Lens Artist Photo Challege # 8 Colorful

In Ireland, street festivals have almost become the norm in the summer. It’s a way for small towns and villages to increase numbers of tourists to their local area and they can be often be very colourful.

Sweet stall Tubbercurry Fair

Street festivals are a way of celebrating what those communities have to offer. Some examples here in Mayo there is the Ballina Salmon Festival and the Foxford Riverfest, Swinford has the Síamsa Sráide, a celebration of transitional music and song, and lots more throughout the country.

 

standing tall

This year, we have the opportunity to visit Tubbercurry Old Fair. The old fair day was a tradition in Irish towns. People from rural areas would go into towns on these days (usually one day in a month) and buy what they needed. Cows and livestock would be brought to the fair to be sold and so on.

The Tubbercurry fair day festival tries to recreate this event – but along with all the things that would have been on a traditional fair day there are all the new things too. Today, the fair gives an opportunity for gifted crafts men and women to display their wares as well as given demonstrations of their talents.

 

straw house for laying hens

Wooden wheel

Willow basket