Saturday, November 24, 2012

Shamrock Ramblings

Beautiful Ireland!



When Irish eyes are smiling, 
Sure, 'tis like the morn in Spring. 
In the lilt of Irish laughter 
You can hear the angels sing. 
When Irish hearts are happy, 
All the world seems bright and gay. 
And when Irish eyes are smiling, 
Sure, they steal your heart away. 

The sights and sounds of Ireland were such a blessing to us on this trip.  We never met a person we didn't like,  nor a country scene that wasn't beautiful, nor weather that didn't suit our mood, nor a bite of food that wasn't good.  
I've decided to split this blog up into categories.  We drove many miles and saw so much, that instead of dragging you through our trip day by day, I would rather give you an overview of the various aspects of Ireland we were fortunate enough to experience.

Our route:  We drove from Dublin south to Rosslare where we spent two nights.  We then drove to Macroom area where we spent a night.  We drove the Ring of Kerry near Killarney and Tralee and then we drove to a town north of Limerick called Bunratty (you won't find it on the map).  We spent two nights there and then drove to Dublin where we spent two more night.s

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Where we stayed:  Bed and breakfasts are the way to go in Ireland and they are found all over.  It seemed at times as if some of the towns were made up completely of B&Bs.
Rosslare B&B
Dining Room
 Ken and Sam waiting for breakfast
 Garden View
On to Macroom...
Bono - a neighborhood dog who "sang" for his breakfast.
Our hosts
I could have stayed at the Findus house longer. It was a quiet but active farm set in the hills above Macroom. However, on we drove to Bunratty.
Sorry for the poor quality of picture. We seemed to only be here at night. It too was a lovely place but the hosts had had a family emergency and so we had substitute hosts. They were quite nice, but I feel perhaps it was not quite the same.
The castles!  
Of course, Ireland has plenty of castles. My favorite by far was Blarney, and not because I kissed the Blarney Stone (which all of us did), but because the grounds were spectacular and the castle was intact enough to explore but old enough to really appreciate what the walls have seen. Another favorite was Bunratty Castle. It has been restored, so you can see how people actually lived in these cold and dank buildings.
 Kim, kissing the Blarney Stone
Then Angela
Finally, Ken
On to Bunratty Castle and surrounding buildings. The grounds are all a museum and during the day there are different activities you can participate in such as making an apple pie or learning how peat is used for heating homes.
View from the top of the castle.


The castles were lovely, and the churches just as impressive.
Our first full day in Ireland was Sunday. We had asked our hostess if she knew of local churches with services. She said there were quite a few but we would be in for a real treat if we went to Rowe Street Church (Church of Immaculate Conception) in Wexford. Wexford was hosting their annual opera festival and as a Festival of Thanksgiving a service was being opened to the public with the performance of Franz Schubert's Mass in G Major. We arrived in time to get a seat - it was packed! The music was amazing. We hung around for a little bit after to get pictures. I met a couple of the singers who were warming themselves by the radiators. They sung in the loft and had not been told how freezing it would be and they had been without jackets.
The singers posing for a photo after the performance.
Most of the churches look very similar except for this one stuck in the middle of nowhere on the Ring of Kerry. We had to stop for a photo op - the rocks and water made it a beautiful scene.
This last church, St. Patrick's Cathedral is a famous church in Dublin.
Waterford Crystal Factory
Day #2 we decided to travel over to the Waterford Crystal Factory for a tour. As luck would have it, we were in the last tour of the season. This made for a rather relaxed time as the guides were having fun and working on some of their own glass items. Angela made friends with our guide - and she has an open invitation to visit Waterford!
Often time wooden molds are used to form the glass as the artist blows the glass into shape.
He is making a large crystal vase.
He is taking the vase and drawing symmetric lines for the cutting process.
Angela with a flawed Super Bowl trophy
Go long!
Kim with a commemorative London 2012 Olympic Games vase - flawed somehow, but I coouldn't see it.
Using a diamond cutter to make the cuts along the grid lines.
a partially completed glass
Just a few examples of amazing work
Food and Fun
"To the left, stay to the left, Sam!"
Yep, too cute to pass up a photo. That says "Mutt Ugly."
Do you think she knows?
Yes, we did eat our way through Ireland. We were not shy about trying local food which we found to be excellent. My favorite was a leg of lamb that Angela ordered and a wonderful lamb burger that I ordered.
Guinness signs are everywhere. Well, beer signs are everywhere. It's a pretty popular sport.
Sam, Ken, and Angela graciously humored me by going with me to the Guinness Factory. It was actually quite an informative tour and the final stop a 360 degree view of Dublin at the top of their building where a free drink is included.
After the Guinness Factory we took a carriage ride into the more central part of Dublin. "The boys" being cute.
A GREAT place for breakfast - in the Temple Bar area of Dublin. Very cozy and the best blueberry muffin I have ever had.
Ken and I were actually clueless that we were standing under this sign - but Sam noticed. I think I would stay away from that bar.
"To the left, Ken, stay to the left!"


