Recapping Ireland Adventure

---

Sorry we didn't send more postings while traveling, but much of the time we didn't have a strong internet connection; at the cottage none at all. The trip was fabulous. Country was beautiful as you might expect, but also lots of interesting things in terms of archeology, geology, and history. Weather in mid- 60's entire trip, but far less rain than expected. We had some misting on many days, some beautiful sunny days, and only two or three with significant rain. But remember, there is no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing. We came prepared so the weather didn't stop us. Our Ireland adventure started in Dublin where we spent 3 days. Highlights were doing a literary tour of the city, visiting Trinity College and seeing the Book of Kells bound writing of the Gospel done approximately 800 AD, wandering through the Temple Bar section and sharing many fine meals and visiting a couple of pubs.

We then rented a car and headed north to Belfast with a stop at Newgrange on the way. Newgrange has some of the finest Stone Age passage tombs in Ireland and possibly Europe. It dates from 3000 BC; older than the Pyramids or Stonehenge. Amazing to see. In Belfast we did the Black Taxi Tour which brought the Northern Ireland "Troubles" of the 60's and 70's to life. Eye opening experience.

We then headed north to the Giant's Causeway on the northern tip of Ireland. The Causeway is a vast expanse of regularly, closely packed, hexagonal stone columns dipping gently into the sea. Not surprising that ancient people thought the causeway was built by giants.

We then headed southwest to the Galway region. We rented a cottage in a tiny village, Fanore, on the south side of Galway Bay. Our cottage overlooked the ocean - beautiful view - and was just on the edge of The Burren. The Burren is a rocky area that stretches across a significant amount of area in County Clare. The area contains large barren limestone hills shaped beneath the ocean and then forced up as the continents were shifting. It makes a magnificent contract with the lower, lush pastureland surrounding and weaving among these barren hills. This was our base for a week. From there we traveled north of Galway, south to the Cliffe of Moher and Cliffs of Kilkee, to many small villages in the area to experience the food and local pubs. One day was spent at the Rock of Cashel in Tipperary County, possible where my Kennedy roots started.

We ended the trip in the Cork, Cobh, Kinsale area staying at a working farm B&B, visiting a very interesting museum on the Irish emigration in the 1800's, the Titanic whose last port before heading across the Atlantic was Cobh, and the Lusitania which sunk just offshore from Cobh. Three weeks and over 800 pictures later we headed for home.

---

Photos

Trinity College Library
Library at Trinity College, Dublin. Contains huge amount of ancient manuscripts. Is just above Book of Kells Museum.

Impressive View at Knowth
Knowth is one of the passage tombs at Newgrange. The entrance to the tombs is aligned with the Winter Solstice.

Group at the wall
Moving to see the walls built in Belfast to keep people in and out.
Entire gang - David, Don, Barb, Wanda & Sarah

Patio Cages 2
Houses placed next to one of the walls which have wire above solid wall have their patios enclosed so rocks thrown over the wall don't damage things or hit people.

Giant's Causeway
Amazing to see the rock formations. Looks like stepping stones for the giants.

cottage and van
Very comfortable and not many other cottages nearby. You can just see one of the hills of the Burren in the Background. Trusty van with Sarah Driving took us everywhere.

view from cottage
View of the ocean from front of our cottage.

turf for fireplace
Fireplace in our cottage was great since all the evenings were chilly. They burn "turf" which gives a very nice fire. Visited a turf cutting site one day.

Ocean view near or cottage.
Rockiness of the land is part of the Burren. Rough and rocky shoreline.

Cliffs of Moher
Heavy rain the day we visited the cliffs. Beautiful views.

Cliffs of Moher from the boat.
On the way back from the Aran Islands our boat took us by the Cliffs. More dramatic to view from below than from the top.

Rock of Cashel
The Rock of Cashel is actually the stone hill itself. On top is a cathedral governed by both Catholic and Protestant Archbishops depending on the time, a fortress and a tower house. Remains of tower houses built to protect their resdents are common throughout Ireland.

Seafield Farm B&B
Restful view toward the ocean from our B&B. This is an operating farm and a B&B.

Pavlova at Giant's Causeway
Had never had a pavlova before which is a meringue cup with a whipped cream filling containing strawberries and kiwi. Delicious!!!

Scone at Giant's Causeway
Delicious scones everywhere and always served with clotted cream and jam. Hard to resist. Good thing I walked about 8 miles most days!