President Mary McAleese yesterday set off for an official visit to the US, which will include an attendance at controversial musical The Pirate Queen on Broadway.
She will also receive an honorary doctorate and will meet the Irish community at several events this week.
Her tour begins this morning with a visit to the Martin Luther King I Have a Dream exhibition at the Atlanta History Center. This will be followed by a visit to the Georgia Institute of Technology.
The President will meet the Governor of Georgia, Sonny Perdue, before addressing the Rotary Club of Atlanta. She will also meet staff and students of the Irish studies programme at Emory University. Later today she will be honoured at a reception organised by the Irish community in Atlanta.
Tomorrow's engagements start with a meeting with Congressman Jim Walsh in Syracuse, followed by a lunch hosted by Nancy Cantor, chancellor of the University of Syracuse. Mrs McAleese will then deliver a speech to the university on education and disability. She will also visit the College of Law's disability rights clinic at the university.
The President will spend Wednesday in New York, visiting the Emerald Isle Information Center and the Aisling Emigrant Advice Center in the Bronx. She will be a guest of honour at a community reception at St Barnabas' Church.
