On the rooftop of the Metropole Hotel in Cork, the assembled guests arrived as early as 12.30 p.m. to enjoy a unique vantage point overlooking the River Lee. This was one of the best spots in Cork to view the arrival of the Tour de France.
A woman at the bar in the hotel, a little the worse for too much of something or other, told the barman that she wanted more than anything to go to the rooftop reception. Were passes available?
"I'm sorry madam," she was told, "it is invitation only, and I understand that all the invitations have been issued." She then made an offer to the young barman which he declined politely. As well as viewing the cyclists as they made their way down the quay and over Patrick's Bridge, she was very keen to have snails done in garlic butter.
"I'm very sorry, madam," the barman said. The woman left as the guests began to arrive. The barman said he was too busy to entertain her interesting proposal, and anyway, all the snails were gone. As the French say - that's life.
Staff in the hotel entered into the spirit of things. The manager, Mr Hugh Coyle, appeared in a traditional French seaman's T-shirt, blue beret and pencilled-in moustache. He used his French at every opportunity. Other staff joined in the carnival atmosphere.
Was it worth it for Cork? The shops and bars were conspicuously empty early yesterday as the traffic restrictions - planned with military precision - kicked in.
The city came to a halt; for once there were no tailbacks or traffic jams. It was almost as if the centre of Cork had been given back to the people. The benefit of the Tour, therefore, to a city like Cork, seems to lie in the potential spin-off from all the accruing media attention. The bottom line might even be that while in strict financial terms Cork lost money, up ahead there will be gains. We shall see.
Mr James O'Sullivan of the Cork Business Association said it was never expected that retailers in the city would reap a rich harvest because of the Tour de France. But they rowed in willingly behind it because they knew that the city and the region would be in the spotlight worldwide, and that could only be good.
"This was a spectacular event and Cork traders were very positive about hosting it. It was a good day for Cork and when you think that Cork Ford Week - a sailing extravaganza attracting almost 6,000 competitors - is going on at the same time in Crosshaven, you can see that the region is buzzing. You couldn't buy the publicity that Cork got today." The Cork in Gear Committee, which organised street entertainment with a French flair around the Tour, was also well pleased. A spokeswoman said that the event had gone off without a hitch. As the thousands lined the route to await the arrival of the cyclists in the early afternoon, there was live music, colour and pageant.
It was very much a family day out. The great characters of French history, from royalty to Napoleon, were represented by street entertainers, and in all the towns and villages before Cork, committees did their bit to ensure that music, song, dance and colour welcomed the Tour.
A huge but unobtrusive Garda presence in Cork and along the route into the city allowed the riders and the accompanying media circus plus official caravan to enter the city and exit it again without difficulty, as they made their way to the finishing line of the stage at Carrigrohane, near County Hall. Tow-away vehicles were in operation to smooth the path of the tour but only a handful of cars was removed.
On the roof of the Metropole, television sets warned us that the great event was approaching. It was time to get to the vantage points and then - whoosh! - the tour was gone. "C'est le Tour," as the saying goes.
Before the crowds had dispersed, the riders were at Cork Airport to fly out to northern France for the next stage, while their gear and back-up crews were heading for Ringaskiddy Port where three ferries waited to bring them to Roscoff.
Was it worth it? Of course it was.