Time

Friends, I won't be writing anymore posts about my holiday.

It was difficult to find time to write while I was away because I was with family and a very near and dear friend that I hadn't seen in many years. My intention was to continue to post even though I was already back home.

I returned to Australia on the 11th of August. On the 13th, my beautiful dog was hit and killed by a truck.

Goodbye Junior.

Kilkenny

Cork is quite a big and modern city - second to Dublin - and I'm sure that it has some great things to offer. But, Jolene and I decided we would prefer to make an early start for our next destination rather than go half-corked. So we said goodbye and we were quickly on our way to Kilkenny.

The drive was again on major highways so the only thing we had to watch out for was the garda and radar cameras. The little skoda really had pep and I couldn't hear the engine at all...so there were moments there when I would look down at the speedometer to see that I was clipping along at 160! (the speed limit was 110) Sadly, the radio remained quite useless as a musical form of distraction.

Kilkenny has very old roots dating to the sixth century, but truly made it's mark when it became an important monastic center in the eighth century. It isn't a very big town, but its charms are immediately apparent, with old stone buildings, cobbled streets and charming colourful shops and pubs. Our hostel was in a great location, right in the thick of things. We quickly dropped off our stuff and went for a stroll. 


During our meandering we happened upon  Kilkenny Castle, hard to miss really when you see the size of it. Built on the bank of the river Nore as a defensive position, the first stone castle was completed in 1213 by William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke. Three of the original towers still stand today. 
In 1391 the castle was sold to a wealthy and powerful family called the Butlers of Ormonde, or the Butler family. The family remained living in the castle until 1935 when they sold the contents for £6000...clearly they were hard up for cash. In 1967 the family finally gave up the castle, which was by now falling into ruin. Much of if has now been carefully restored to it's former glory, including hand painted wallpaper from China which was painstakingly reproduced from an original scrap and old photographs.

We continued to wander the streets of Killenny, just enjoying the feel of the place - not too serious, not too touristy...although we did see a guy in a knight's chain mail giving a private tour to a family.  Eventually we were brought home by hunger. Having bought something at the local supermarket, we made our dinner and then planned something for the evening. You know it involved a local pub and possibly some cider.

 I was told by the gent who ran the hostel that there was a pub, round the corner, where there was often live music (the longer I had him talking the Irish-er his accent got...he even said feck - t'was grand). So that night, that's where we went. 

The Brewery Counter is a pub that offers a wide selection of O'Hara beer. No cider. Ah well, Guiness is not the only company that brews an Irish stout so I thought I'd give the O'Hara mob a go. Y'all know I hate beer, right? This is me trying new things.

This is what their site says about their stout:

TASTING NOTES:

Description: Traditional dry Irish stout at 4.3% ABV.

Appearance: A deep black colour with a reddish hue when held to the light. It pours with a thick creamy head that is almost tan in colour.

Aroma: On the nose the drinker experiences a rich and complex coffee aroma with light liquorice notes.

Flavour: This Stout has a robust roast flavour with a full bodied and smooth mouth feel. The roast flavours lead to a dry espresso like finish.

Aftertaste: A generous addition of Fuggles hops lead to a tart bitterness which mingles with the roast espresso flavours on the tongue.

...they fail to mention the distinct after taste of earwax and sweat. 

I managed to drink half the pint, ok, maybe a quarter. Jolene, who had already finished the Irish Red she had ordered, seemed to enjoy it more than I did.  I had to fall back on the old red wine.

Apart from the beer, this bar had 3 bands playing that night and some poetry readings. The bands were all really good, but we couldn't really hear the poets when they spoke, which is too bad as the people down the front seemed to really enjoy them. The ambiance was great in this place. This is the pub experience we had imagined. We soaked it all in until quite late and walked home our ears buzzing with the sound of laughter and camaraderie.

We were sorry we didn't have more time to spend in this lovely town. Tomorrow we were on our way back to Dublin.

One night in Cork

There's a major highway that leads straight to Cork, so we wound our way towards it and soon we were pelting down a nice, wide, multi-lane roadway. With the road easy and straight-forward before us we thought that we would try out the radio. Until this point, we were concentrating on getting our bearings, watching out for small sign posts, or hey, just enjoying the scenery. Now, on this long stretch of road with mostly fields on either side we cranked the tunes!

You know how the Irish have a reputation of being gregarious and talkative? Yeah...there was a lot of talking on the radio. A lot. Up and down the dial we went - talking, talking, talking. If we were lucky enough to find a song playing, it was usually followed by lots and lots of talking...very frustrating! We did find better selections of station when we were closer to major cities, but otherwise, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph can those guys can talk!

The southern part of Ireland, where we now found ourselves is relatively flat, with green pastures and farmed land. We arrived in Cork during afternoon rush hour, of course the hostel we were staying at was on the opposite side from where we came in. We finally made it after circling around the one way streets of the neighbourhood a couple of times. It was a beautiful Georgian place with a sweeping front lawn. But there were pressing matters to attend to, we were starving. We dropped off our stuff and went foraging...for a restaurant.

