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West Clare

Ambassador to join in festivities for 30-year-old twins

THIS weekend Kilkee will celebrate the 30th anniversary of its twinning with the town of Plouhinec in France. French Ambassador to Ireland Emmanuelle d’Achon will attend the ceremony in Kilkee. The ambassador has been in the post since July 2010. Over 80 people are to travel from Plouhinec to participate in the celebrations including many of those who have visited Kilkee on previous twinning trips. There will also be a small delegation travelling from the German town of Weidenburg, which is twinned with Plouhinec. The Plouhinec choir will stage an informal concert at the Kilkee Bay Hotel at 8.30pm on Saturday and all local people are welcome to attend. The official ceremony will be at Cultúrlann McSweeny following 11am mass on Sunday. A commemorative tree planting ceremony is scheduled for Allender’s Field afterwards.In 1983, Kilkee and Plouhinec in Brittany signed a twinning agreement to promote social, cultural and commercial exchanges between the two communities. Many towns in France and particularly …

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Piseogs and potions specially brewed by community school parents

POTIONS and Piseogs, which is a collection of remedies, cures and tales from Kilrush and surrounding areas was launched in Kilrush Community School last Thursday. The booklet was produced by a group of parents of pupils who attend Kilrush Community School. The publication contains dozens of old remedies such as, dabbing a sting with vinegar or that putting meat on a sting or an insect bite, cures it. Coughs can also be aided by downing a white egg beaten stiff and adding two tablespoons of brown vinegar. Another cure for a cough involves eating the white of an egg mix with whiskey and vinegar. Some of the piseogs include the revelation that if you shiver for no reason, someone is walking on your grave and that if a woman’s apron falls open, it’s a sign that someone is talking about her. Also if you hear the sound of fairies or a sound that you cannot explain, you should turn your …

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New vista experience at Loophead Lighthouse

A NEW exhibition and visitor experience, using a mix of media to tell the story of Loop Head Lighthouse, is being designed to enhance the tourism offering at the landmark building. Taoiseach Enda Kenny is expected to visit the lighthouse on Friday, April 27, as his grandfather once worked there as a lighthouse ’keeper.

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Kilrush to host first biodiversity week

CLARE County Council has revealed details of the first Kilrush Biodiversity Week which will take place from Monday, April 23 to Sunday, April 29. All events will be free and family-orientated. The programme of events will celebrate many aspects of biodiversity in Kilrush and its environs from family days out to information and discussions about threats to biodiversity.  Clare Biodiversity Officer, Shane Casey said the aim of Kilrush Biodiversity Week is to encourage active learning about biodiversity through a range of events and to increase public understanding that action taken locally has national and global importance.“Many of the events taking place during the week will be aimed at the general public with other events targeted at primary and secondary schools in Kilrush. It is also hoped that members of the public who participate in Kilrush Biodiversity Week events can be encouraged to take an interest in helping to conserve Biodiversity for future generations”, he explained.Commenting on the involvement of local …

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Councillors fume over state of cliff walk

KILKEE Town Councillors have expressed their disappointment at the ongoing condition of the iconic cliff walk in Kilkee, which has been in a state of disrepair since Clare County Council carried out remedial work there last November. Last week’s town council meeting heard that Cyril Feeney, Clare County Council inspected the Cliff Walk on March 23 in the company of landscaping company representatives from Hawthorn Nurseries. The meeting was told the grass was showing signs of recovery and those who inspected the walk were confident that the grass will grow naturally in one to two years. However, Councillor Paddy Collins disagreed with this prediction. “There is no sign of growth. There aren’t even weeds,” he claimed. The December meeting of Kilkee Town Council heard stringent criticism of the work along with claims that grass, which has been removed, will never be replaced and that it will take 30 years for some species of flowers to be seen in Kilkee’s West …

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12 seasonal jobs as lighthouse reopens

  LOOP Head Lighthouse will reopen to the public during the June Bank Holiday Weekend for a 12-week period. Clare County Council, along with Shannon Development, Loop Head Tourism and the Commissioners of Irish Lights (CIL), said the extended opening follows a successful trial scheme in 2011, which resulted in an estimated 17,000 people visiting the landmark building.The council also confirmed that applications are being invited for 12 seasonal jobs. Successful applicants will be responsible for greeting visitors to the 19th century lighthouse, providing visitor information and tours of the building, access control and general maintenance at the site. The positions are being advertised this week.Loop Head Lighthouse, located at the mouth of the Shannon Estuary, is rich in maritime heritage with its origins dating back to the 1670s. The existing tower-style lighthouse was constructed in 1854 and was operated and maintained by a keeper, who lived within the lighthouse compound. In January 1991, the lighthouse was converted to automatic …

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Tractor run ready for the off

A FUNDRAISING tractor run, supporting The Declan O’Shea Trust, will be held in Kilmihil on Sunday.Declan, who turned 36 in January, was seriously injured in an accident last October in Faro, Portugal. He underwent an operation on his spine in Portugal and then spent a month in the spinal injuries unit of the Mater Hospital in Dublin. He has been receiving treatment at the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire since last December.A Kilmihil footballer, mechanic and part-time farmer, who completed his Green Cert, Declan is well known throughout West Clare.Organisers are keen to stress that Sunday’s tractor run is not confined to vintage tractors. Therefore, anybody with access to any type of tractor, whatever its age, is welcome to attend. Registration will be at 12noon at Kilmihil GAA field, while the tractor run is due to depart Declan O’Shea’s native village at 1pm.Organisers are confident the event will be supported by local communities, as well as the Kilmihil parish. …

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Tourism on agenda at Leader seminar

IN their ongoing effort at sustained engagement throughout the county, Clare Local Development Company (CLDC) through Leader will host their third regional seminar in Doonbeg Hall next Wednesday from 10am to 1pm.A total of four seminars are taking place around the county on varying dates to encourage, develop and nurture non-agriculture enterprise in Clare.The theme for the West Clare leg is Activity and Tourism. Leader has played a role in supporting eco-tourism, marine tourism, activity tourism, visitor centres and food tourism projects throughout Clare. Many of the projects will showcase their business at the seminar in Doonbeg.“They are here not only to promote their business but be available to any member of the public who might be interested in finding out how to go about starting a new business. The seminars focus is on “peer-to-peer” learning and cross-fertilisation of ideas,” explained Bridgette Brew, rural enterprise animator with CLDC.The keynote address will be given by Paddy Matthews, who joined Fáilte Ireland …

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