Athlone and the midlands
Life on the Shannon in the town where the blog was written.
Quiet week in Athlone
What's wrong with this picture? Well, it's a bank holiday weekend in the middle of the summer for one. This is the HEIGHT of tourist season.
Newest swans on the Shannon
As I mentioned a few posts ago that feeding adult swans might not be the best idea , I thought I'd follow up on how those little swanlings are doing.
Finally some sun in Athlone!
It's about bloody time! Just look at that lovely, sunny blue sky there! The funny thing is not the sunny blue sky, but what lies beneath it: the water level on Shannon Weir.
New Adult Shop in Athlone
It's not something the Irish have traditionally been known for. Even today, it's fairly rare to find an "adult shop" in an Irish town.
TriAthlone Winners
As we've been talking so much about the triAthlone, it just wouldn't be right not to tell you who won.
The TriAthlone triathalon
Just look at that. Those are the triathletes this afternoon beginning the first leg of the triAthlone triathalon, swimming against the current up the river Shannon.
Tri-Athlone Preparations
Well, there they are - the inflatable pontoons on the Shannon just under Athlone town bridge. Those pontoons mark the swimming lanes for this weekend's triathlone race.
Rockin' Athlone castle
I just got back from a meeting with Bobby Hewitt, the organiser of the Athlone tri-fest - a weekend-long festival that encompasses a triathalon, concerts and loads of other festival madness.
Athlone Tidy Town?
The hard-working folk you see above there in their wellies are the Athlone Tidy Town committee doing their annual clean-up of the banks of the Shannon - fair play to ye, lads!
Cruise through Roscommon
Oh good Lord - Tom Cruise might be moving to Roscommon. I'll tell ye, it's getting hard to move around in the midlands without bumping into American celebreties nowadays.
Litter in Athlone
One of the things that bewilders and ticks me off more than anything is flagrant littering. Who in their right mind just tosses rubbish onto the street?
Athlone St Pat's waiters' race
I just love these images from the Athlone Saint Patrick's Day waiters' race. This was the first year for this event and - maybe it was just me - but are there any Irish waiters in Athlone?
Soccer Stadium for Athlone
Well if that doesn't just put your town on the map - Athlone finally has a proper soccer stadium.
Athlone goes FairTrade
After just a year of coordination, the fair town of Athlone has become the Fair Trade town of Athlone. That's right, this past week Athlone became the 19th Irish Fair Trade town.
Topless sunbathing in Athlone
Awwllllriiiight! Now doesn't that just get your mind right off the game last night?
President of Ireland in Athlone
There it is, the 55th most powerful person in the world's limousine cruising past a low income housing area in Athlone.
Sewage in the streets of Athlone
No, I'm really serious. Okay, so I know the Romans never made it up this way to install their prototype sewage systems and I know the bog is a fabulous natural filter for all kinds of . . . eh . . .
Misty Shannon Dawn
I just had to share this photo with y'all. I was at work last night past 11pm and had to wake early this morning to face another monotonous day of sitting behind a flickering computer monitor.
Shannon floods threaten endangered corncrake
I have been discussing the flooding of the Shannon in previous posts. First I took a photo showing the disappearance of the weir under the rising river, then The Shannon actually burst its banks and…
The Shannon bursts its banks
The Shannon floods its banks just south of the Athlone town bridge. Boats docked riverside threaten to drift onto the pavement. Leprechaun community evacuates for higher ground.
George Bush's cousin says Westmeath = "no man's land"
According to Access Hollywood reporter Billy Bush , Westmeath is a "no man's land" located "outside of Dublin." Now our man Billy is cousin to George (yes, dubya himself) and perhaps there's…
Deforestation in Athlone
Coming back from a trip into town this morning I was shocked and dismayed to witness the felling of two distinctive trees in town.
Athlone threatened by nuclear fallout
Ireland has a number of power plants. Despite what you may have heard, they are not run on donkey poo, but on turf. Good aul turf!
Roscommon minors win historical GAA victory
Children, I have something to tell you: Saturday night Roscommon won the minor All-Ireland final in a mighty battle. The last time it happened was 55 years ago. Just imagine.
The Athlone IRA Statue
Well, my posting on Northern Ireland has spawned a lot of conversations out here. I mentioned that Athlone has an IRA statue and it was pointed out to me that not all of the readers of this blog may…