The hostel is located directly in front of the Cork University College, so we figured that there would be heaps of food-like options available, but alas we were mistaken. We did come across a couple of places, but their vegetarian options were scant or non-existent. Then...
 lo! We came upon Cafe Paradiso. A very fancy vegetarian restaurant.

Jolene ordered the deep fried summer squash flowers with pea & ricotta filling, smoked pepperonata, green onion polenta and basil sauce, and I ordered the
spiced pan fried tofu with asian greens, gingered coconut-tamarind sauce,
rice noodles, and shiitake fritter. We certainly were not going to have cider with this fine meal, so we ordered a nice red wine. They brought us some tapas to start; spiced peanuts, seasoned black and green olives, and some sort of savoury sesame seed brittle...yum!! The meals were superbly delicious, and we remarked on the contrast of our surroundings from just a couple of days ago; from lunching on a hilltop with nature's stark, lonely  beauty laid bare before us; to the opulence of a fine meal, with a fine wine...all of which cost close to 3 times the price of our room that night. "Civilisation" is a strange thing.

Although we were tempted by the desert menu (which included, dark chocolate & olive oil mousse with cherries and spiced almond brittle, gooseberry & almond tartlet with amaretto custard and spiced caramel, and strawberry pavlova with passion fruit syrup to name a few) we desisted and ended up strolling back to the hostel. Once there, I'm rather ashamed to say that we fell promptly asleep.

Aran Islands and Cliffs of Moher

On the road again, and another spectacular day. We continued to enjoy the wonderful scenery that Connemara had on show, and dreamed about what it would be like to live in such a magical place... then we reminded ourselves that this was certainly not the norm in these parts - we didn't have to experience the dark, cold, rainy times that must surely make this area depressing and forlorn. Stark hills slowly gave way to rolling green hills as we passed from County Galway to County Clare.

View from the top

Jolene mentioned, at the beginning of the drive, that we would pass through a place called the corkscrew. The road ascends, as the name would suggest, like a corkscrew in a series of hairpin turns up the 198m hill. I admit I had some trepidation, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be and we were rewarded by a fantastic view at the top. Other than that, the drive was quite uneventful and we made it to the village of Doolin at around 5. 

The hostel we were staying in was a 300 year old cottage that has been restored. It looks quite idyllic on the bank of the gurgling river Aille. To add to the tableau there was a donkey munching on grass in a neighbouring field. We dropped off our things and walked through the village to stretch our legs. 15 minutes later, including a stop at the tourist office and the local gift shop, we were done. This is a very small town, its only claim to fame being its proximity to the Cliffs of Moher (that's pronounced mo-HERR; not MO-er). By providence or luck, our stroll ended in front of the pub. Well, it was pint-time! 

Jolene decided that this was the place where she would try her Guiness - as you may have heard, Guiness allegedly tastes different in Ireland. I had a sip of someone else's while we were in Letterfrack, and this night had a sip of Jo's. Admittedly, its been close to 30 years since last I tried it in England, and well...it wasn't as repulsive as I remember it. 

We sat outside enjoying the late afternoon sun discussing what the plan of action would be the next day. Choices included: Driving to and walking along the cliffs (of course); going to one of the Aran Islands; forgoing both and driving the ring of Kerry before heading to Cork.

We began chatting with an English fella who was also outside to see what he had done and what his opinion was. He had both walked the cliffs and seen them from the ferry and said that although nice from the top, the view from the water was far more impressive. The hitch - the ferry left from Inis Oirr (one of the Aran islands) at 2pm. He assured us it was not to be missed, so the choice became a ferry boat to Inis Oirr and then a ferry ride to the cliffs or a day of driving - scenic perhaps - but driving nonetheless. The ferry won. We would take the 9:00 ferry to the island, have a look around and then take the 2pm ferry to see the cliffs.


At the docks the next morning we saw a dolphin hanging around the bay, swimming in leisurely circles...although a little bit overcast, the day was starting well! 45 minutes later we were on Inis Oirr. This is the closest island to the main land and there are 2 others: Inis Mealin and Inis Mor. This group of islands has remains of Bronze and Iron age forts, and was later settled by the Irish during the 17th century when Catholic Irish were told to go "to hell or Connacht" (which is Western Ireland - where only rocks and moss grow). As a result the folks that still live here speak Irish Gaelic first and English second.Jolene and I rented some bicycles* and rode around the island. 
 
We visited the graveyard on top of a hill, which has both new and ancient graves. There was also the remains of a 10th century church. From our perch on the hill we looked out into the wide expanse of the Atlantic. We rode on to a 15th century fort and castle. Our high position showed us the stone walls that crisscross the entire island; stone, wind, and sea. What a hard life those first settlers must have had.


We saw the light house (which is privately owned so we couldn't get too close) and then to the other side of the island to see where the fisherman plied their trade. We stopped there for a quick lunch that we had packed, which we shared with an old sea dog. 






At 2 we were back on the ferry to see the Cliffs of Moher. 

That English fella was right.

