Rise and Shine

G8 and EU leaders line up for a photograph at Lough Erne. Left to right are European Commission president José Manuel Barroso, Japan’s prime minister Shinzo Abe, German chancellor Angela Merkel, Russia’s president Vladimir Putin, British prime minister David Cameron, US president Barack Obama, France’s president Francois Hollande, Canada’s prime minister Stephen Harper, Italy’s prime minister Enrico Letta and European Council president Herman Van Rompuy

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G8 Live Stream

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Today:

After the conclusion of the G8 Summit in Northern Ireland, the Obamas leave for Germany at 5:30 Irish time (12:30 EST)

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The headline in The Sun – of course!

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…. with PM Cameron and Taoiseach Kenny – @PeteSouza

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…. with President Putin and PM Cameron

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…. with PM David Cameron and President Francois Hollande

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… with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper

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Irish Times: US first lady Michelle Obama and her daughters had a private guided tour of the Wicklow Mountains National Park as their whistlestop tour of Ireland draws to a close.

The sun beamed down on the hills above the twin lakes at Glendalough as Ms Obama and Malia and Sasha walked through the famous monastic site. The girls were given a lesson on the ancient ruins by local tour guide George McClafferty. The valley, in the heart of the Wicklow mountains, offers some of the most popular rural landscapes in Ireland and is a well-worn tourist path for visitors to the east coast.

The president’s youngest daughter, 12-year-old Sasha, batted swarming midges away from her face as the trio learned about the legendary Deer Stone …. Sasha was given the honour of closing the door to the ruins of St Kevin’s Church, which dates back 1500 years. The teenager was handed a key and she locked the door, before turning to her older sister and giving her a high five.

Meanwhile, the usually-quiet village of Dalkey has seen an influx of visitors this morning following reports that Ms Obama and her daughters will have lunch in Finnegans’ pub with Bono.

More here

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George McClafferty, manager at Glendalough: “I just melted….”:

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Bono and his wife Ali Hewson arrive at Finnegan’s pub in Dalkey this afternoon for lunch with Michelle Obama and her daughters Malia and Sasha. ‘I thought this was supposed to be a secret,’ Bono said to the crowd.

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….. with (left to right) Moya Dohery of Riverdance,  the Taoiseach’s wife Fionnuala Kenny and Sabina Higgins, wife of President Michael D Higgins at a special Riverdance performance at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin

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See all posts from the Ireland visit here

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Mooooooooorning everyone, just a few photos and videos to start your day, will try to catch up later with all the newsie stuff and more from Ireland and Germany.

Another Gorgeous Day……

Colorado College in Colorado Springs, August 9

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President Barack Obama talks with Paralympic athletes at the U.S. Olympic Training Facility in Colorado Springs, Colo., Aug. 9, 2012. The TV in the background broadcast the gold medal ceremony for the U.S. Olympic women’s soccer team. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

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President Obama jogs to the stage at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, August 9

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School teacher Christy Howard of Colorado Springs introduces President Barack Obama at Colorado College

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Pueblo, Colorado, August 9

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Romero’s Cafe and Catering, Pueblo

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Amk! Katie Taylor, the greatest sportswoman in the history of planet earth, won boxing gold today 😎 This is her home town reacting calmly to the result:

twitteriffic

Larger image here

Irish Central: President Obama’s visit to Ireland, and more importantly his famous visit to Ollie Hayes’s pub in Moneygall to enjoy a pint of Guinness, along with the thousands of people who tweeted about the President’s visit, inspired a Wicklow businessman to create this piece of art.

Alan O’Flaherty … created a one off image of Obama made from approximately 1,000 Twitter avatars of users who tweeted on May 23rd … the poster is entitled “Is Féidir Linn” (“Yes We Can”) .. “It’s made up of 1,000 photographs of people who tweeted about the visit on the day. I got the idea of making the image after seeing something similar done when Obama was first elected president.”