Friday the end of the world? Go to Winterval while you can!

What? 

Friday is the end of the world? Right so, better go to Winterval while you can! 

 Taking my own advice, I'm gathering up some friends to go have a bang-up time in Waterford. The Irish home of Winterval puts on fantastic, award winning festivals, & if you're tempted, I've a few tips for your visit.

Dooley's hotel, Waterford City, Ireland. Big rooms, & big info binder :-)

To really enjoy the festivities, consider staying overnight. In September Waterford puts on the Harvest Festival, and for 2012 I was invited to be part of its blogger's tour. I was kindly put up in Dooley's hotel, and now I'm returning (on my own money) to take advantage of their large double-twin rooms.

      

Why I'm returning to Dooley's:

 Location:  Easy to find. On the quay; a handy base for walking anywhere in the city centre. 

 Value: I'm sharing the large double-twin room, with full Irish breakfast for under 40€ pp for 2.

Helpfulness: Staff cheerful and eager to assist. Binder full of local info in the room.

It is, of course, very clean- so important!
Update: when I checked in, Dooley's said that the room would be comp. (That wasn't pre-arranged, & not why I went back to Dooley's.) 
That was fab, & it allowed us some extra funds to spend in Waterford- which we did! :-D

Bodega in Waterford City, Ireland. Great fun, food, & drink!

 I can't comment on Dooley's breakfast, as I was a bit, ahem, unhungry after a wonderful evening of delicious local-food tasting platters and wine, craft beer & cider at Bodega resuaurant. (I know, I know- my sampling of all those types of drink was not well thought out!) We're back at Bodega this visit, but I'll be smarter. There's too much to enjoy at Winterval to have a sore head! (PS another place I've loved eating in in Waterford is Emiliano's.)

A  Sample Winterval to-see list 

• The Waterford Illuminates light show  Free. At Cathedral Square, til 23 Dec. Shows each hour on the hour from 5-10pm (Thurs & Sun last show 9pm) 

• The Viking Christmas Experience Free, Greyfriars Chruch.  Fri-Sun noon-4pm, Tues-Thurs 11am-2pm ''The settlement will be filled with the sights and sounds (and some smells) of Viking society. From authentic cooking utensils, to swords and shields to work and craft tools,it’s the closest you’ll ever get to life as a Viking!''
• The Toy Museum Free, City Hall. 11am-6pm Toys old & new since the 1930s. Nostalgia!
• A Georgian Christmas  €5, Bishop's Place. Mon- Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 11am-5pm 

On the day of the 'End of The World' ;-) go out in style with music, tea & mince pies at:

The Early Byrds 

Renaissance music in costume

Friday 21st December 8pm

''The Early Byrds are a group of musicians from Dublin and the South-East who have a love of early music and play and sing music from the Renaissance era in period costumes. Come and experience a taste of the 17th Century in the historic St Patrick's Church in Waterford.''

Tickets available on the door €10, €5 conc.

Tea and mince pies included.

The Georgian experience tour at Bishops Palace, Waterford City, Ireland- tis very good

Yep,you guessed it; these folks from The (non Christmas version) Georgian Experience tour are looking quite concerned about the end of the world!

Seriously, I did the tour in September, and tis entertaining & interesting. The house is full of treasures, and with the tour you learn the back-story from the characters who lived at the time.

During Winterval the cafe at Bishop's Palace will be offering authentic Georgian food as well as its normal fare. I've eaten here twice and it has been quite tasty- I'm looking forward to seeing what's on the menu now.

I've not mentioned the craft workshops, markets, Santa's Grotto and more for children & adults-- go browse what all is on! Winterval runs until 23 December 2012- click http://www.winterval.ie/    

Have a great time at Winterval-  don't worry, the Earth will still be around on Saturday :-) 

Don't forget to eat a Blaa! 

    For more posts on Waterford, click here.

My top Kilkenny Christmas pick

Christmas at Mount Juliet (photo from http://www.mountjuliethotelkilkenny.com)

Christmas in Kilkenny -city and countryside- is a real treat. There is plenty to see, do, eat & buy, but in this post I'll just give you one set of my top Kilkenny Christmas picks.