As we approached the mainland we could see the massive 200m wall rising from the sea. The closer we got the louder the birds got. The cliffs were teeming with sea birds (they estimate 30 000) which includes the Atlantic puffin. Occasionally we would see one of these sea birds "flying" under the water to catch some fish - fantastic!
We could also see the ant-sized people wandering at the top and marvelled at the size of these cliffs.







* I've rented bicycles a few times in my travels - they're always painful.

Cold Water Diving

Cold water diving requires a lot of neoprene! Putting on all the gear took some time...

• sleeveless, fleece-lined neoprene thermal top - check
• 7mm long-sleeved wetsuit - check
• 5 mm shorty wetsuit with hood - check
• boots - check
• mask and snorkel - check
• fins - check
• BCD & tank - check
• gloves - check

By the time I put all that gear on I was sweating. Then, into the water we went. At first I didn't feel the cold at all, but by the time the water level got to my hips...a cold tendril crept up the back of my legs.

I was diving with the dive master at ScubaDive West, Breffni, and a fella from the states who had, like me, never tried diving in water this cold. We went through some re-fresher drills and then off we went into the depths. Visibility was about 2 - 3 metres so we had to stay relatively close together.

There were no brightly coloured fish, no coral, no turtles, no sharks...and I feared that I wouldn't enjoy this dive because I've been lucky enough to see some magnificent things in the short time that I've been diving; perhaps I've been spoiled. But no, the underwater world never ceases to amaze. Alas, none of us had an underwater camera.

In the bay there's a 14 foot sunken trawler, very eerie when you look at it as a ship condemned to a watery grave. But when you see the population that uses it as a home, it's aspect changes dramatically. We saw the crotchety lobster telling us to get off his lawn with upturned claws as we shone a light in his hidey-hole at the prow of the ship. There were nudibranch eggs, which resemble delicate tissues folded into roses (nudibranches are little sea slugs that come in many different shapes and colours - do a search...they're cool).
Breffni picked up a scallop the size of his hand...it looks like a clam, but flatter. It didn't like being man-handled so it chattered away looking very much like a pair of plastic teeth chomping - it shot out quite far too! Apparently this is it's only defense against the deadly starfish...you think they're all nice and innocent, but they're not. We also caught a couple of big crabs indulging in some afternoon delight -  they probably didn't appreciate the flashlights. Ooops, sorry guys...carry on!

As we made our way slowly back to shore we spotted a Plaice, which is a flat fish, so it looks like a ray hiding in the sandy bottom. Up close it's got a squished face, that looks like it's been wiped from one side...weird. There were heaps of other weird and wonderful things, and now I would really like to learn now how to do drysuit dives - coz even though I had 12mm of neoprene, I was cold. Y'all know I don't like being cold. Perhaps I'll have to come back here to do that!

I could have gone for another dive, but it was already 1:30 and we had a fair bit of road to cover, again on small secondary winding roads...including corkscrew hill - well known to motoring enthusiasts

Oot and Aboout

The next morning we went in search of ScubaDive West. When I was researching the area, I followed a link that brought me to this Diving centre...who knew there was diving in Ireland?

We drove down a small road towards the Atlantic; saw the beach that the old fella wanted us to come visit and we kept going. We turned onto a tiny lane that lead to another beach. It was packed. Apparently the local football team was practicing there that morning. Somehow their giant bus had made it down that tiny lane....how it was going to turn around and go back was a mystery!

The cove

We were told that the diving centre was just a little farther down the lane, so we left the football team to their practice, and kept going. The small lane ended as the peninsula ended, and there was ScubaDive West. Most places train new divers in a pool; these guys had their own sheltered cove in a spectacular location. There was one small draw back, surface water temperature: 17°, underwater temperature: 14°. Yikes!

I spoke to the dive master and arranged to come the next morning for a dive. He told me that there was another diver keen on going out. How exciting! We drove back slowly, appreciating the fantastic country side and the crystal clear waters.  

At the hostel we packed a quick lunch and we were soon off again to hike up Diamond Hill in the National Park. We walked to the park and in the visitor's centre the lady there told us that the hike to the top was about 7km all up and that most of it was a gentle climb, except for the "nasty bit near the top."

Yet again, it was a spectacular day...we had packed all that rain gear for nothing! We never lamented that for too long, however. Again and again we were blown away with the stark beauty around us. There were many people walking with us that day, but when you  turned away from the path and looked out, you were alone with the place.

We got to the top at around 2 and the wind was quite brisk up there (and yes, that bit at the end WAS nasty).We hunkered down behind some rocks that seemed to be pushing themselves up through the thin layer of turf and dirt...there wasn't much growing in these parts. We pulled out our lunch of carrots, cucumber, chick peas and....remember those hard biscuits from Donegal? They'd had time to soften up a little, and although a little dry without butter, they were still delicious.

We sat and watched people pass. After a little while there was no one, a lull. We weren't very high up, but it was like we were on the top of the world. This isn't part of a mountain range so the earth just fell away on all sides, and we could see for miles in all directions. The rough contours of the coast on one side and the rumpled green hills dotted with white craggy scars to the other. 

