Festivals and Frights this Bank Holiday Weekend

Posted on October 22, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

This forthcoming bank holiday weekend there is so much to do up and down the country that wherever you may be on your Ireland vacation you are sure to find some festival or Halloween themed entertainment to enjoy.
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Landmarks Revealed as The Cork Edition of Monopoly Hits Shelves Today!

Posted on October 19, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

As promised the Cork edition of Monopoly hit the shelves this morning at 9am. There were no disappointments as many of the well known local landmarks feature on the board.

So who made the board? Shandon steeple and Blarney Castle make up the most expensive slots on the board followed by Fota House Arboretum and Gardens. Other landmarks include the City Hall, English Market, Opera house, UCC, Cork City Goal, Cork Racecourse, Kinsale Golf Club, Cork Racecourse, Opera Lane, Merchant’s Quay and last but not least, Patrick’s Street. Munster Rugby, the famous newspaper the Irish Examiner and Cork’s number one radio station Red FM are also mentioned on the board. Continue reading →

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Cork Monopoly Official Launch Friday 19th October

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

Finally it’s here! The Cork edition of Monopoly arrived under lock and key at Cork Airport on Tuesday 16th October ahead of its official launch this Friday 19th October.

It’s thought that the newest edition of the popular family game that arrived from a regional flight from the UK into Cork Airport will be venturing around the world in time for Christmas and will be played at dining tables all over the world as family reunite over the Christmas period.
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Your Irish Roots: The O’ Mahony Family

Posted on October 17, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu
omahony_ireland

Credit to Eddie from Araltas

O’Mahony is a well known family name in Ireland. One of the first records of the family come from Co. Cork where in ancient times, the family held a seat.The majority of Ireland‘s O’ Mahony births are still registered in Co. Cork to this day.

The O’ Mahony chieftains were powerful, often described as princes and for a period were kings of Munster and Desmond. The name derives from Mathgamain, son of Cian who was the son of Máel Muad mac Brain. From approximately 960 to 978, Máel Muad mac Brain was the King of Munster on and off. Continue reading →

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Ireland’s Shane Lowry wins Portugual Golf Masters

Posted on October 16, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

Ireland’s very own golfer Shane Lowry arrived into Dublin Airport to be welcomed by well wishers and fans in the wake of his fantastic win at the Portugal Masters by one stroke on Sunday that sealed his professional status and saw him jump 54 places in the world rankings to number 74.
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Ireland take on the mighty Germany in qualifying match for Rio in the Aviva

Posted on October 15, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

Whilst we are guaranteed Rio is set to go green for next years St Patricks Day, on the international soccer front it remains to be seen whether it will be awash with green in two years time for the World Cup as Irelands world cup ambitions had a setback this weekend. Last Friday night at 7:45pm all eyes were on Dublins Aviva stadium as the boys in green took on Germany in their second world cup qualifier match on the road to Rio 2014. Having opened up their world cup qualifier campaign with a win away to Kazakhstan they faced stiff competition in one of soccers superpowers Germany who were on a 12 match unbeaten streak in qualifying matches dating back to October 2007. Continue reading →

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Brazilian Landmark to wear Green on St Patrick’s Day 2013

Posted on October 12, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

The famous Christ Redeemer state in Rio De Janerio, Brazil will be wearing Green on St Patrick’s Day 2013 joining other world renowned landmarks such as the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy and the Empire State Building in New York, USA.

The announcement of the Christ Redeemer’s impending choice of colour was made by Rio’s archbishop, during the visit to the world famous landmark by our President Michael D Higgins who is currently on an official visit to three countries within South America.
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Dublin Marathon 2012

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

Calling all runners! The Dublin Marathon 2012 will take place on Monday the 29th October. There will be three different start times: 9am, 9.10am and 9.20am. The entry cost for those who live outside of the EU is €90. Walkers are also welcome as the route is open for 7 hours.  Continue reading →

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Corona Cork Film Festival this November

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

The Corona Cork Film Festival was first established in 1956 and is one of Ireland’s premier cultural events. Year-on-year the festival has seen continued growth and success, attracting more and more interest from locals and visitors.

This festival is well thought of locally, nationally and internationally, and has a growing audience following of culture and film enthusiasts, which includes many well known and budding filmmakers.
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To Roam or to Pre-Pay in Ireland? That is the question!

Posted on October 9, 2012 by Seamus O'Murchu

Many of you have been wondering whether to switch on roaming or buy a pre-pay cell phone during Ireland vacations. We have decided to investigate and here is what we have found:

The Facts

Using our telephone and cell phone, internet or other telecommunications services is very easy. The Irish network is 100% digital, quite high tech and provides services similar to those found in any other part of Western Europe or North America.

We have many network providers here in Ireland but our largest are Vodafone, O2, Meteor and 3 Ireland and all apply to European standard GSM (2G) and UMTS (3G) standards. However whilst service is excellent when using cell phones or mobile devices be aware that roaming charges and the cost of making and receiving phones back home to the US on your Irish vacation can be costly. Continue reading →

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