16 Oct.08--more Ireland

Ancient structure at the Burren--with tourists.












Galway musician with the red hair and beard of a leprechaun. He's playing the Irish bagpipes, which have no mouthpiece; they're played only with the hands. The pitch is at least an octave lower than the Scottish pipes.
Galway has a large pedestrian-only area where street performers hang out. You can hear and see many performers, some of whom only THINK they can sing!
There was one old guy who looked like an old sailor from a movie. He was singing old songs in Gaelic. I have no idea whether the tunes were being sung well or not but I think he was doing OK, even if he looked several sheets to the wind.

The Irish harp is one of my favorite images of Ireland; it's in less schlocky forms than shamrocks, leprechauns, and sheep. I think it's such a lovely image; I would advise them to add it to their flag. Why not have a musical instrument on the flag? Better than a predatory bird.
This harp mosaic was outside the hotel where I stayed in Dublin.








River Liffey, Dublin. The green dome belongs to some important building--a civic building, I think.