There appeared a dark cloud on the horizon, with the wind blowing it in our direction, we decided that it was probably time to go back down. The wind was getting chillier and more insistent. As we walked down the lee side of the hill we were more protected, but once we hit the bottom we could feel the heaviness. It was going to rain.We made it back to the hostel just as it started, but it was only a half-hearted attempt and it soon dissipated.

 This was our last night in this beautiful place. We would have gladly stayed for a month here. But tomorrow I had a dive in the morning and another long drive to Doolin, by the Cliffs of Moher.

Coming into Connemera

The Connemara region is on the western coast of Ireland and is also the largest Gaeltacht region in Ireland - that means they speak Irish Gaelic.

Over the course of our journey we told many that we were headed to the Connemara region, and everyone we told had the same response. Their faces would break into a knowing smile full of pride..."AAAAHHHH" they all said, "You're sure to love it there...so beautiful"

When I was doing the research into where to go - I had read the same thing, so we were staying for 2 nights in a tiny village called Letterfrack. It is also right next to the Connemara National park...handy!

To get there we had to get off the main road and get onto some secondary roads.Now, the main roads are narrower than I'm used to, but they're comfortable for two cars to pass.The secondary roads, however....well, lets just say that there were a few, "Holy SHIT" moments in there!

At some point in our journey, by this time it was late afternoon, we began to notice a change. The relatively flat landscape gave way to rocky outcroppings and low rocky hills. We began to pull over periodically to take pictures. After an hour of winding through these beautiful hills rounded by time, wind, and rain, we thought that perhaps all the picture snapping was impeding our progress! We decided to stop stopping. Then the Atlantic began peeking through here and there...such a tease!!
 
Have you ever shown your holiday photos to others, and they just never do justice to the place your photographing? It doesn't matter how many pictures you take. The beauty, and majesty, or even the sheer vastness of the place cannot be captured - at least not with a little camera like the ones we had. This place is wild and lonely and absolutely breathtaking.


We arrived at our hostel, The Bard's Den, at around 6....dinner time!
This hostel is attached to a restaurant and we had to go in to collect our room key and check in. Did I mention it was dinner time? The smells coming from the kitchen were mouthwatering. Jolene and I looked at each other and simultaneously decided that after a long day on the road, surely we deserved a well cooked meal!! After all, tomorrow involved a hike...we needed to gather our strength.

That night we went to the pub across the street, for a pint and some music. Shortly after receiving our drinks, an older gentleman - about 65 -70 - began to chat up Jolene. Oh he was smitten and suggested that we come to the beach the next day for a dip...he lived right in front of the beach, don't cha know. He was very difficult to understand, partly because of his thick accent and mostly because he was very very drunk. At one point he asked me to convey a message to her..."I'd like to roll in the sand with her! You tell her and let me know what she says." I tried to tell him that she was happily married, but he kept telling me that there was no way the husband would find out!
Oh my. Unfortunately for him Jolene was not interested....poor fella.

 

On the way to Connemara

We both enjoyed the luxury of the pool the next morning and then enjoyed a rather large continental breakfast buffet. We discreetly pocketed a couple of hard biscuits and some slices of oat bread for later. What?? I'm sure you would have done the same.

Afterwards we wandered over to the castle, which we had spotted the night before. This was Saturday and there was a small local market selling arts, crafts and other sundry items...and for some reason, entrance to the castle was free! Cool!

The Donegal region was once part of the kingdom of Tir Chonaill, which was lead by one of the most powerful families of Ireland from the 5th to the 16th century. Perhaps you know a descendant - the name is O'Donnell.

The dining hall

The castle was built in 1474 on the inside of an elbow of the river Eske. It was once regarded as one of the finest castles in Ireland. Hey, this castle has an indoor toilet! The waste chute drops into the river and is angled so that an enemy archer could not get someone unawares. It also has a right handed ascension with uneven stair to trip up enemies. Its well protected location and high walls could not help them keep it indefinitely though.

In 1607, after the nine years war, the O'Donnells left (read: were chased from) Ireland and their castle was taken over by an English Captain called Basil Brooke. Brooke added a Jacobean style manor to the castle.  It stayed in the Brooke family until 1898 when it was donated to the Office of Public Works...by then it was mostly ruined.

On our way out through the market, Jolene bought a small framed painting from a local artist and I bought a small cupcake to support the local RSPCA - I miss my dog.

We walked along the Eske river through the small town of Donegal; had a wee chat with an elderly Irish lady who was feeding the birds from her front stoop (didn't understand too much of what she said though). Then it was back to to the car direction West towards Connemara.

On the map it didn't look too bad perhaps 3 hours...but there was a reason people said ''Ooooohhhh Connemara....'' whenever we told them we were going there.

Donegal

Carrick-a-Rede and the Giant's Causeway more than made up for the unease that we had felt the night before. But we had to leave this beautiful place and find ourselves another beautiful place to discover.

We had nothing planned or booked for this night, but we were staying in Connemara on the western coast the next night. We decided to go in a south-westerly direction.

When we got to Derry (or Londonderry), which is still in Northern Ireland, we were diverted due to an Order of Orange parade. The police were standing in the road telling folks to turn around. We were stopped by a policewoman who asked us where we were headed.

