Hula hoop dancer A dancer entertained the crowds at the Midleton Food and Drink Festival last September. She was quite popular as you can imagine! Here’s a fascinating page on hula hoops courtesy of Wikipedia.

Scared Child A girl looked up at me from her buggy as I took her photo with the wide angle lens of my camera. This was taken just after the St. Patrick’s Day Parade this year and the place was black with people, especially outside the The Larry Tompkins pub so no wonder she was…

The Art of Negotiation A group of boys discuss the day’s market in Midleton at the Food and Drink Fair there last September. I’m off to the hospital again. I came home for a few hours sleep. Strong coffee day today methinks and no sign of baby just yet. Don’t even contemplate ringing me unless…

Father and son in the square A father and his offspring walk about after the parade on St. Patrick’s Day in Cork this year. Normally this is a busy junction but it was closed off for a few hours to make way for the festivities. Patrick’s Street can be seen in the background with the…

Girls on the street St. Patrick’s Day brought out a huge crowd onto the streets and here’s a group of girls we bumped into on Patrick’s Street. We were on our way to a cafe for refreshment when I spotted a bicycle chained to a pole, but it had fallen down. As is my way…

Patrick’s Day in pictures Revelers who were obviously having a great time at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Cork! Big and crazy hats were the order of the day for many visitors and spectators Crowd Safety officials had their hands full with the large crowd at the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Cork. I…

The red and white man A street entertainer on stilts entertained the crowd at the Midleton Food and Drink Festival last September. I took photos of him in Cork too and I think he recognised me and my wife as he made a beeline for us and stopped to chat. This was shot from below…

Last minute shopping Today many major cities and towns around the world are going to be thronged with shoppers doing last minute shopping before Christmas Day. Traffic is going to crawl and frustrate and the crowds will be suffocating. I’m glad I’m staying at home. We may head out to the Lough later for a…

Fun at the crib Fr James McSweeney’s live crib in Ballyvolane was busy with animals and human visitors all through last week but I managed to get some shots the night when we visited. As I mentioned already, there were all sorts of animals there, from sheep and donkeys to chickens, calves and puppies. Donations…

Christmas Street Lights The Christmas lights in Mallow, Co. Cork illuminate the streets with a lovely cheerful glow. A passing car provides another source of light in this long exposure shot on the main street of the town.

Chistmas Tree Lights St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Mallow is lit up by the lights of the Christmas tree in the church grounds. The camera club social night was in Mallow last night and after a great meal myself and Jacinta left the rest to prop up the bar! I had my camera with me…