June 9th
We woke up on election day morning in quite good order. Shower and breakfast. Outi’s friend Kieran came to greet us – and there we spent a couple of hours comfortably. There were plenty of stories about fishing, fish stocks, politics, history, and much more.
After Kieran left, it was time to pack our things into the car, bid farewell to our excellent hostess, and head off in the hazy gray weather. We noted that we had had great weather throughout our days on Achill Island. While there were a few rain showers, the clouds were high enough most of the time that the magnificent, mountainous hills were visible every day.
We drove to Castlebar in one go. The ride was a bit bumpier – I might have been driving a bit faster than on the way there. There were a few muted comments about this from the back seat.
After we got our things from the van to Outi’s place, we went to eat at a local Thai restaurant. Good food at quite reasonable prices.
After the meal, a rest break was in order, and then the election night festivities began. At least some of the people present were strongly engaged in Li Andersson’s triumphant evening. Of course, the overall result is what matters to the citizens, but it does say something that Li received one in seven votes cast. Quite a strong mandate to represent Finns in European decision-making. I’ve had enough dealings with her to say that she belongs to those intelligent people who are also wise! Big congratulations from here too!
Now it’s off to bed and preparing for tomorrow’s journey towards the northern part of the island!