We told her we were headed to  DONegal. She blinked at us. ''doNEgal? Where in doNEgal?'' Our turn to blink, ''Um, what? DONagal the city.'' She smiled and looked at each of us. ''DoNEgal (she emphasised the NE, not the DON as we were doing) town ye mean. Its not a city. Its very small. It's tiny!'' She told us how to get onto the road to DoNEgal and sent us on our way. As we drove away we realised that DoNEgal was not only a town, it was the name of the County as well. oh.

We arrived there at about 5:30 - it had been a long hot day. We were ready for a shower. We went in search for a place to stay for the night. We stopped at the first hotel - just to get an idea of the prices in the area. €55 per night, per person...breakfast included...and they had a pool. OK. We had been staying mostly in hostels at about 18 - 22 each a night so this was quite a jump, but we were only comparative shopping, right?

Ok who were kidding - we went through the motions and actually went into one other place, but the chick at the first place had us at pool.

The room was on the top floor (there were only 5)  in a room that overlooked the town square - this really was a small town. There was no air conditioning, who needs air conditioning in Ireland? We were under the roof and it was HOT even with the window open. What to do. Well, we reckoned that this was a great time to do laundry! We had both packed for Ireland, so our stock of summery weather was limited we needed to do laundry often enough. Soon the room was strung up with our drying clothes.

Jolene decided to go for a swim and I decided to go to an internet cafe that I had seen on the way in.

Since my arrival in France I have been stymied with technology - or the lack of it - or the lack of access to it - take your pick. This is the first time in years that I have gone away to a 'first world' country. Here there aren't many Internet cafes about - sure there's free wi-fi here and there, but that I really wanted was access to a USB port to upload my pictures. I was so excited to see an Internet cafe in Donegal...and equally disappointed to see find out it was closed.

With my head hung low and my frustration levels rising I went back to the hotel. ..and there in the lobby...a computer! Hopes soared! I all but skipped to it...only to see that it was out of order. REALLY????!!! I went to the front desk to see if there was any chance there might be another computer around the place. The front desk lady told me no, but the sister hotel two doors down did and I was free to use that one. Dare I hope once again?

I went to the Abbey Hotel, which was much fancier, and found the computer...it was on! It was working! AND it had a USB port! Oh JOY! Oh BLISS! Ok all I had to do was insert a few coins..I got my coin purse out and then looked for the rate. €7.50 an hour. WHAT?!!! They must be mistaken - surely it wasn't over $10 an hour to use the internet! Those bastards!

I grudgingly put in €3.50 to get a few paltry minutes thinking that at least I would get a few photos up for you fine folks. Accessible USB ports were hard to come by as I had learned and you had to take every chance you get. Riight?

When I plugged in my USB I found that although I could look at the photos I couldn't access them. I get that viruses are a pain the butt but come on!!

<insert string of expletives>

To add insult to injury it took forever to complete any action on this dinosaur of a computer - ...tick, tock my expensive internet time ran out. I did manage to send an email to my bank telling them about the ATM incident, that's something I guess.

With frustration levels peaking, I went to meet up with Jolene. We picked up a greasy falafel pita for dinner and, for a change, we decided to go out for a pint. We were hoping for some live music and we were recommended a place called The Coach House. We got there, ordered our drinks and sat down. We saw the list of bands set to play there, but there was nothing slated for this night. We finally looked around us. There were two big screens with sports on, and the place was wall to wall guys...Felt a little out of place, but did enjoy the scenery!

Finn MacCool

Long ago there lived a giant named Finn MacCool. He lived on the North coast of Ireland with his wife Sadb and his son Oisin. They were happy there, except for one annoyance. There also lived, across the sea, another giant called Benandonner. He was a Scottish fellow who shouted insults to Finn every time he saw him. One day the string of insults was just too much for Finn so he grabbed a clump of dirt and flung it at Benandonner. Unfortunately he missed and now that clump of dirt is the Isle of Mann.

Benandonner laughed at Finn's attempt, and told him he was lucky that there was a sea separating them, else he would get a proper lesson. That was the last straw for Finn. He began taking huge columns from the cliffs and drove them into the sea. After a week's hard work he had created a path to Scotland and went in search of Benandonner.
He was tired though after all that hard work and thought that he should use the element of surprise to his advantage. So, he snuck up to Benandonner's house and peered in the window. There he saw a giant that was even bigger than himself. He realised that he would be throughly schooled by this fellow so he beat a hasty retreat .

Finn's boot in the fore front

He ran back over the causeway he had built and as he was making his way back to his house he fell and lost his boot. Benandonner heard this and ran to his own shore, and seeing what Finn had made, he laughed and began crossing.

Finn ran to his house and told his wise wife about the size of Benandonner. She told Finn to quickly put on Oisin's baby cap, take his rattle, and lie under a blanket. She told him to wait for her signal, a cough, and to shake the rattle when he heard it.

Benandonner arrived and pounded on the door demanding Finn MacCool.
Sadb calmly answered and told Benandonner that Finn was out hunting, but that he was sure to return shortly. She invited him in for a cup of tea while he was waiting.