Mount Juliet Christmas Village & Santa Train
Set in the rolling Kilkenny countryside, the luxurious Mount Juliet country estate hotel puts on a lovely, free, Christmas village. Beautifully decorated, Mount Juliet's gorgeous buildings are a feast for the eyes, as are the stands full of fabulous craft, food, and more. My top tip: consider going after dark (open noon til 9pm) for the full effect of the twinkling Christmas lights. Those with children rave about the Santa Train- but do book ahead as it sells out quickly.

Where: 20 min outside Kilkenny City. Click here for directions

Note: The Santa Train leaves every half hour between 12pm and 8pm, Dec 8th-23rd inclusive and costs €15 per child (includes present) and €10 per adult.

Mount Juliet serves food, in particular the 3 rosette restaurant, The Lady Helen is highly regarded. If you follow any foodies on Twitter, you may have seen folks posting drool inducing photos; The Lady Helen's tasting menu seems a firm favorite.
 *Sighs* The Lady Helen is still on our 'one day' list... 

You won't go hungry at Mount Juliet even if you don't have a restaurant booking, because there are  some of Ireland's finest local artisan food producers at the Christmas village. Last year we satisfied our tummies with their fresh hot food & drink, and of course thoughtfully bought packaged foodie gifts for others :-)  

Glasswork at Jerpoint Glass gallery

Jerpoint Glass

While you're in the area, don't miss Jerpoint Glass just a few km down the road. We like to call in late in the afternoon to see what gorgeousness is on show in the gallery, & then head to Mount Juliet as dusk falls- perfect!

Jerpoint Glass Studio Christmas Opening Hours:

Shop & Gallery

 Open 10.00 – 17.30 Monday to Saturday and 12.00 – 17.00 Sundays

Glassblowing Demonstrations

 10.00 – 16.00 Monday to Thursday and 10.00 – 14.00 on Fridays

Closed Christmas Eve at 2pm

Want another top notch Christmas idea? 
Try Waterford's Winterval! 

Happy Christmas! Susan 

Happy Holidays! Mulled wine simmering at The Grapevine, KK City, & cute sign at Bridies Bar & Store, KK City.

CUTE ALERT! Born in the stable with Baby Jesus- Kittens!

                                   You'd have to be a Scrooge to not smile at this!

HEY!  You sharing that dosh? I was born in this stable, too, ya know!

A stray/wild mammy cat gave birth to & is raising her kittens in the stable of the Christmas crib at Arboretum in Carlow. Aww!!

 They, of course, are growing up surrounded by oohing & ahhing people, so they are not at all camera shy like their mother.

 In fact, this little kitten put on a show for me yesterday, deciding that we must be eyeing up the wise man's gold & he'd better go protect it!

Going for gold! This kitten figures she'd better go guard her gold from all the onlookers. 

This is a good lookout point! 


Happy Christmas, everyone!

5 great places to get Christmassy in Kilkenny

snow along the river Barrow, Ireland. Christmastine 2010

 In Ireland the days are fairly short in Winter, with daylight being (roughly) from 8am to 4pm. No wonder the holiday season is so welcome; the joyous lights & the festive colour and sparkle speaking to the need for more light. So- here are a few things on in Kilkenny to kick start your holiday cheer!

 First is a 1 day only event sponsored by Kilkenny Arts Office- The Market on Sat 1 Dec, 10.30-6.30. You won't want to miss it- there will be ''amazing artists, illustrators and makers selling exceptional, original, unique, quirky, and exquisite creations. The range will include jewellery, ceramics, paintings and drawings, t-shirts, fine art prints, origami accessories, pill boxes, crocheted collars, hats and vintage inspired headbands and plenty more besides.'' There will also be lots of handmade edible yummies, plus some of the fantastic Lego creations made at  Lego Quest will be on display!

