Connemara Coolness

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Wednesday, June 24 Connemara National Park

Today’s activities were an easy choice, we were going to drive back towards the north and see Connemara National Park and Kylemore Abbey. The abbey was practically next door to Connemara so we were almost obliged to stop. As we drove over a bridge on the approach to the abbey I let out an ooooh and ahhhh at the beautiful image of the abbey set on the lake.

Kylemore Abbey, Pretty (and) Expensive

Kylemore Abbey had started out as rich person’s country estate before it was eventually purchased by nuns from Belgium who had fled the fighting of World War I. Today, the nuns run the abbey and have a school for girls when they aren’t overcharging tourists who come for a visit. By the time we arrived at Kylemore, the tour buses had caught up with us and had begun to empty out all the old people who promptly made a bee line for the bathrooms. The girls hurried to beat them to the WC before a line formed.

The grounds of the abbey were simply stunning, with the lake at its doorstep, gardens, and a giant mountain in its backyard how could the nuns go wrong ? The whole thing reminded me of Scotland again, I guess it had something to do with the mountains and water. The inside of the abbey turned out to be kind of lame. It was very pretty that is for sure, but it was hard to appreciate each room because it was clogged with tourists. Rather than organizing the tour of the abbey by sending everyone in the same direction, you were allowed to visit any room you wanted and in any order, hence the bottlenecks. In retrospect I had to laugh at myself. With the length of this trip I seem to have become a travel snob, critiquing on how well the management of each site or attraction does it job.

Connemara Coolness

Where Kylemore was an expensive and over rated diversion, Connemara National Park was priceless. The park itself was rather basic, consisting of several hiking trails through different types of Irish countryside like mountains, bogs etc. I absolutely loved the hiking trails because they provided grand views of the Atlantic ocean and nearby countryside.

There is something about climbing mountains on this trip that just gets me so excited. Maybe it is the peacefulness of the hike, or the sweeping views at the top that put things in perspective. Either way, I find a mountain hike hard to resist. Sometimes I am lucky and convince the girls to go with me but this wasn’t one of those times. As much as they complain about all the outdoor stuff, I hope that deep down they will gain an appreciation for the beautiful places on this planet and want to do it themselves when they are older.

There wasn’t much more to Connemara besides the hiking trails and a short exhibit inside the visitor’s center. For some reason Ireland has not developed it’s National Parks very well in my opinion. In the USA, National Parks are a big deal with highway signs pointing the way hundreds of miles in advance. In Ireland, you might be lucky to see any sign before you chance upon the entrance. The facilities and exhibits tend to be small, and only small portions of the land are even open to the public. Sometimes I forget that Ireland is a relatively new nation, and until 20 years ago a pretty poor one at that. So maybe the parks are something that just needs time to mature.

Observations: Irish Road Signs

Speaking of road signs, they really stink in Ireland. Most signs are directional, meaning they point the way to the next town. Stray off one of the national roads though, and you might as well break out the compass or navigate by the stars. I’ve seen signs that point left that really mean go straight. I’ve even seen double no left turn signs on top of each other just to make sure you know the Garda is serious about illegal turns.

The government does B&B’s a nice service by giving them official road signs, but they are all brown which is the same color as a park or historic site. How the heck am I supposed to find the next historic site when they are covered up in B&B signs ? Sometimes signs are not posted but instead are painted into the road. Good luck reading those at 120 kmph or on a rainy day. It helps to have an extra pair of eyes while navigating and a GPS to boot. You can never be sure when the next sign will sneak up on you or point the wrong way.

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Photos

Kylemore Abbey
Happy smiles at Kylemore. This was before we bought tickets.

Kylemore Chapel
Inside of the small chapel on the grounds of Kylemore Abbey.

Connemara Views
Here I am at on the way up the Diamond Head trail in Connemara National Park.

Beware - Dip in the Road
Wonder how they decided they needed a sign here ??