Ireland

Enjoying Guinness, a sandwich and the view on top of the Guinness factory. 

I had no intention of blogging about Ireland.  Enough of you asked for recommendations and suggestions regarding Ireland that I sat down to write a “brief summary” of our highlights.  After writing my summary I decided to throw in a few pictures and make it a blog after all.  More pictures can be found on my Facebook page. 

While we missed many things, we thoroughly enjoyed everything we did see.

My knowledge of Irish history is weak at best.  A friend recommended I see two movies before departing.  I’m glad we followed her advice, which I will pass on to you.  Watch the movies Bloody Sunday and Michael Collins.

Dublin

Oscar Wilde at the park in Dublin keeping an eye on his old home.

The beginning of our trip was through the Rubicon Theatre and was spent in Dublin.  They provided us with numerous experiences which we loved.

While in Dublin we were given a tour of a theatre including the dressing rooms,  stage, and history of the building.

After watching The Constant Wife by Somerset Maugham we met the star.

We missed seeing: Trinity College and Book of Nells.  That should not be missed.  Whether you like Guinness beer or not it’s worth a tour of the factory/museum in town.  Make sure to get your complementary Guinness beer at the top of the building and enjoy the views.  The beer is smooth and delicious in Ireland.  Definitely go see Riverdance and try to get seats close to the front.  

Riverdance was fantastic!

We did a day trip out of Dublin to Glendalough, which was beautiful and interesting. 

Glendalough  Tower

I have a thing about old cemeteries.  I love visiting them.  This one is in Glendalough.

Included in the day was Powerscourt Estate.  We loved walking the gardens.  Both places were worth the day trip which was done by organized tour.

Powercourt Estate viewed from the gardens

View looking out at the formal gardens with the Sugarloaf Mountain in the background.

Famous gate found in the garden of the Powercourt Estate.

The Powercourt Estate has an animal cemetery for the family's pets including their favorite milking cows.  Here you see "Faithful Beyond Human Fidelity" 

Stone arches found in the garden

We missed Newgrange, which is another place to visit if you can find the time.  We found the Hop On Hop Off Bus not worth the time.  Unfortunately Dublin streets are all torn up as they are putting in a new light rail system.  I think Dublin is probably prettier than what we experienced with so much construction everywhere.  They do have beautiful flowers hanging from many buildings and a lovely park in the center of town.  If you like theatre then indulge in some shows while in Dublin.  They were as good as anything we’ve seen in NY.

Food:  We were kept busy with the theatre group and going to shows so dinner was something to be squeezed in before or after shows.  A chief friend recommends The Pig’s Ear for dinner.  Make reservations!  The Winding Stair is supposed to be a great brunch spot.  For our last evening we had a delicious dinner with our fellow Rubicon Theatre travelers at the 2 Star Michelin rated restaurant Patrick Guilbaud in the Merrion Hotel where we were staying.

From Dublin we rented a car and were on our own.  We used a travel agent Carolyn at Town and Country Travel in Thousand Oaks.  Having Carolyn made our life so much easier.  She handled the car rental, hotels, suggested activities, sights, and restaurants in all the places we were visiting.  She was a gem and helped make the trip as successful as it was.

If you are very brave (or crazy/foolish like us) rent a car and drive.  You will be on the wrong side of the road with the gearshift in the middle (using your left hand).  The roads are scary narrow with hedgerows on either side.  Rent as small a car as possible (which depends on how much luggage you carry).

We stopped in Galway on our way to Gregans Castle and had a delicious lunch in a Spanish restaurant (tapas) at Cava Bodega.  We recommend taking time to walk around Galway. 

Gregan’s Castle in County Clare was our first destination after Dublin. The scenery was fascinating and unusual.  You definitely should hike the Burren, which is a vast limestone plateau with few trees but interesting vegetation.  Try going with a guide and you will learn much which will stand you in good stead for the rest of your exploration of the Island.  While our hike was arranged through the hotel, others joined us and paid 15 Euro for a tour that lasted 4 hours.  (It was supposed to be a 3-hour walk but the guide loves what he does and the 4 of us soaked up everything he had to say.)  The views were magnificent because we were lucky to have a hot sunny day.  

The Burren.  Isn't Ireland always clear and sunny like this?

Spectacular views while hiking.

I strongly recommend hiking sticks for this outing unless you are a mountain goat.

It was a great hike

Ancient wall which was part of a round structure at the top of the mountain we climbed.  One story says it was a fort.  Another story says it was home to a group of people who lived inside the walls.

Another style of stone wall.  Placing the stones vertically made sure that the stones stayed in place without mortar.  

We wanted a simple dinner the night we arrived at Gregans Castle and were sent to Linnane’s Seafood Bar and Restaurant.  The fish is either locally grown or caught.  At low tide we saw the bags of clams and mussels that are stored in the bay until the restaurant is ready to serve them.  That’s what we call fresh.

View after dinner at Linnanes.

Another must see while in County Clare are the Cliffs of Moher.  You need to be fortunate enough to have the fog lift to appreciate the magnificent cliffs.  We were only partially lucky.

O'Brian's Tower at the Cliffs of Moher.  There are a lot of tourists here.

Cliffs of Moher starting to appear
through the mist.

The Cliff's of Moher with the fog finally lifting as we were leaving.

Next was Sheen Falls Lodge in Kenmare, County Kerry.  After arriving we went for a hot, humid but beautiful hike along the river starting at our hotel.  

The hike along the river starting from our hotel.

After the hike we skipped the tour of salmon smoking and instead sat at the bar overlooking the river and enjoyed a Guinness along with a simple dinner.

River  view while enjoying dinner and a Guinness beer.

Another day was spent enjoying activities offered through the hotel.  The falconry experience will never be forgotten.  You can arrange the falconry treat independently through Killarney Falconry.

Falconry is fascinating.  We had the best experience with Killarney Falconry.  We recommend them highly!

Whoooo is the most handsome the two?

Skeet shooting was a blast:)  Not that Tom and I are competitive or anything like that, but I must brag that we both shot “doubles” meaning one clay disk after another come out and we each got two shots and scored on each shot.

Hayfield Manor in Cork was our last stop.  We took a little ferry out to Garinish Island where we walked the gardens and then had a tour of the house, which included the history of the home and island.

Part of the gardens at Garinish Island

After Kerry and Dingle, the Beara Peninsula is the third major “ring” (circular road around a peninsula) in the west.  We weren’t up to driving the other “rings” so we chose to drive the Beara Ring and take the beautiful Healy Pass Road, which cut across the peninsula from Cork to Kerry.  That was enough driving excitement for one day.  We came across a man in the middle of the road holding a long stick. I assume he was herding sheep since they were all over the place dotting the hills and valleys.  The road was so narrow in places that one car would stop and pull off the road as much as they dared for the other car to pass.

We drove the Ring of Beara and the Healy Pass Road.

One shouldn’t go to Ireland without the Jameson Whiskey factory tour.  Up until this trip I did NOT drink whiskey.  We found the tour interesting and informative.  I discovered that I like Jameson Whiskey.  Tom and I volunteered to participate in a whiskey taste test with US whiskey, which was distilled once (definitely not for me), Scottish whiskey, which has been distilled twice, but using different materials (better than the US whiskey).  Then I tried the Jameson Irish Whiskey which is distilled three times..  It was good!  Surprise!  While I enjoyed the whiskey and Irish coffee (which has whiskey, lots of sugar and milk), I’m happy to return to France and the beautiful wines and champagnes made there.

The Jameson Whiskey tour was touristy but still informative and fun.

To your health!