March 30th- Cong, Connemara, Kylemore Abby

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After our late night last nite, we all slept a little later than normal. After a quick run thru the shower, we were on our way for the day. We made a quick stop at the grocery to pick up some snacks for a picnic lunch. Our first stop of the day was the town Cong. We spent a good amount of time in the Cong Abby and on it’s grounds. We then ventured over to the TI for directions. The TI pointed us to the Quiet Man’s Cottage from the film the Quiet man (John Wayne). After a snap, we headed for the Ashford Castle. Ashford Castle is a high end hotel and golf course. It was only a 10 minute walk from the TI and we are glad we went. Although, we chickened out of trying to sneak inside, we did walk around the grounds. It is an amazing castle and we really enjoyed photographing it from all different angles. We made the quick walk back to the car and headed for the next stop in the journey, Westport. Westport is a geogrian planned town. We took a quick look around and decided to head straight for Croagh Patrick. Croagh Patrick is the hill where St. Patrick’s drove the snakes out of Ireland. I dropped the girls off at the base of the hill and headed for the car park. We didn’t have enough time to climb the entire hill, but Tara and Jessica enjoyed climbing up a little to take a look around. I met them in the craft shop after a few minutes. I enjoyed a good cup of tea while they looked around the gift shop….then we were off. The next leg of the journey turned out to be the highlight of the day. Just as we were pulling onto the road to take us to Kylemore, the clouds parted and we enjoyed the wonderful sun. Over the next 1.5 hours we enjoyed the beautiful scenary, the sheep in the road, and the sunshine coming down. Tara had a giggling fit over the signs… We should mention that the signs in Ireland are rather comical. Instead of words, they use pictures and we were laughing at a lot of them. We pulled into Kylemore Abby around 4:15 and took a few pictures. We decided to skip the inside tour of the abby and grounds because it was so late in the day. We peaked in the craft shop and Jessica picked up a beautiful necklace. A few minutes later we were back in the car and headed back to Galway. It was about an hour ride and we enjoyed a little Irish radio. Once we were back at the Travelodge, I took some time to update the blog entries, while Tara and Jessica freshened up for the evening. We met up with my cousin Padraig who is studying at the National University of Ireland in Galway. Padraig took us to a nice little restaurant where we had a nice meal. Padraig, with his Irish charm, gave Jessica and Tara something to sample from his plate. And the ladies eager to keep him smiling gladly accepted. After they started chewing, curiosity got the best of them and Jessica asked, what is this? With his Irish eyes dancing, he said black pudding or dried pig’s blood. He said it is brilliant mixed in mashed potatoes. The ladies both agreed they would pass on trying that. Padraig definitely has the Irish wit, and kept us laughing all throughout the meal and pints afterwards. We made this an early evening and headed back to the Travelodge. It was a good day!!

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Comments

[Vincent]

Irish Ireland
Magnificent historical sights. What a great trip. Hopefully Liz and I will be there some day soon. Everyone have a pint on me and keep an eye on Jessica. We don't want her to get caught in those Irish smiles. Love Liz and Vin

[Bob Squire]

Kylemore Abby
This photo is amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!