ORANGE ORDER GRANTS - The Irish government has made a grant of over $370,000 to Orange Order Lodges in counties near the Northern Ireland border. Founded in 1795, the Orange Order is a male Protestant organization based in Northern Ireland but it has lodges in Leitrim, Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Dublin, Wicklow and west Cork. The July 12th Orange Parade was once a regular feature in Dublin but none has been held there since the 1930s.

IRISH VALENTINE - Before and on St. Valentine's Day, thousands queued to visit the St Valentine shrine at Dublin's Carmelite Church on Whitefriar Street (just west of St Stephen's Green). The martyr's remains have reposed in the Dublin church since 1836. Visit www.carmelites.ie.

IRISH DEMOCRATS - O'Neill's Pub on Dublin's Grafton Street was a Democratic polling station on Super Tuesday for 264 Democrats Abroad. The Irish vote breakdown was Obama 62%, Clinton 37%. There is no comparable primary for Republicans abroad.

DONEGAL ENDORSEMENT - John McCain has been endorsed for US President by The Finn Valley Voice, a weekly newspaper in Co. Donegal. Some 400 people in the area who spell their surname McKane or McKeane claim to be distantly related to the candidate.

SPACE TALK - US astronaut Dan Tani spoke from space via a live television link-up with relatives and schoolchildren in Cork last month. He met his wife, Kinsale native Jane Egan, at the Old Head of Kinsale Golf Club in 1998. Tani was aboard the International Space Station while repairs were being carried out on the space shuttle Atlantis.

DURTY NELLY'S - One of Ireland's oldest and most famous pubs, Durty Nelly's (www.durtynellys.ie) in the shadow of Bunratty Castle, Co Clare, has been sold for almost $15 million. The building has three bars and two restaurants and dates to 1620 when Durty Nelly operated a toll bridge on the road between Galway and Limerick.

KILLARNEY - On the death in Killarney in the 1990s of Americans John and Mary McShain, the IrishState became the owner of Killarney House and most of the 25,000-acre KillarneyPark, including two of the lakes, the island of Inisfallen and historic Ross Castle. Now the McShain's only daughter claims Killarney House is falling apart and she is leading a campaign to have the house repaired and maintained as her parents were promised.

McMURROUGHS-C/KAVANAGHS - The 10th International Gathering of the McMurrough/ Cavanagh/Kavanagh Clan will be held in Leighlinbridge, Co. Carlow from September 17-20, 2008. There will be sessions on Clan history, genealogy, visits to places of Clan historical interest, music, song, céilí and craic. For information, visit www.kavanaghfamily.com.

QUEEN'S ANNIVERSARY - Queen's University Belfast this year celebrates its centenary. In 1908, the University Charter guaranteed equality for women, a decade before they were given the vote and 12 years before they were admitted to Oxford. In 1909-10, Queen's had 618 students, 22 per cent of them female. Among its Alumni are Nobel prizewinners Seamus Heaney and David Trimble, and the President of Ireland Mary McAleese. Visit www.qub.ac.uk.

ONE ABOARD - When a train recently pulled out of Dublin's Heuston Station bound for Limerick, 200 baffled passengers were left on the platform as the train disappeared down the track. Because of a breakdown in communication between the driver and the station controller, only one passenger had made it aboard for the trip south.

IRISH BLESSING - Making the internet rounds just in time for St. Patrick's Day is a lovely Irish Blessing at www.e-water.net.

LOVELY IRELAND - Lonely Planet's 2008 Guide describes Ireland as "one of the world's most beautiful countries" despite its flaws, with "breathtaking scenery, still gorgeous enough to make your jaw drop". Its highlights include Dublin pubs, Inishmór island, the Hook peninsula and west Belfast, and it says Brú na Bóinne (Newgrange) is "one of the most extraordinary sites in Europe".