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2014 – Ireland

    Hi! We are glad you stopped by! Erika and Julie traveled to Ireland to visit Cessy, David, and Donncha. Scroll down to see the daily journeys and view some of our travels… (The slideshow scrolls through all the Ireland pictures and you can click the option to make it full screen and read the captions. Further down the page, Erika journals her daily adventures with the daily photos. You can view all the pictures per day in thumbnails or you can click on one to get a larger view and scroll through that day’s photos)

    Our Trip to Ireland: The Daily Journals of Erika
    Monday, March 17 – Day 1: The Beginning of Our Journey

    Today our great adventure begins. We are chauffered to San Francisco by Dad (thanks for fighting the rush hour traffic for us)

    Erika and Julie leave San Francisco at 11 AM on United. SFO security was fast easy and mostly painless. Forgot to take off my belt so had a pat down. The flight is smooth but slightly delayed leaving due to paperwork issues between pilot and mechanics. We arrive in Chicago with plenty of time to transfer . . . if it was a straight transfer. Unfortunately, we are changing airlines and thus had to change terminals, which meant going through security. AGAIN! I remembered to remove the belt this time. I just forgot about the water bottle I filled in San Francisco. After a tremendously slow security line (they even opened another lane to “speed” things up.) We walked rapidly to our gate, which was scheduled to be boarding before we finished security. Upon arrival, people were still milling about. Julie had time to walk halfway through the terminal and find lunch. And I had time to find another water fountain. Chicago doesn’t have the convenient waterbottle filling stations so I got the challenge of filling a waterbottle with a fountain that barely worked.

    We settled into our seats aboard Aer Lingus flight 124. Smooth sailing on this flight. Both our monitors worked (Julie had to have hers restarted) so we kept entertained with tv shows and a movie or two and about an hour and a half rest. We had curry chicken for supper and a croissant with ham for breakfast before our arrival in Dublin at 8:00 a.m. on March 18.

    Tuesday, March 18 – Day 2

    Arrived in Ireland to the sound of American music (or noise) floating out of the speakers. The airport was still decorated for St. Patricks Day. Customs was fast as was collecting our bags. Just as we were wondering where and how we would find Cessy we hear “JULIE!” shouted loudly and proceeded in that direction. We drove 22 minutes to Cessys apartment and experienced Dublin rush hour traffic. Slightly nerve wracking as our brains are still adjusting to the opposite side of the road mentality. We unpacked, toured the apartment, said hello to David and Donncha and left for Castletown House with Donncha. Parkas would have been nice on the walk of the Castle grounds. The wind is fierce and freezing. Occasionally, the sun would peek out from the clouds and instantly remove any chill. Then disappear just as quickly. We walked to the town and stopped at a cafe for lunch and tea. After a brisk walk back to the car Cessy drove us home. We all crashed for about an hour or two. We had delicious supper of sausage, beans, and mashed potatoes. Then watched some cooking show and BabyTv and went to bed to hopefully sleep the night through.

    Wednesday, March 19 – Day 3: Ireland
    Cessy made us delicious crepes and tea for breakfast. After enjoying a midmorning breakfast, we strolled out to the car amid a cold drizzle and drove in to Dublin. Here we donned our jacket, gloves, parkas, golaches, hats, scarves, etc. and set off on our first Dublin adventure.

    The first stop is Christ Church Cathedral. It appears much as everyother Catholic church I have seen in Europe – beautiful stone exterior, ornate stained glass windows, lots of chairs, prayer benches (complete with padded cushions for the knees. I guess Irish don’t require as much penance), side rooms offering various dedications to famous people, saints, and rich donors, prayer candle stations, large pipe organs, choir loft, and priest podium. In contrast to Swiss Cathedrals that offer tower tours, Irish cathedrals offer “basement tours.” Well at least two of them do. (The second one contains mummified corpses from ages ago.) Beneath the church is the Foxy Friar gift shop, a cafe, and a mini museum containing ancient relics and other artifacts. There were several displays of ceremonial and religious plates and cups which were intricately decorated. Among the more exciting displays were period costumes which were used for the TV Show/movie “The Tudors” and the coffins. One of which was open. If it had not been for the numerous surveillance cameras at least one of our party would have tried out the fit. Probably the most interesting artifact was the preserved remains of a cat and mouse which were found trapped inside an organ pipe.

