Anyone who follows me on Twitter or Facebook is probably aware that I won a competition at the end of last week run by the Pembroke Hotel in Kilkenny where the prize was an iPad and a weekend stay in the hotel, with an evening meal.

The competition was quite interesting.  They asked people to suggest ways in which the hotel website could be improved, and as a way of promoting the hotel, they asked people to post their ideas on their own blogs and/or Facebook profiles.  For more details on the competition have a look at http://bohanna.typepad.com/pureplay/2010/06/win-a-weekend-away-in-kilkenny-and-an-ipad-as-well.html

So imagine my surprise when I discovered on Friday last week that my name had been pulled out of the hat.

On Tuesday this week I collected the iPad, and met the hotel owner John Ryan.  As well as treating me to a fine lunch, which was one of the best lunches I’ve had in Kilkenny in a long time, I also got a tour of the hotel, and the adjoining business centre 11 Patrick Street - www.elevenpatrickstreet.com.

I was very impressed with the setup.  The hotel is immaculate.  Very tidy, well decorated rooms, some with a view of Kilkenny Castle, and a great location near the centre of town.  The Business Centre was first class, with a great infrastructure available to anyone who is running a small business, or thinking of starting a new business and requires office space.  They also have excellent meeting facilities, in fact I am proposing to our Residents’ Association Committee to hold their upcoming AGM in the hotel.

So if you happen to be in Kilkenny any time soon, from what I saw I would highly recommend that you check out the Pembroke Hotel.  They are very active on the Internet, and you can find them on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pembrokehotel) and Twitter (http://twitter.com/pembrokehotel).

As for the iPad, I haven’t really had a chance to put it through it’s paces yet, but first impressions are great, and I’m looking forward to learning more about it.  I’ll write a post soon, when I’ve had a chance to draw some conclusions from my usage of it.

Talk later.