NEWS
EVENTS
Emerald Paradise Day Three
Other | Monday 13th August 2012 | Osh
Day three
The weather has turned grey and drizzly and none of us can be arsed to make breakfast so we head off to the local supermarket to buy wraps and hot tea that we decide shall be eaten by the sea. Although the weather is far from perfect it has its charms and after wolfing down our food we head for a walk along the ocean. It’s nothing like the glorious beach of Australia but it has a certain charm. Its banks are not built up with high-rises shops or restaurants but undulating sand dunes with ancient looking wooden poles jutting out from their banks. It’s the sort of place one could imagine seeing tall-ships floating by and I love every second of it. Chilled to the bone now we head back to the car and set out for Jenna and Sandie’s family home in Delvin, West Meath.
The trip is short and I arrive to this homely looking house in which the baby brother and self proclaimed golden child Killian is outside chilling with his mates drinking tea and practicing hurling. Oh and the sun is shining. I know already that I am going to love this place. We join the boys drinking tea while Jenna practices for her gig tonight at the Le Cheile Festival in nearby Old Castle. A few hours are spent chilling and eating homemade bread that is absolutely amazing with lashings of butter for me. I don’t know what it is about cooking made by a mummy but Jenna’s mother Maeve has definitely got talent in the baking and DYI department, having also managed to fix my broken Wellington boot, hooray!
Thoroughly filled up and content we begin the age old female practice of getting ready for a night out. Showers for all, clothes knee deep and never enough bobby pins and we are eventually ready for Jenna’s gig. The car ride there is an eventful one filled with too fast driving and the arrival of Jenna’s little sister Shauna’s boyfriend Gary or gazza as I like to call him, my Aussie larrikin coming to the fore.
We are branded with our wrist tags and enter the festival and deposit Jenna’s things into the musicians tent and OMG it’s strangely quiet. What is going on here? The festival is made up of an inside stage and a garden stage, where Jenna is to play. And right now the garden stage has four people in it FOUR? Oh no, let us hope it begins to fill up by the time Jenna is on at 11pm. We sit outside watching the first act which is a trio of sisters from somewhere up north, a harp and accordion and a violin. Their first song ends and as their second begins so too does whoever is in the indoor stage and boy is there a clash. One can no longer hear the trio and the atmosphere become rather awkward and uncomfortable as the small crowd begins to look around and chatter quietly about the disruption. The trio can no longer be heard. The sound chicks rush over all apologies and the first act has decided to call it quits. Well that is shockingly poor organising if ever I saw it and those poor women having traveled so far to play one and a half songs! Next up is Ivy Joe or something along those lines and to be totally fair they’re not so bad but the female singer’s voice is irritating beyond belief undulating and pitchy, it is a relief when they finally finish. A short break and it is time for Jenna Murphy. To mine and probably everyone else’s relief a crowd has finally emerged for her act and her friends and family wait in anticipation for her to begin. In true Jenna Murphy fashion she is fucking amazing, so much so that the local fire twirling artists decided to perform their acts in front of her stage while she performs. When she comes to a close after only four songs the crowd is hungry for more. However management finishes her in readiness for the headlining act the Irish band The Walls, but to everyone’s bitter disappointment.
Packing up Jenna’s stuff and a little pissed off at the four song allowance we head into the inside stage to watch The Walls. The term aged rockers comes to mind, but hey! Who am I to say I have no idea who they are. The lead singer I am told, is notorious for being a grump and heck, he doesn’t disappoint. Half way through the performance he tells everyone to quieten down and spends the rest of the song shushing people and waving his hands at the audience. Look, I’ll be the first to admit that I am no musical genius but what I do know is that if they want to be quiet they will if they don’t they won’t and you waving your hands around like an air traffic controller isn’t going to do jack. However people seem to be thoroughly enjoying themselves with some mad dancing going on at the front.
Three encores later and I’ll be happy if I never have to see them again. Jenna and I join some friends of hers, another Jenna, Sandie and Deirdre and we head off to the local nightclub, this is going to be interesting. On arrival and after scanning the local wildlife I begin to feel very old. This place is filled with young Irish lads and girls dressed in too tight, too short dresses with awkwardly high heels and a year’s supply of make-up on their faces. However everyone seems really friendly, maybe a little too friendly. We head inside and order drinks and Jenna and I are regaled with the impressive dancing skills of Deirdre and Sandie as they do a number of old school tunes in complete unison and holy heck are they good! I can’t take my eyes away from them and my belly is about to split from laughter. Stunning blonde haired blue eyed Sandie and cute red head Deirdre make a dream team on the dance floor.
As we dance the night away, we are unfortunately introduced to Deirdre’s cousin when he lecherously begins to man handle Jenna and I in turn. The poor sod is only young, why is he making such a fool of himself? The place closes and we escape outside and await the arrival of the others from the coat room. It is here that we get to know this poor sod a little better or perhaps he gets to know Jenna a great deal better. He stumbles over to us by the exit gates and rather stupidly asks Jenna if is she is “easy”. “Oh yes I’m easy lets go down that alley way and we can shift (Irish term for making-out) then you can take me home and give me an STI....ahh NO! Well the real response is not one I imagine he thought he’d get as he scampers off with his tale between his legs. Jenna having given him an Oscar award winning talking-to that would rival my mother. Jenna 1, Deirdre’s cousin -0!!
Finally the others have arrived and we head down the beautiful cobbled high street to the local chippers that has wisely stayed open for the after hours rush. Chip packets in hand we venture off to find a taxi and untangle the second Jenna from a man with too much hair jell and pants that sit ridiculously high on his hips. The vehicle we manage to locate is stuffed full of people, reminiscent of a van in Thailand or a trotro in Ghana, sardines in a can basically. Gleefully hopping on board we head off to Deirdre’s to spend the night.
Check in for the next day with some glorious vegetarian food, Delvin Castle and too much Barry’s Tea!