Benandonner accepted and came into the house. He quickly grew impatient and again asked where Finn was. Sadb coughed and repeated that he would be back soon. Finn heard her cough and shook his rattle. Benandonner heard this demanded to see if Finn was hiding in the house. Sadb smiled and told him that it was only their son Oisin, but he was welcome to have a look. Benandonner stormed into the room next to the kitchen and there he saw Finn MacCool dressed as a baby.

Benandonner paused and thought to himself...if this is the baby, how big is the father??!! Finn waved his arms like a baby and struck the wall, shaking the entire house. That decided Benandonner and he turned tail and ran.

Fearing that Finn would cross the causeway to get him he also destroyed the causeway behind him.

Carrick-a-Rede

That night we heard drumming until very late in the night, but the natives didn't quite make it the 4 miles from the town to the hamlet.

I had no clue about this tradition/holiday and I'm glad that chance made me pick the most out of the way place possible on this particular day. We later learned that there had been bust ups and minor riots in Belfast and other cities.

Over breakfast the proprietor was telling us that it was difficult living between 2 religions - no shit! But nothing bad happened in our little corner - a part from the whole ATM incident, (no worries, have back up). There was a reason I had picked this little out of the way place though...it was right in the middle of 2 very great sites.

The first one we went to visit was Carrick-a-Rede, which means rock in the road. This area used to have a big salmon fishing industry. There was one particular spot that the salmon favoured - it's a small island just off the coast, and when I say just , I mean just. It's like a section of the cliff dropped off in between the main land and this piece of rock leaving it stranded. For over 350 years fishermen in these parts would string up a rope bridge to cross over the chasm to reach the best spot for catching migrating fish. The industry died when the fish stocks were irreparably depleted. Now, thousands come from all over the world to cross the flimsy bridge 30m over the sea to enjoy the fabulous views and wildlife.

It's a very cool place to visit and we were lucky enough to see a single seal basking in the sun dappled sea. The island was loud with the cries of all the sea birds and we were particularly taken with the flying penguins...ok they're actually called razorbills, but seriously, they look like penguins.

Opposite Carrick-a-Rede, there are the Larrybane cliffs. This is the limestone headland  on the west of Larrybane bay. They used to mine the limestone and dolerite here until the early 80's. Much of Glasgow's cobbles come from the stone in these cliffs. Scotland is only about 60 miles out from this area.

On the Road

On our last morning in Dublin we took a local double decker bus. We weren't quite sure where we were going so we stayed downstairs. We were off to pick up the rental car.

We were given a lovely new Skoda 4-door sedan with a trunk (boot) big enough to sleep in (not as yet tested). Now driving a new car - well, new as in different to your own - always has a learning curve involved: the clutch is different, the brakes are different, the widgets and doodads are in different places...like the indicators. All this to say that I was indicating with the windscreen wipers for a while. Jolene got her navigator cap on and after one wrong turn, we were off to the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland!

We didn't want to go by way of Belfast, which is the usual way to go, instead we headed towards a little town called Armagh that I had seen mentioned on a travel program. Apparently it has a great public library.

There are no borders to cross and the country side didn't really change all that much, but after driving for about an hour we were no longer in the Republic of Ireland; we were now in the United Kingdom.

We arrived in Armagh without mishap at around lunchtime. We parked and walked to the

tourist information centre to get a map and some directions. The chap there told us that the library was closed between  12 and 2 so we decided that this was a good time to have lunch. We bought some extra fixings at the local supermarket to extend the left over veggies and hummus we already had and then headed to a park we had seen indicated...oh did I mention that it was yet another glorious day? The park it turns out, had the ruins of an old Friary that was founded in 1263. So we ate our lunch with the bones of centuries past.

When we were done we meandered our way through to the top of the hill to the Public Library.

It's an unassuming building built in the late 18th century - not particulary old in these parts. We needed to buzz to gain entry. We entered through a large door and climbed up the stairs as directed by the voice at the door. This small library has books from the 17th and 18th century as well as illuminated manuscripts, books printed using hand carved wooden blocks, to the first edition of Gulliver's Travels with revision notes in the margins by Jonathan Swift. This is an incredible place for anyone who appreciates the written word.

But onwards and upwards!

As we continued on our way we noticed that almost all of the towns had flags everywhere. Union Jack  flags. We remarked on it because we thought it was a little curious, but just thought that they were particularly patriotic in these parts.

This night we were staying in a proper tavern/B&B in a tiny hamlet near the Giant's Causeway. When we arrived they told us that although breakfast was included, they did not serve dinner there but if we went to the small town we had passed on the way in, we would certainly find something there.

We freshened up and off we went . Again, we saw British flags flying as we entered the town. We parked in a lot at the edge of town. Behind the parking lot there was a large field, and in the back of the field there was a very large stack of palettes, wood, and even a couple of old couches. It was well over 3 metres high. On top was the Irish flag. Hmmmm. We began to feel a little uneasy.

We both needed some cash so we went to the ATM. Jolene went first and when I went. The ATM ate my card and wouldn't return it...and then it had the gall to tell me to take it gracefully! This evening was not going well.

