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The King and I

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

For most of our time in Ireland, we’ve been staying in B&Bs, which have generally been pretty nice, clean, and with friendly, helplful owners.  However, the rooms do vary quite a bit between “just big enough for the bed to fit” to something much more comfortable.  Some had small TVs, and some had none.  Some showers were hot, and some were not (don’t get me started about water pressure).   I’m not really complaining about them though because we did enjoy them, and the breakfasts were perfect. 

After 3 weeks though, we decided to splurge and celebrate Eric’s birthday in style.  We spent a night at Ashford Castle – see below – and enjoyed all the amenities and walking the grounds.  As we check out, we are preparing to head to England.  I’ve been spoiled now and if I can’t continue to stay in the castle, I’ll have to leave Ireland.

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Pilgrim’s Progress

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

Back in Dublin a few weeks ago, we saw St. Patrick’s Cathedral. His name conjured up the usual “American” images of parties on March 17th and drinking too much green beer. However as we’ve traveled around Ireland, we keep running into him again and again, and so we’ve learned a little more about him.

He arrived here in the 400s and proceeded to convert the country to Christianity. He visited a lot of sites on the island because there are connections to him everywhere. One of these places is now called Croagh Patrick mountain, where he climbed and spent the 40 days of Lent fasting on top. We followed in his footsteps and made the steep trek ourselves, along with quite a few people making a pilgrimage (there are rules for them to follow and places marked to say Hail Mary’s). I made it to the top with a little encouragement from an old man hiking in dress shoes and slacks tucked into his argyle socks. If he could do it, I had to.

Among all the other things that St. Patrick was busy doing at the time, he is also credited with casting out the snakes from Ireland. This might not be a hard as it sounds because no one is sure that there ever really were snakes here.

Here’s the rocky path to the top.

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Stacks and Stones

Friday, September 18th, 2009

We spent the last few days exploring the Iveragh (Ring of Kerry), Beara, and Dingle peninsulas, staying in Killarney, Waterville, Kenmare, and Dingle Town.  The weather has been kind to us, so we’ve been able to do some nice walks and see quite a bit.  I’ve been surpised by how many ancient stone forts there are and my inner archaeologist loves finding them and exploring.  The most impressive were the stone “beehive” huts on Skellig Michael island.  They are perched at the very top of the mountain and are even more impressive after you’ve climbed the 650 steps to see them.  I still have no idea how they built them or even got up there before the steps were made.

We’ve also been enjoying the food and drink here as well.  The beef and Guinness caserole/stew/pie (depending on what the restaurant calls it) has been really good, and even better when washed down with a pint of the “black stuff.”  According to everything we’ve seen, heard, and read here Guinness is good for you.  It has less calories than regular beer, it will give you stregth and energy, help you sleep, and cure a whole list of problems you might have.  I’ve been testing out these stories, but I think I need a little more research.  I’ll get back to you after I’ve had a few more.

Here’s the view from the Skelligs: 

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Better than a glow-in-the-dark compass ring

Sunday, September 13th, 2009

Last fall we used a “tourist map” to navigate around Western Australia. It was one of those glossy colorful brochures that only showed a few main roads and was decorated with drawings of the big attractions and local animals. Needless to say when we took a wrong turn, the cartoon picture of kangaroos driving a convertible didn’t help much to get us back on track. By February, we had a thick detailed road atlas that covered every part of New Zealand, even those with very few roads. Finally, we spent the summer in our Peugeot with a built-in GPS and it spoiled us. Every tiny path through fields and villages was in the database, and it never got upset when we took a detour and it had to recalculate. So, it was a big decision in Ireland whether to go back to old fashioned maps or get a GPS. The rental prices are outrageous, and in the end it turned out to be cheaper to buy one since we’ll be able to use it in England, Portugal, and Spain too. We’ve only had it a few days, but I’m already happy with the decision.

We used the GPS to find our way from Kilkenny to Killarney and great weather followed us. The folks at the B&B called it a “glorious” day, and we thought it was perfect for hiking the Gap of Dunloe. You can decide based on this view:

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The blazing Irish sun

Sunday, September 13th, 2009

We arrived in Dublin in the rain. The dreariness and jetlag combined with the reality and complications of being on the road again to bring my spirits down. After a few easy weeks in the US, it was a little tough to face small hotel rooms, figuring out bus routes, and strange foods again. However, the next few days brought beautiful warm sunshine to brighten my mood and provide a great backdrop for seeing the sights. We spent 2 days exploring the city and visited Trinity College, Temple Bar, Christ Church, St. Stephen’s Green, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Spire, and a few pubs. Probably the sight that cheered me up the most was at the Guinness brewery. The view of the city from the Gravity Bar at the top is fantastic, and the taste of a fresh pint of draught is the perfect accompaniment.

We picked up a rental car and headed south to Kilkenny (Come on the cats!). The countryside is just a green as everyone said it would be and our luck the weather held out for another day so that we could see the Castle (picture below), the Black Abbey, and St. Canice’s basking in the sunlight. It’s good to be traveling again.

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