Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
US PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA and the first lady Michelle Obama are halfway through their 24-hour visit to Ireland.
Advertisement
So far this morning they have touched down in Dublin Airport; been carried by helicopter to the Phoenix Park; visited President Mary McAleese in Áras an Uachtaráin; planted an Irish Oak in the grounds of the president’s residence; and chatted with the Taoiseach in Farmleigh House.
Phew. We hope they have somewhere relaxing booked for lunch…
Barrack Obama and his wife Michelle land in Dublin Airport on Air Force One at the start of his visit to Ireland.
Picture by: Julien Behal/PA Wire/Press Association Images
The wind picks up...
U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama are greeted by Eamon Gilmore as they step off Air Force One as they arrive in Dublin.
Picture by: Charles Dharapak/AP/Press Association Images
Michelle, we feel your pain
US first lady Michelle Obama's hair is disheveled by the wind as she and President Barack Obama are greeted by dignitaries. Women across Ireland murmur in sympathy...
Picture by: Matt Dunham/AP/Press Association Images
Two presidents meet
President Barack Obama is greeted by the President of Ireland Mary McAleese and her husband Martin McAleese at Áras an Uachtaráin.
Picture by: Carolyn Kaster/AP/Press Association Images
At the Áras
From left, US Ambassador Daniel M. Rooney and his wife Patricia Rooney, President Barack Obama, President of Ireland Mary McAleese and her husband Martin McAleese, and first lady Michelle Obama.
Picture by: Carolyn Kaster/AP/Press Association Images
Travelling in style
The presidential limousine is parked outside the Áras as US President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama meet with Ireland's President Mary McAleese and husband Martin McAleese.
Picture by: Charles Dharapak/AP/Press Association Images
Tree planting ceremony
Obama meets with the head gardener at the Áras before planting an Irish Oak in the grounds of the Phoenix Park. In the background, three children ring the Peace Bell.
Picture by: Charles Dharapak/AP/Press Association Images
Tour of Farmleigh
First Lady Michelle Obama with Fionnuala Kenny view an embroidered panel depicting the Norman Invasion during a tour of Farmleigh House.
Picture by: Maxwells/PA Wire/Press Association Images
The Obamas meet with Irish schoolchildren
President and Michelle Obama meet with the children who rang the Peace Bell: (L-R) Onyedika Ukachukwu, Colm Dunne and Margaret McDonagh.
Picture by: Charles Dharapak/AP/Press Association Images
Farmleigh House
President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama,Taoiseach Enda Kenny, and Fionnuala Kenny.
Picture by: Carolyn Kaster/AP/Press Association Images
The Taoiseach meets the US President
Obama is greeted by Taoiseach Enda Kenny and his wife Fionnuala Kenny at Farmleigh House in Dublin.
Picture by: Carolyn Kaster/AP/Press Association Images
Greetings
The Obamas are greeted by the Kennys at Farmleigh House.
Picture by: Carolyn Kaster/AP/Press Association Images
Obama and Kenny
US President Barack Obama with Taoiseach Enda Kenny in Farmleigh, Dublin, where the two held talks.
Picture by: Maxwells/PA Wire/Press Association Images
Michelle and Fionnuala
Michelle Obama speaks with Fionnuala Kenny in the gardens of Farmleigh.
Picture by: Maxwells/PA Wire/Press Association Images
Obama was 'ere
President Obama and Michelle Obama sign the visitors' book in Áras an Uachtaráin.
Picture by: Peter Morrison/AP/Press Association Images
Signatures
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama's signatures in the visitors book at Áras an Uachtaráin.
Picture by: Niall Carson/PA Wire/Press Association Images
Kenny gives Obama a lesson in hurling
The Taoiseach gives the US President a few pointers...
Picture by: Carolyn Kaster/AP/Press Association Images
Getting to grips with it...
He's a natural, our O'Bama.
Picture by: Maxwells/PA Wire/Press Association Images
Whoa! Bit too close there...
Enda looks a tad more nervous in this snap.
Picture by: Maxwells/PA Wire/Press Association Images
Don't mess with O'Bama
Things looked a bit hairy for a minute... but settled down before a full-blown diplomatic incident occurred.
Picture by: Maxwells/PA Wire/Press Association Images
Homeward Bound
Thousands queue up at the Nenagh-side entrance to Moneygall where Obama is due to spend some time later this afternoon.
(Thanks to the reader who sent this in.)
Toasting his forefathers
In Ollie Hayes's pub in Moneygall, Co Offaly, the village his great-great-great grandfather hailed from. (Pic: Maxwells)
Going...
In Hayes's bar in Moneygall, Co Offaly. (Pic: Maxwells)
...Going...
In Hayes's bar in Moneygall, Co Offaly. (Pic: Maxwells)
...almost gone.
In Hayes's bar in Moneygall, Co Offaly. (Pic: Maxwells)
Meeting the locals in Moneygall
Barack and Michelle Obama took time out to meet the locals from his great-great-great grandfather Falmouth Kearney's native town of Monygall in Co Offaly. (Pic: Maxwells)
Meet-and-greet
US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle greet well wishers in Moneygall, Co Offaly. (Pic: Maxwells)
The sun breaks through...
The Obamas stayed out hugging and shaking hands on the streets of Moneygall, even as squally showers alternated with bursts of sunshine. (Pic: Maxwells)
Queueing for Obama's public address
Huge queues have been forming in Dublin city centre ahead of Obama's public address this evening.
Laura Hutton/Photocall Ireland
In the words of Abraham Lincoln...
Actor Daniel Day-Lewis welcomed the US President with a quote from Lincoln about democracy and slavery. (Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire)
Obama takes to the stage
Barak Obama addresses the crowd in Dublin as Taoseach Enda Kenny looks on. (Pic: Leon Farrell/Photocall)
High five!
Obama greets the crowd gathered at College Green after making his speech. (Niall Carson/PA Wire/PA Images)
Hullooo Dublin!
Barack waves to the crowds on a final walkabout at College Green. (Pic: Stephen Kilkenny)
Yes, this is Barack
Obama speaks to the mother of a spectator by phone. (Pic: Stephen Kilkenny)
Rock on
US President Barack Obama gestures to the crowd at College Green, Dublin as Taoiseach Enda Kenny looks on (Pic: Stephen Kilkenny)
Dame Street carnage
Rubbish and discarded items which were prohibited from the security zone around College Green. (Pic: Laura Hutton/Photocall)
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
Allergen alert issued for Donegal Catch salmon fillets due to undeclared peanut traces
22 mins ago
451
4
Scottsdale
Motley Crue singer’s jet collides with plane at Arizona airport, killing one person
29 mins ago
2.5k
2
Dublin
Man still in custody after three people hospitalised in 'random' stabbing attack in Stoneybatter
Updated
10 Feb
125k
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 143 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 98 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 128 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 98 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 73 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 72 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 36 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 32 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 119 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 59 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 70 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 77 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 38 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 42 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 24 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 79 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 89 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 65 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 47 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 77 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 57 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say