    The second tour we took was Dublin Castle. Much of the original castle was destroyed during a fire in the 1800’s. When the castle was rebuilt, the purpose change from a garrison for protection to more of a palace. It is still used for functions, such as the presidential “inauguration.”
    During an archeological excavation of the Powder tower and moat of the castle, remains of Viking built wall was discovered. The moat was orginally filled by water diverted from the River Poddle. Today the river runs underground until it meets up with the River Liffey. Water from the River Poddle seeps into the castle moat where pumps have been installed to keep the moat from flooding.
    Standing guard at the castle entrance are two statues atop the walls. The Statue of Justice which guards one side has an ironic design. First, she has her back to the people, as if they are insignificant and to be ignored. (Very appropriate as the British did not take care of the Irish while they were under British rule). Secondly, the scales are supposed to be balanced. However, when it rains, the balances fill with water become uneven. Thirdly, the Statue of Justice is typically blindfolded. This lady is not, signifying a bias in judgement.

    After the tours it is time for lunch. We head over to Burdochs in Temple Bar for some famous fish and chips. Julie and Cessy get fish and chips and I order a chicken sandwich. All meals are delicious. Especially the fries. Since the sun came out, we decided to sit out by the street. Unfortunately, the alleyway makes a terrific wind tunnel and we had to carefully hold onto our boxes, even when they were still full of food! Once we are stuffed beyond compare, we head over to the famous spire.

    Once again we cross O’Connoll Bridge, which is named after the famous James O’Connoll who was a leader in the Irish Rebellion which eventually led to Irish Independence. This bridge is a perfect square just as wide as it is long. The spire appears to be a LOOOOONG walk away, but that is total deception due to the rapid decrease in diameter. The Spire was built for the millenium. It is also representative of a knitting needle for all the knitters in Ireland.

    Before we have fully digested excellent lunch, we stop at Lemon Jelly for tea time. Hot chocolate for me. Coffee for Julie and fresh juice and pie for Cessy and Donncha. Despite being overstuffed, it was quite good.

    Finally it is time to head back to Leixlip for a delicious pork dinner and rest up for tomorrow.

    Thursday, March 20 – Day 4: Ireland
    It’s a solid rain as we leave Leixlip and head for Dublin. (At least one of the party is thrilled, the others not so much)
    Toured two of the free museums in Dublin. The National Gallery (which contained a ton of paintings, duh) and National Something Museum. This museum was located in a small building, but jam packed with animals (all stuffed or skeletal). The animals ranged from birds, to fish, to reindeer, to bugs, to lions, and everything in between and beyond. Caleb they even had a human skeleton all labeled with the various bones. Due to Rhino horn theft (for the supposed medicinal powers – which have been disproved. It’s made out of the same stuff as hair and fingernails, gross) the staff removed the horn and intend to replace it with a replica.

    On our way to the National Gallery, we stopped to see Oscar Wilde.

    We ate lunch at Bewleys, a very famous and old Irish eatery. The benches are obviously very old and at one time must have been for the very wealthy. Instead of dessert at Bewelys, we opted to head to Saint Stevens Green, grab some hot chocolate from Butley’s, and pick up some bread for the ducks since the sun had come out. Good choice, the park was beautiful and Julie and Cessy had a time feeding the ducks and swan. Donncha was more interested in eating the bread than feeding the ducks. At least he didn’t fall into the pond!

    Friday, March 21 – Day 5: Ireland

    Went back into Dublin to buy Souvenirs, and do a bit more walking and touring.

    The first stop on our route is the Queen of Tarts for an early tea. (We’re usually to full by teatime so we decided to do this first today.)

    We saw the Molly Malone statue. Whether or not she was a real person is up for debate. Here we saw our one and only Leprechan.

    We visited Trinity College. We decided to save our Euros and skipped walking through the oldest library and seeing the Book of Kells.

    Had tea at KC Peaches. Stopped for hot chocolate at Bewley’s – perfect timing as the rain started coming.
    And we toured the Chester Beatty Library. This is more of a museum than a library. Chester Beatty collected ancient books and manuscripts. His collections range from ancient volumes of various religious literature, the Bible, Koran, Jewish manuscripts, to ancient cultural works from Japan, China, etc. There was even an old elaborately decorated ceremonial Chinese shirt. The roof garden was closed before we could find it. One section contained dress from the early 19th century.

