It was a narrow road that took us through the hill and dales of Tipperary, so narrow we had to pull in the side mirrors of the car so we didn’t loose them to the stone walls.
Leaving Cork heading for Tipperary
Packing up the car and heading for Dublin via Tipperary.
Highlight of Cork was meeting up with a group of Norwegian Musicians in Dan Lawery’s Pub and singing our hearts out, amazing harmonies and unique interpretations of Irish Music.
Kissing the Blarney Stone, Blarney Castle
Drove from Cork to Blarney Castle to kiss the Blarney Stone. Received certificate from “Sir Charles St. John Colthurst of Ardrum, Inniscarra, in the county of Cork”…that having kissed the Blarney Stone I am sent forth with “the Gift of Eloquence”. Walking up the tiny extremely narrow stone staircase with small slits in the stone walls, made me feel extremely claustrophobic, so that leaning backwards and upside down hundreds of feet up at the top of the castle was a breath of fresh air.
Mission accomplished!
Cork
First impressions Cork.
Tour to the Cliff’s of Moher, West Coast Ireland
Cat on a thick thatched roof!
Dunguaire Castle, Poulnabrone Dolmen Portal Tomb, Kilfenora High Crosses, Fairy Fort, Galway Bay.
More Galway
Visited Kylemore Abbey, about 2 hours out of Galway, built in 1860’s after Mitchell Henry and his bride Margaret honeymooned in the area in the 1850’s. It boasts the largest Walled Victorian Garden in Ireland. It began as an uncompromising bog, but was transformed into a six acre growing space with 21 interlinked centrally-heated glasshouses.
Abbey is a Benedictine Community and private school since 1920’s.
Other photo’s interior of Abbey, portrait of Margaret, the waterfront Spanish Arches from 1500’s, waterways of Galway, pubs, countryside.
Galway, Ireland
We had a very harrowing start at the Dublin airport where we rented a car. Our rental car looked like a very cheap car, Opel Corsa. I was just getting used to driving on the opposite side of the road using a stick shift (standard transmission which I haven’t driven for a while) when the cheap stick shift came off…. in my hand, it was held on by a very flimsy plastic clip about a half an inch wide…….we could’t believe our eyes, looking down at the stick upside down in my hand, luckily I could pull over to the side of the road and re-assemble the stick shift and drive back to the rental car agency and demand a better car….they gave us an upgrade to what ever is above a Toyota Yaris…and we made it safely to Galway about 3 hours later and a 2 hour wait for the car business.
Galway is beautiful, glad to be here.
More Murals from Belfast, C.S. Lewis and Titanic
Political Murals, C.S.Lewis sculpture in front of small library in the Titanic Quarter standing in front of the wardrobe from Narnia stories, White Titanic Memorial Sculpture beside city hall and new Titanic Museum.
Touring the Coast of Antrium County Northern Ireland
On the way to Giant’s Causeway visited Carrickferus Castle, Dunluce Castle, Carnlough Fishing Village, Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge and Bushmills Distillery.
Giant’s Causeway, Antrim Coast, Northern Ireland
Toured to Giant’s Causeway, World Heritage Site. Spectacular coastline.
Rock shapes made by volcano.
Family history connection to Giant’s Causway: (Mother’s side McCurdy)
“Pethric McKurerdy lived on the “Isle of Bute” as the family had for several centuries before the religious persecution of the 1600’s. He and four brothers escaped in an open boat in the latter part of November 1666 landing at first on an Island near the North coast of Ireland, eventually reaching the mainland and settling near the Giant’s Causeway in County Antrium.”
Sarah Hayward 