If you are left-handed, you may like to make your way this year to Mullingar in County Westmeath, Ireland.
Mullingar is the self-titled Left Hand Capital of the World and in this special year of The Gathering, the five-day Left Hand Festival from August 9-13 has such a whimsical variety of events that nobody will be left out.
Taking in the history – Roscommon was built by the Normans in 1269 and four years later was captured by the Irish and raised to the ground, to be rebuilt in 1280.
In true Irish style, Tourism Ireland has come up with a great way of enticing tourists to the country – a year-long event called The Gathering 2013 with hundreds of regional festivals and celebrations focused on culture, heritage, sport and music to attract tourists, and particularly Irish descendants, back to their fair shores.
Mullingar’s Left Hand Festival is one of them.
Fleadh Cheoil, Cavan Town
Mullingar means “the town of the left hand mill” in gaelic, so it’s little wonder that the locals grabbed at the concept with both hands to create a unique annual cultural event based around International Left Handers Day, which falls on August 13 each year.
The good people of Mullingar have taken up the cause to highlight the difficulties, albeit humorous, of left-handed people in a right-handed world.
Horses and riders – The Burren, a 250s square kilometre region in northwest County Clare, is one of the largest karst landscapes in Europe.
In 2013, it’s time for “south paws” to rise up and take their rightful place in the world, which will be quite impressive because there are 700 million of them worldwide.
Of course, right-handed people will not be discriminated against. They are also welcome to participate in the fun, which includes accommodation in left-handed hotel bedrooms, an Irish Left Handed Golf competition and other similarly “sinistra” (Latin for left) sporting events, music, dancing and the crowning of the Left Handed Champion of Ireland.
Powerscourt House and Gardens, County Wicklow
The “dexter” folk (Latin for right) can set aside their righteous ways in tests of dexterity at Mullingar’s Mill Wheel.
In a bid to ensure nothing goes right over the five-day celebrations, festival organisers have arranged for left-handed foreign visitors to drive on the left hand side of the road in Mullingar. The move must have Mullingar’s motor vehicle insurers rubbing their hands together.
Blackfaced sheep, Curraun Peninsula, County Mayo.
Beyond the views of the far left, this year’s Irish Gathering gathers apace. Ireland currently has a population of just under five million people, but the global Irish diaspora is around 700 million, with significant cultural groups in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and Australia. Add to that descendants and another million or so Irish-born people currently living abroad and you have the potential for a great gathering.
Mikey Ryan’s Bar, County Tipperary
During the year, there will be more than 1700 gatherings and associated events organised by individuals, families and county and parish communities all over Ireland.
Highlights Include:
- A three-day festival of Irish dance with workshops, master classes and events taking place in various venues around Dublin, culminating with a world-record attempt at the longest Riverdance performance along the banks of the River Liffey.
- From February to October, South County Dublin will host Meet to Compete, with 25 international sports tournaments across several sports including basketball, baseball, cricket and soccer, inviting teams from the USA, Canada, the UK and Europe.
- More than 50 international choirs will attend choral Gatherings, with The Messiah Gathering in Dublin April 12-15, Cork Choral Gathering May 1-5 and the Mayo Choral Gathering from May 23-26. The inaugural Limerick Sings will take place over the June Bank Holiday weekend. From August 9-18, the Kilkenny Arts Festival Choir will join choirs from Kilkenny’s twin cities: Leicester (UK); Moret-Sur-Loing (France) and Xuzhou (China) for a gathering of voices. The Sligo International Choral Festival in November will round off the year of choral events.
- The Morpeth Roll, probably the longest farewell card in the world, signed by over 250,000 people in Ireland in 1841 at the request of Daniel O’Connell and presented to the outgoing Lord Morpeth, the well respected and much admired Chief Secretary of Ireland will go on public display for the first time on an exhibition tour of Ireland. The Morpeth Roll exhibition will open in Dublin on St Patrick’s Day and will later be on display in Kilkenny, Clonmel, Derrynane, Westport and Belfast.
- The Irish Association of Barbershop Singers International Convention. Quartet and chorus competitions for national and international barbershop singing are held annually in Ireland. This year in October the likely venue of the Theatre Royal at Waterford will attract singing groups from the United States, England, Holland, Finland and Sweden.
- A Jazz Gathering at the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival will provide more than 1000 music students from around the world with a weekend of jazz education, including free tuition from some of the most famous names in jazz.
- Members of the tribes of Galway living in North America will be invited to compete in an Oyster eating competition at this year’s Galway International Oyster and Seafood Festival.
- The GAA will host three international football, ladies football and Camogie tournaments over three days, with the finals being held in Croke Park on July 27. An Aer Lingus international hurling tournament will take place in Galway from September 18-21.
For more information, visit: The Gathering Ireland 2013
Photo Credits
Roscommon Castle – Tourism Ireland
Horses and riders on The Burren – Tourism Ireland
Powerscourt House and Gardens – Chris Hill/Tourism Ireland
Blackfaced sheep – Holger Leie/Tourism Ireland
Fleadh Cheoil, Cavan Town – Brian Morrison/Tourism Ireland
Mikey Ryan’s Bar, County Tipperary – Stephen Power/Tourism Ireland
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