    Saturday, March 22 – Day 6: Ireland

    The climb up to the Rock of Cashel is extremely steep. The angle is multiplied exponentially when pushing a stroller up the steep hill. Disappointingly at first notice, much of the castle is surrounded by scaffolding. About 5 years ago, scaffolding was erected to help dry out the sandstone walls which were slowly cracking, falling, and molding. A monitored air conditioning system has also been installed to help preserve the ancient castle. They are hoping the scaffolding can be removed soon and the relic can withstand another couple hundred years before another dryout process will need to be performed. Evidence of crumbling can be seen outside where a large portion of the tower has fallen to the ground. As no one has seen a good reason to put it back, it remains right where it has fallen.

    We toured the Rock of Cashel. Found the earliest form of graffiti (from the 17th century). Garrisons of soldiers were stationed at the Rock of Cashel for set periods of time. Two men scratched their names into the walls, for all following would know they were there.

    St. Patrick baptized King Angus here. During the ceremony, St. Patrick dropped the scepter piercing the kings foot. King Angus thought this was part of the ceremony and did not react. From that time forward, it is said that King Angus could withstand an extreme amount of pain.

    Inside the cathedral is a combination of ancient Irish architecture and the Romanesque architecture. Much of the painting in the cathedral was destroyed purposely.

    The arch at the entrance into the front section of the cathedral is lined with faces. Each one is unique to represent the gathering of many peoples that gathered to celebrate the opening of the cathedral. Several “decorative” faces are carved into the walls. These faces are a combination of animal and human. The grotesque creepy faces were purposely designed to scare the people.

    The tour guide Cregg was fantastic.

    Donncha fell asleep in the car – finally, a break for Julie, the designated entertainer. The peace lasted about 10 min then he screamed his head off so we switched drivers Aaaaahhhhh! Yes, I got to drive in Ireland..

    Sunday, March 23 – Day 7: Ireland

    Drive to the Ring of Kerry.

    We had a beautiful drive along the Ring of Kerry yesterday. The sun was shining (which is rare in Ireland). We explored the famine house, some beehive huts, saw the Blasket Islands and an ancient church.

    Drive through the rainbow.

    Cessy and Erika exchange places – Driving on Country Irish Roads. The most terrifying part are the two lane round abouts that have cars in them.

    Since Erika doesn’t know right from left, we take a detour through Dingle and find the Icecream shop and some cafes to check out.

    Finally arrive at the Pax House where we are greeted by a ferocious sounding dog. However, once John (the owner) let us in, Rio (the dog) realized we were okay and became very friendly. He followed us all the way downstairs to our room where John promptly kicked him out the back door. The back door opened to a terrace area and a beautiful view of the water and an ancient relic down by the sea. We tried playing catch with Rio, but he preferred to play chase and only occasionally dropped the toy. While on the back porch, we were greeted by two chickens. There were also a few cats about the place.

    About 25 years ago, a dolphin began escorting ships in and out of the harbor. The town has dubbed him Fungie. When Fungie is swimming he can be seen from the terrace area. Binoculars are provided in every room to increase the chances of spotting the dolphin and obtaining closer views of sheep and what not. We settle in and head out for a drive along the Ring of Kerry. This turned out to be one of the best drives. The sun was shining (which is rare in Ireland). The wind chilled the us to the bone, but the sun was out providing gorgeous views. We stopped at the famine house. Since it was Sunday, the visitor center was closed. We parked and took a self guided tour of the buildings and read the few plaques that were up. Next we drove on to the beehive huts. We skipped the first set (as advised by John) and stopped at Mary Mahooney’s which is right after the stream crosses the road. Her son, built the beehive hut that is burned in a Tom Hank’s movie. The beehive huts are outhouses that hold pigs and other such things. There was one large hut that appeared to be more for housing. it had several rooms connected by passageways. Exploring complete, we continue our circuit and stop for a few pictures along the way. We skip the westernmost point of Europe, but stop at the next pulloff which affords great views of the Blasket Islands and some great hiking (minus the bitter wind). We rush back to the car and continue along the road in search of the Kilmalkedar Church which was built in the 12th century. This is a very ancient church that has four famous features.

    1. The Ogham stone. Couples stick their fingers through the stone and renew their vows.
    2. The Sundial. This is an early Irish Sundial.
    3. A large cross.
    4. A stone inside the church carved with the Latin Alphabet.

    From here we head back along country roads with an almost dead GPS and almost dead IPhone (our usual form of navigation). We do stop at another relic which has sheep grazing in the pasture. Of course we must stop and get a picture of real live sheep. Back at the B&B, the turndown service was spectacular. Teddys with heated tummys are resting on each pillow! That was the hightlight since it is so cold outside. And a dish containing three pieces of chocolate awaited us.

