A Week In Ireland, Part 4

Thursday - June 28, 2018

 Today we are exploring County Cork.  We started at the Cobh (Cove) Heritage Centre. Cobh played a huge part of all Irish emigration, whether on the slave ships which took Catholics and convicts out of Ireland and into indentured servitude (a pretty way of saying slavery) ordered by James Cromwell; or because of the Great Famine or just the poor economy.

 3 million people emigrated out of Ireland through this port.

 On January 1, 1892, Ellis Island processed its first emigrant Annie Moore and her 2 brothers. Their parents had come to the US the year before, leaving their older children in Ireland with family until they could save enough to pay for their passage.

 Then it was off to Cork for lunch

 On our way to Kinsale for dinner we stopped at Charles Fort and learned about life as a
British soldier. This is about the same age at the fort in St. Augustine FL.  It is also the same shape, star shaped.

 What a great view.  Our local guide did a great job and we learned alot.

 It is really in pretty good shape, even though it was burned down at one point when the British were afraid that the Irish would use it to revolt.

 Then it was off to Kinsale for dinner.  What we didn't know is that the entire town was having a power outage.  Our tour director did a great job of finding one of the few restaurants that had a generator so we could eat.  Then it was off to walk around this old fishing village.

 Would you trust this hitch when pulling your trailer????

 The local catholic church

 This building was used for many things, including a jail.

The bay at Kinsale

Friday, June 29, 2018

Today we moved to Dublin, and our hotel in Dun Laoghaire, pronounced as Dun Leery. Unfortunately my phone took a dive and I am without a camera.  I will try to get something up and working, but for now it looks like my Kindle Fire is it and it doesn't take very good photos so we'll see if it works.    

A Week In Ireland, Part 3

Wednesday, June 27, 2018

 We left Galway and headed to our next destination in Garryvoe. As we rolled along the countryside we saw many tower and castle ruins.

 They were everywhere

 We stopped at the top of a pass for a photo 

 This is a combo of old and new.  I don't find it all that attractive...

 The Cliffs of Moher.  I actually like the chalk Cliffs in England better

 O'Briens's Tower was built in 1835 by the landlord, Cornelius O'Brien. It was built as an observation platform for visitors.  It was 4 towers, but only 2 remain today.

 We climbed to the top for the view

 I'm getting use to tiny spiral stairways

 From there we drove south to the town of Blarney, and the fabled Blarney stone. The stone is built into the wall at the top of the Keep. Oh joy, more dark narrow stairs.

 The castle was once a large grouping of buildings

 The view was great

 We had to wait in line

 Yes, you had to lay on your back

 and arch out and under the stone.  Wayne was brave, I passed...

 The grounds are quite lovely, 60 acres in all are developed in to gardens and walkways

 This waterfall was in the Fern Garden

Blarney House is a Scottish Baronial mansion built in 1874.  By then the castle was already in ruins and the land owner wanted to live on the property.  

 Then it was off to our Hotel in Garryvoe, on the coast.  This is the view from our balcony. 

 Full moon at sunset

 Lighthouse off our beach

 A walk on the beach to finish our day.

A Week In Ireland, Part 2

Tuesday, June 25, 2018

Breakfast at 8 and a city walk at 9, then off on a bus tour of Connamara.

 Alan started our tour in Eyre Square, also known as JFK Memorial Park

Notice the facade of the wall and chimney between the green and white building.  You can still see the original window buried on the roof of the white building.

This is called Lynches Castle, although town home would be a better description.

Love the gargoyles 

This is part of the Lynch mythology.  The tale is that a Lynch father had to hunt down and hang his own son, by the neck.  In other words, lynch him. Is this where the term comes from?  Don't know, but the locals seem to think so.

Our tour guide Alan.

Galway

The Irish believe that rabbits are the curious ones, not cats.  This one is looking out to sea.

The River Corrib

The Spanish Arch, built in 1584

The Atlantic Ocean comes way into this bay that doesn't seem to have a name of its own.

These are peat logs.  They cut the turf into logs, let it dry then it can be burned as fuel, or by the Scotch makers in Scotland.

This is the River Guinness, which is where they filmed the 1952 John Wayne movie "The Quite Man"

They also used this bridge in the movie

Driving along the Lough

If peat is an old energy source, wind is the new source

We stopped in Connemra at the Marble cutting factory

The next stop was the new Galway Cathedral to see the Connemara Marble in use

It makes for beautiful floors

Beautiful windows in this reatively new building, built in the 1960's

Check out this pipe organ

More marble floors

Then it was back to our hotel to get ready to go out to the Medieval Banquet. Located about an hour away, we had to take the bus to get there.

Knappogue Castle

 The staff was wonderful in their roles, and the food was outstanding

 The waitstaff were also the entertainment 

 After dinner and a quick costume change, the music and dancing began

Sunset was outstanding