved by one and all — tell your friends and relations from further afield!
Things are looking up for Kilkenny. This is the start of a new season and more than ever we welcome it. Bring on the long evenings, the sunny terraces of Kieran St, the balmy beer gardens of Parliament St and the open-fronted restaurants. Kilkenny has it all - we should be telling the world about our little Secret.