As this was a small village our options for restaurants was rather limited. So we chose the one that had a vegetarian option available. We had to walk through a courtyard full of people in the middle of some kind of celebration. Young, old, seemed like a good part of the town was there. They were well on their way to getting smashed. By this point we had figured out that this was some sort of British holiday and it had something to do with a battle with the Irish. I tried to ask some questions of the waiter, but he was evasive. Yes there was a bonfire tonight, but it was going to be quite late, midnight. Yes, it was a holiday - no more details. He seemed uncomfortable talking about it.

During dinner we could hear the people in the courtyard below singing.

The Battle of the Boyne was fought between the Jacobites and William III (William of Orange) in 1690...and lost by Irish/Scottish forces. Folks in Northern Ireland that belong to the Orange Order celebrate heartily this victory. There have been riots in Belfast on this day in the past. We picked the perfect day to go to Northern Ireland.

Wandering the Streets of Dublin

The next day started out just as beautiful as the last two. The question today was do we go see indoor things that are interesting or do we stay outside? The lovely weather won out.

We made our way up towards the Liffey, which is the river that runs through the city, and then we walked along it. We were going towards the Viking/Medieval area of town.



Christchurch



It is believed that the Vikings settled the area of Dublin in around 840. Imbeded in the sidewalks now are reproductions of artifacts that archeologist found from that period. Near the civic offices there is also a small square that has cobbles in the paved area that form a traditional Viking longhouse.

I must say at this point that it was all overshadowed by the Christchurch church. It is as massive as it is beautiful. We walked around it snapping picture after picture. The price to enter though was a little unpaletable however so we stayed outside. There was an ice cream and coffee seller inside the gates as well and there were many people lounging in the sun, sipping lattes...somehow this, coupled with the hefty entry fee, dimminished the whole mystique of the place.

We moved on.



St. Audoen's - the ruins of the main knave



A little ways more we came across another church (I swear there's one every 50 feet). This was St Audoen's. It wasn't as impressive as the other, but it had a lovely, inviting garden with tall grasses and pretty flowers. We gladly walked through it, if only for a bit of nature in the middle of all the concrete and brick. The path lead us to the entrance of the church...Free entry...hmmmm

We walked in and discovered that this was originally built between 1181 and 1212 (expansion you know). This church has continuously served it's parish for the last 800 years! It still holds services to this day.

Inside it is divided into two parts down it's length. One is the church proper and the other side is a sort of museum. It's in this part that they have excavated a part of the floor so you can see the cobbles of medieval Dublin. The whole place was interesting, because although there was a lot of info on the church itself, there was also lots of facinating information on life in the 12th century, the influence of weathly merchants as well as information on the birth of the guilds - the most interesting being the Barber-Surgeons....scary!

From there we went off down a road at random and ended up at St.Patrick's Cathedral (see every 50 feet!). This was built in 1192 and on the grounds is, allegedly the well where St. Patrick baptised the folks of 5th century Dublin.

- A note on churches: As I mentioned there are heaps of churches here and I'm not noting the demomination, coz to me they're all the same...I know, I know, I'll burn in hell for that...

We weren't there to see the church though, we were there to sit on the grass a while and munch on the lunch that we had brought along with us.

After a wee rest and lunch, we went through the antique shop district. There we saw the most exquisite pieces of fine furniture, clocks, statues and carved wood that made the 'antiques' of Canada and Australia pale by comparison.

Now, there was one place that we did want to visit that was indoors, and that was the National Museum. We headed over to it and just before we got there we had to wade through a pro-life demonstration, complete with dead fetus pictures and shrill slogans.

The museum is absoluetly fantastic. Just the building alone is worth a visit. The displays are also very impressive - including incredibly well preserved bog men. These were found in bogs and most were brutally murdered...a few centuries ago. There were also displays of Viking, Medieval, and Neolithic Ireland. Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.

When the museum closed, we crossed over to St.Stephen's Green, a massive park established in 1663. It even had a big pond with swans! As we entered I remarked that it looked like a Renoir painting...men and ladies promenading in the park, pond glistening in the late afternoon sun...yes, all very civilised....until the Euro dance music coming from the iphone of a young man ruined it all.

We then circled through Merriton Square (1752) on our way back to the hostel. It was surrounded by typical Irish row houses, now mostly business offices. Inside the park we gave our tired feet a rest and noticed, while sitting there, that there was a very large tree that appeared to be covered in a huge tablecloth. The people scattered about the park basking in the leftovers of a glorious day, didn't seem to notice it. Curious.

Well, it wasn't quite dinner time yet, but we both agreed, as will you no doubt, that it was time for a pint of Bulmers. Fine Irish cider!

Bottoms up!

