A relatively quiet day today. Our original plans had been to visit Galway City and the Connemara National Park, but we had a bit of a slow start and didn’t really fancy the 2 hour-ish drive over to the national park, so we had a look at the map and decided to head to the Cliffs of Moher. Susan took the first shift driving and off we went. The most exciting part of the trip was ascending Corkscrew Hill, a series of 4 big hairpin bends. The view at the top was pretty good, but would have been stunning if the weather had been sunny! The Cliffs of Moher were, well…cliffs. It’s fair to say that they are quite high (702 feet) and, as advertised, they’re vertical. They do have a bit of a story behind ... read more

We were delighted to be able to visit Philomena, my Mum’s childhood friend, today. Mum grew up in the village of Carrigallen, a small village in Co. Leitrem on the shores of a small lough. She was cared for by her grandmother, Frances ‘Granny’ Nixon, while her mum, Bella, worked away from home as a maid in Lissadell House (lissadellhouse.com). Bella’s siblings, Harry and Billy, also lived in the cottage with Mum. Bella’s 2 other siblings, Rosaline and Bob were working away from home. Rosaline was a maid; I’m unsure where but possibly with Bella at Lissadell, and Bob was a Merchant Seaman. All had emigrated to England at some point in the 1950s. While I was growing up we visited Carrigallen a few times, staying with Philomena and her family. Mum died in September 1992 ... read more

After leaving our Belfast Airbnb cleaner than when we arrived, we loaded Sherri’s boot / trunk and headed out of the city. We drove north along the Causeway Coastal Route. This hugs the coast up the east side of Northern Ireland from Belfast, and finishes in Derry, shortly before the road enters Eire again. It’s certainly a beautiful drive, meandering along the coast through small towns and villages. After a few days in the cities, we started to appreciate the dramatic natural beauty of the Irish countryside. We stopped in Large for a leg-stretch, coffee and cake. Now it was time for Susan to take the wheel! The first time she’d driven on the left-hand side of the road since New Zealand in 2018. The added stress this time is that Sherri has a manual gear ... read more

Just a quicky this evening. Today was a moving-on day. We collected our car, now to be known as Sherri, and headed out of Dublin towards Belfast. Rather than taking the direct route up the M1, we headed over to the east coast and harbour-hopped. We visited Portmarnock, Malahide, Rush, Loughshinny, Skerries and Annagasan before heading up the M1 for the last hour or so of the trip. They’re all lovely little places, and we had a wander around at each of them. I attempted a couple of caches, and managed to get one! We spotted a drawing of Luke Kelly on an electrical box near Rush Harbour - he does get about! We’re staying just off the Falls Rd. The Airbnb seems OK, although there is an odour of petrol as you walk through the ... read more

Sunday 5th June Our first full day. We arrived in Dublin Airport an hour late last night. That’s pretty impressive when the flight is only 40 minutes! Still, I’m sure Ryanair did their best. After a stroll around the area of our B&B, were we found a sculpture of Luke Kelly who started The Dubliners in 1962, we had a burger for supper, followed by a pint of yummy Orchard Thief for me and Guinness for Susan at one of the 700 pubs in Dublin, we headed back and settled down for the night. We woke this morning to grey skies and rain. Not to be thwarted, we headed out along the Liffey towards Dublin port. The path was built along the site of the old railway tracks, and the cobbles and concrete depicted the pattern ... read more