One of the fab Lego Quest creations! Photo Ken McGuire

 Also on 1 Dec, the craftspeople of Made In Kilkenny open up their pop-up shop (runs til 24 Dec) Tis worth calling in on opening day, as they are offering 10% off  as well as some special offers & mulled wine :-)

The next Christmass-y event in Kilkenny is Rothe House's Christmas Miscellany, Weds 5th December, 7.30pm. They'll  have ''Music and musings on a Christmas theme, with mulled wine and mince pies. €20 with all proceeds going to Rothe House Fundraising campaign. Book by calling 056 7722893, or emailing info@rothehouse.com.

Also at Rothe House is a children's workshop Saturday 8th December, 10.30 - 12.30  ''Lots to do and make, and lots of Christmassy stuff to bring home! €6.00 per child'' Book at 056 772 2893, or info@rothehouse.com.

This weekend only (1-2 Dec) there is a pop- up craft shop in Thomastown by Jennie Castle, and after visiting the exhibition collect a voucher to enjoy a complimentary tea or coffee with every purchase from SOL Bistro, Thomastown. See their Tripadvisor reviews here. Nice!

Last but not least is Shankill Castle's Christmas Fair, which is 30 Nov to 1 Dec; read more on it from The Kilkenny People here.

I'm battling the flu, so I'm not sure will I get to any this weekend, but many more holiday events will be on in December, such as The Kilkenny Christmas Market, Kilkenny On Ice, The Mount Juliet Christmas Village & Santa train. More on them later!

 Plus, don't forget Winterval now on in neighboring Waterford- it looks to be the biggest Christmas festival in the Southeast!

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Get Festive at Wonderful Waterford's Winterval!

Launching ‘Winterval’ in Waterford- Ireland AM’s Anna Daly

UPDATE: Winterval will be back in 2013, AND run to January :-)

Do you enjoy feeling festive? If you are naturally a holiday lover, OR if you'd like to encourage a more festive feeling in yourself or your family this year, you'll want to  go to Winterval in Waterford! Here's the scoop:

The 23 day ‘Winterval’ festival starts 30 November, &  is the very first of its kind for Ireland’s oldest city. Winterval offers a jam packed schedule of fun filled activities, featuring many firsts for Ireland, including the FREE ‘Sol Luminiere Lightshow’- a spectacular 3D sound and light show designed especially for Winterval. This will will light up the Deanery in Cathedral Square each evening during the festival. 

Giving away my approximate age- I had this Hasbro Spirograph! :-)

For toy lovers young and not so young a free entry ‘Toy Museum’ featuring some first production toys from the 1950’s will be a wonderful trip down memory lane, the museum is curated by Hasbro and will feature some ‘collector item’ toys brought to Ireland especially for the festival. For festival goers wishing to get ‘crafty’ the Crafts Council of Ireland will host series of Craft workshops exploring new techniques in Clay, Textiles, Jewelery, and Paper Craft. 

Winterval also sees the Waterford Vikings Fado set up camp at Greyfriars Chruch where they will demonstrate the traditions of a Viking Christmas. Celebrating the Polish culture, a ‘Traditional Polish Christmas’ will be hosted by Waterford’s Polish community and offers festivalgoers Gingerbread Man making class (yum!) for children and lots more at ‘Swiety Mikolaj’.

In keeping the with the medieval tradition of end-of-year markets springing up as social gatherings where people could enjoy a little excess before the onset of bitter weather, a festive ‘Winterval Market’ will take over the medieval heart of the city. 60 beautifully decorated log cabins will offer the very best quality & range of goods in food, craft, wooden traditional toys and decorations. 

A brand new road train the, "Winterval Express" will also be unveiled for the festival, enabling visitors to take a tour of the 2km Winterval Trail (you can hop on & off where needed.) The epi-centre of the festival features a wonderful Santa’s grotto in the magical 12^th century city undercrofts. 

Other exciting Winterval events, which will be highlighted in the coming weeks, include a City Square Treasure Hunt, a Georgian Christmas at Bishop’s Palace, Storytelling at Reginald’s Tower including a Children’s Christmas and Classic Movie Club, Waterford Home Crafts Fair at Garter Lane. Waterford On Ice, a host of theatre productions and lots more exciting activities.

       I'm definitely going! Hope you will, too! 

A full listing of the Winterval trail events can be found on winterval.ie

 whattoseeinireland