History

Weary men, what reap ye! Golden corn for the starving
What sow ye? Human corpses that wait for the avenger.
Fainting forms, Hunger-stricken, what see you in the offing
Stately ships to bear our food away, amid the stranger's scoffing.
There's a proud array of soldiers—what do they round your door?
They guard our master's granaries from the thin hands of the poor.
Pale mothers, wherefore weeping? 'Would to God that we were dead—
Our children swoon before us, and we cannot give them bread.
author unknown


In the early 1850s Ireland suffered what we know as the Great Potato Famine.  During that time over a million people fled the country in ships that were intended to hold cargo to make a new life in the United States.  We visited such a "famine ship."  These ships had two classes of citizen - the rich and the poor.  The poor stayed below except for about 30 minutes of fresh air and exercise per day.  As you can imagine, sickness and filth prevailed in the ship's hold.  Many people did not make it to America.  However, it offered more hope than back in Ireland.  Many Americans believe (as the history books tell us) that the great famine and devastation to human life was caused by the blight of the potato.  However, I think we need to go back in time to see exactly why 75% of the population existed on potatoes solely.  Very briefly, and as accurately as I understood it, in the early 1800s the English began to buy up the land in Ireland.  Ireland was being poorly managed at the time.  The English were in a stage of voracious beef consumption so the y bought up the rich farm land for grazing purposes.  For the rest of the land they hired middle men who collected the rent for these absentee land owners. These middle men quickly figured out that they could put a whole lot of people on one plot of land, making the lot size smaller and smaller.  That combined with the poor soil created a situation in which only potatoes could be farmed for food.  So, when the blight hit, 75% of the population in Ireland was affected.


Dubrody Famine Ship

















The Stunning Irish Landscape

We spent a lot of time on the road so we saw a lot of sites.  I've divided up the pictures below by geographic region,

Southeast/South












sheep...there be a many of them









South/Southwest




Fall was definitely in the air









Western


Note the changing landscape - fewer trees, more rocks.  Look closely in this photo and you can see a herd of sheep and a cattle dog.  We had pulled off the side of the road.  On the road about 200 feet in front of us was a teenage boy using whistles and voice commands to direct the dog.  He had another dog at his side.  When the sheep got up to the road, the other dog kept the cattle that were also grazing inside the fence.  One got through, but that dog made short order of getting the cow back inside.  The cattle dog in charge of the sheep, directed them across the road and into a holding pen.  It was an amazing sight to see!  How fortunate we were!


The beginning of our ride along the Ring of Kerry






We stopped in a heavily forested area and followed a creek up to a beautiful waterfall.  It reminded me of Henry Cowell State Park in Santa Cruz County California.











We had some pretty good rain storms and a bit of hail, but we were also blessed with a double rainbow which shows only slightly in this photo.


Leading up to the Cliffs of Moher.  Look how barren the land is.

The Cliffs of Moher






The clouds made for some interesting photography.















Back in Dublin (East Coast)

Dublin, like many European citites, is full of beautiful parks for walking.  We hit this one just before the sun went down.  The park closes at 6 p.m. and several park officials went through the park sounding a gong telling visitors it was time to go.  Then they locked the big gates to all the entrances.






The walking/shopping street




Is that a cool bridge, or what?




Walking "ha'penny" bridge




Street performers and artists were frequent around town






There are a couple of streets in downtown Dublin that have doors of various colors.  Rumor is that the tenants decided to paint their doors different colors so that when they had been out on the town and perhaps had a few too many, they could easily recognize their door by its color.



Leaving on an airplane.

Ireland was a treat.  Perhaps we will return some day.  I would stay a little longer in the southern part of the country and a bit more in Dublin.  Northern Ireland might be interesting too.

Take care!  Kim, Ken, and Angela