Well if you could see the stars, then ...

I'm a regular visitor to Armagh, as it's home to the International Centre for Local and Regional Development. I'm here today and tomorrow discussing cross-border spatial planning (the coordination and planning of shared infrastructure and services for mutual benefit). Armagh is a very nice small town, with two cathedrals, a lovely Georgian square, and a worldclass observatory where 25 scientists work studying the heavens. It has to be one of the oddest places to site an observatory. As I write it is lashing rain. There are clear skies suitable for star gazing about 30 days a year. It doesn't seem to hamper the work much. The observatory has been here since 1790 and seems to be going strong. If you're ever passing through, it's well worth a visit. (There would be an image to accompany this post, but blogger is refusing to unload one - click on the link to take a tour).