Newgrange



Newgrange side view



We awoke to another spectacular day in Dublin. Today we were off to Brù na Bóinne to visit Newgrange. Newgrange is one of several neolithic passage tombs. In the distance they look like perferctly rounded hills. The facade of Newgrange (the only one whose exterior has been restored) is made up of white quartz stone that is illuminated when the sun rises. The rest of the mound is grassed over - except for the bottom, which is ringed with 97 greywacky stones (a type of sandstone), each at least 2m long and 1.5m high.
The entrance, which also faces the rising sun has before it an impressive entrance stone that is over 3 metres long and 1.5 meters high. It is covered in carved swirls. Above the entrance is the roof box - it looks almost as big as the entrance, but there is no access to it.

We had to stoop to go through the passage and it was noticeably cooler inside. After walking in only short way, 19m, we arrived at the central burial chamber which had a very high ceiling and 3 alcoves: two on either side of the passage and one directly in front of the passageway. The chamber was rather small and only 15 people were  allowed in at a time.

The last time that humans had used this site for it's intended purpose was over 5000 years ago, it pre-dates the pyramids and Stonehenge. The walls had geometric carvings and tri-swirls which the archeologist figure symbolises Birth, Death, and Re-birth or the afterlife.

Then the guide turned out the lights. It was pitch black. She explained that during the winter solstice, the shortest days and longest nights, the rising sun did more than just illuminate the front of the facade.

Slowly, on the floor in front of us, appeared a sliver of light. It grew until it became a single bright beam that shone straight into the central alcove. This is the purpose of the roof box. The guide explained to us that they only had paltry electric light to simulate the experience, but the true sunlight that shone on those few mornings was a spectacular golden light that penetrated the darkness and managed to light up the entire chamber.

This is truly a remarkable place, built by the first inhabitants of Ireland. How they managed to build sites such as this is mind boggling. Stats to consider: The quartz that is used in the facade came from the Wicklow mountains some 50km south of the site and the greywacky came some 40km north of the site. The life expectancy of these people was about 50 and they calculate that it would have taken them up to 60 years to build - generations.

Dublin

We disembarked from the ship in the mad rush of people and were met with a fabulous warm sunny day! There was a shuttle bus waiting for the 13 foot passengers so we climbed on board. The shuttle made a stop at the terminal where there were big buses waiting. 

There were 3 young French fellows who just wanted to go up into Rosslare village but were unsure if the bus was going there. They asked the bus driver if he was going to the city. He blinked and then said, "What city?" The boys looked quite taken aback clearly not ready for this question. They pointed to the top of the hill where you could make out some houses. "That's a village, not a city! You'll have to walk from here." in his thick Irish accent - Jolene translated for them in Canadian they nodded, grabbed their bags and went on their way.

The driver then stopped at the train station and we were lucky enough to catch the train that was just about to leave. 

The Irish countryside is very different from the Australian countryside - big surprise - and I'm sure that you will all be astounded when I tell you that it's very, very green!! 

We enjoyed the train ride that pretty much stayed on the coast and stopped at lovely little towns and villages along the way. 



The Temple Bar neighbourhood at night



We got into Dublin at peak hour and quickly found our way to the hostel, which is very central. We checked in dropped off our stuff and asked about the nearest grocery store. This was located in the famous Temple Bar district. We did a quick shop and then it was time for a wander and a pint! 

Now, because beautiful days are rare in Ireland EVERYONE was out having a pint on the terraces! We finally decided to grab a pint inside and 

On the Ferry

Once we were on board we found our room, put our stuff away and then went to check out the rest of the ship. 

There were only 13 foot passengers coming on board, but we quickly realised that this was a popular way for families to travel with their cars. The place was full of kids!! It makes sense though when we thought about it. We were on the 3rd deck and on the 4th deck there were 2 bars, a small place selling sandwiches and pizzas, and one big restaurant at the front of the ship. Everywhere people were settling in for the night ahead - choosing the best and more comfortable spots. Three such passengers we had noticed as we boarded, they had set up their air mattresses, mats and sleeping bags in the alcove created by sweeping staircases on either side of them. Clearly they had done this before.

We wandered up to the 2nd and 1st decks to say farewell to Cherbourg. On the top deck the wind was quite blustery and chilly...and there were people setting up for the night there as well. Jolene and I were quite glad that we had a room, with proper beds and a bathroom with a shower! 

Cherbourg has what is believed to be the second largest harbour in the world (second only to the one in Qatar). It was quite impressive to see the massive harbour walls pass. As we hit the English Channel proper and the ship began to pick up speed it became even colder. Again, Jolene and I thanked our lucky stars that we had chosen to take a cabin...and then we thought about the second ferry ride that we would take to leave Ireland. We had no such luxury...we were going to be those people setting up for the night in whatever spot we could find. The only slight consolation was that instead of 17 hours, we would only be on board for 4 hours...not so bad, even though that was just 4 hours of a 24 hour bus extravaganza from Dublin to Paris. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

We hung out in our fabulously appointed room until an announcement told us that the restaurant was closing in 20 minutes. We hurried down and there was no one left waiting in the giant queue that had been there only 1 hour prior. We sat right at the front window of the ship and watched the water drift by and the sun setting. Fantastic.

I highly recommend ferry crossings! It was great fun, we slept well and were able to take a shower when we got up so we were fresh to start the next leg of the journey.

----PS I'm having problems uploading photos, but whenever I can I will ------