| Vol.1 No.11 December, 1999 (This page is archived as it initially appeared online - any broken links are subsequent to publication) Dún-na-nGall ar an Idirlíon /Donegal on the Net is organising a Cultural Tour for July 1st-8th 2000. Check out Donegal Culture Tour 2000 See the new selection of Donegal Books and CDs in the Dún-na-nGall ar an Idirlíon /Donegal on the Net Online Bookshop Nollaig Shona Dhuit! Donegal on the Net wishes all our visitors and subscribers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Nollaig Shona dhuit agus beannacht! If you are in Donegal over the holidays don't miss the Frankie Kennedy Winter School taking place from the 28th - 31st of December and Tionscnamh Lugh from 30th of December to 2nd of January, 2000. Among the musicians who will partake in the concerts are Altan, Tommy Peoples, Arty McGlynn and Ciaran Tourish. If you can't be in Donegal why not treat yourself to some Donegal music on CD - see The Donegal Bookshop ATP Group meets ESB & Council The Alternative to Pylons (ATP) group, opposing the erection of a 110 KV line from Binbane, near Donegal Town, to Letterkenny via Glenties, Gweebarra, Gweedore, Falcarragh, Creeslough, Gartan and Glenswilly, held meetings with representatives from Donegal County Council and the ESB to voice their concerns about the health implications of the line and its impact on the scenic environment. The ATP stated that 'It was apparent that the ESB's main concerns were purely economic and they dismissed the alternatives we suggested.' The ATP have received support from newly elected Udaras na Gaeltachta member Brian O'Donnell. Tragedy Hits Mountcharles Tragedy struck Mountcharles on the 8th of December when a freak accident took the lives of Sean Chapman (9) and his father Paul (34) after their car went into the sea, in appalling weather conditions. Mr Chapman, his widow Peggy and their four children moved from England to Donegal after Sean had recovered from leukemia. They had been living with Mr Chapman's mother Kathleen, near where the tragedy occurred. Golden Eagles for Glenveagh The Golden Eagle is to be re-introduced into Glenveagh National Park after 100 years absence as part of the national Millennium projects. Seventy-five eaglets will be brought from Scotland next Summer and Bird Watch Ireland will oversee the project. 29 Die on Donegal roads in 1999 Marcus Haeven, a 26 year old, from Drumfrieshire, Scotland was fatally injured in a road accident in Gweedore on December 12th, bringing the number of people killed on roads in Donegal to 29 this year. Speeding, bad roads and weather conditions have all contributed to the County's worst road accident record in years. Vandals damage Carrickfinn Airport Up to £50,000 worth of damage was caused when runway lights at Carrickfinn Airport were destroyed by vandals sometime on the 12th of December. Tension was mounting in the locality following a decision by An Bord Pleanala to uphold planning permission for an aircraft painting factory at the airport in spite of considerable local objections to the ecological and environmental impact of the plan. The Braade/ Carrickfinn Conservation Group condemned the attack. Oifig Ullans / Ulster Scots Office for Donegal There has been mixed reaction to the announcement that one of the six cross border bodies established under the auspices of the North-South Ministerial Council (set up under the Good Friday Agreement) is to have a regional office in Donegal. The Ullans Agency, to promote the Scots Ulster dialect of English, will be in the East of the County. The decision not to locate the headquarters of the North-South Language Body in the Donegal Gaeltacht has come in for some criticism while others believe that encouraging an non-existent language is a waste of money and could have a detrimental effect on the survival of Irish. Jim Devenney, a native of Newtoncunningham, has been appointed to the Ullans Agency and is among several Donegal people appointed to various bodies under the terms of the Agreement, including Brid Rodgers, Minister for Agriculture in the new Stormont Assembly; Liam O'Cuinneagain; Keith Anderson; Siobhan Logue and Andrew Ward. Winter Solstice Spectacle It was one of the most eagerly anticipated days of the year, the winter solstice, when the sun illuminates the passage into the chamber of the neolithic monument at Newgrange on the Boyne river. People turned on their TVs and PCs to watch RTE's live coverage of the event at sunrise on the 21st of December. What a disappointment - instead of a watching the event live from inside the chamber we were treated to presenters telling us about it for 20 minutes while they watched the event on monitors from outside the monument - it was definitely the worst piece of television I have ever witnessed. In contrast, Euronews, a pan-European station, broadcast 3 minutes on the solstice at Newgrange without comment, a far more dignified response to the skills of our ancestors who, 5000 years ago, built Newgrange, a wonder of the ancient world. New Years Bell for the Rosses One hundred and forty years after it first rang in the New Year the old bell at St. Peter's Church will ring in the Year 2000. The Church has been turned into a community resource centre but the Bell, which fell into disrepair after the death of the last bell-ringer, Annie Sharkey, has not rung since her funeral ten years ago. The bell is a well-known landmark in the lower Rosses and it is fitting that it will ring in the New Year. Patricia Sharkey, Administrator, Dún-na-nGall ar an Idirlíon ADVERTISING: This Newsletter is free from Donegal on the Net. If you want to suubscribe or are interested in advertising in this Newsletter email info@dun-na-ngall.com. Cloughwilly Thatched Cottages, Lettermacaward, are offering a 10% Discount to Donegal on the Net subscribers - that means you! Check out these beautifully restored 300 year old 4**** Bord Failte/ Irish Tourist Board Approved Cloughwilly Cottages |