    We go into town that night eat supper, listen to live music, and head back to the B&B. Rest up for another busy day tomorrow.

    Monday, March 24 – Day 8: Ireland

    Today we drove to the Cliffs of Moher after a fantastic breakfast at the Pax House B&B. The owner John even made us special birthday “cake” complete with candle. (I’ll send a picture later). A slightly dreary morning, we toured the town and headed off to Moher. Somebody had chocolate for breakfast and made the group stop in a off route town. Here we ate at a cafe and met a very talkative Irishman who warns us of breezes blowing us off the cliffs. During a drizzle we head to Moher wgich turns in to a downpour and heavy winds.

    We wake up to dreary, drizzly day – Not much chance we’ll be spotting Fungie today. We go up to breakfast and inspect the continental breakfast options. Hot pears, hot spiced peaches, hot rhubarb, cereal, yogurt, honey, scones and much more. We found ourselves a table and waitress came over with menus. (As if the continental breakfast wasn’t enough!) Julie and Cessy ordered the smoked salmon with potatoes (some form of hashbrown). I decided to play it safe and ordered pancakes. These dishes came out elaborately decorated and tasted even better. The pancakes came with fresh raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries sprinkled with powdered sugar. While we waited for the “main course” the buffet table was replenished with bread and parfait cups. Cessy tried the parfait and said the bottom had something bitter and the skins of some fruit in it. As if her word wasn’t good enough (they looked delicious) I decided to try one as well. The yogurt was plain so no sugar there, and the red bottom layer tasted like it had grapefruit skins or something in it. Yuk! Bitter! Next time, trust Cessy’s assessment. While we were sipping the remainder of the tea, our plates were cleared and John came out with three birthday “cakes” to help us celebrate our 30th. Wow, we did not expect this extra special gesture. the plates had fruit, a little mirange, and a candle. There was a family with two younger children who had just finished breakfast, were still around. Cessy let the older boy blow out her candle. One puff and it was out. I let the younger girl blow out my candle. She had a bit more trouble. After blowing and spitting, it was put out. Right before we left, John gave us all birthday cards. He went the extra mile to ensure guests have a pleasant memorable experience. Since our only planned stop for the day was the Cliffs of Moher, we drove into town and visited several shops and Murpheys Icecream, which is handmade in Dingle. Their slogan – Icecream that Knows Where It’s Coming From. (Ireland is very big on food traceabilty) One flavor was sea salt. It used salt taken from the sea. Towards the end of the tour around town, the wind picked up and the rain started falling. Time to head for the Cliffs of Moher.

    Due to the location of the Dingle Peninsula and the Cliffs of Moher, it takes just as long to travel from Dingle to the Cliffs as it does from Leixlip to Dingle! Someone at chocolate before breakfast and then chocolate icecream during the tour around town. The trip was halted at a small off route town to get a bit of “fresh air”. The only cafe that seemed to be open had an overwhelming smell of fried fish as soon as we opened the door. A local said it was the best place to eat so we took their word for it and stayed. Julie ordered mushroom soup – which tasted like mushrooms and Cessy ordered a fish meal. I ate their fries – I mean chips. Shortly after we arrived, an Irish gentleman walked in and started talking. (I don’t think he paused for a breath the entire time he was in the cafe). We thought he was the owner, but apparently he was just a regular. He was very well traveled and was familiar with CA and the east coast. (We never knew when he was telling the truth and when he was joking.) He told us to watch out for the wind at the Cliffs of Moher. It could blow a person right of the edge. Since the cafe owner agreed with him, we decided there must be a bit of truth in his statement. He was quite adamant about the wind strength.

    The stomach has settled and we drive on to the Cliffs as the wind and rain increase strength. A heavy fog, steady rain, and strong winds great us at the Cliffs. Due to the weather conditions, not many people are milling about. As we get closer to the cliffs, we realize there was much truth in the Irish man’s words. These winds could have blown us off the edge. I’m very thankful for the slate slabs that are bordering the edge. The gusts of wind were so strong it could have easily knocked a body over if caught off guard or mid step. One section of the cliff even had an upside down waterfall. Due to the wind the solitary tower was locked and barred. Probably a good thing as one could not see anything anyway.

    Drenched to the bone we head on to Doolin 10 minutes away. The town looked a bit skeptical, but the B&B was really nice. We parked across the road and made a mad dash with our luggage for the inn. The lady was very pleasant and showed us to our rooms. We changed and hung our soaking clothes over every available radiator and hanger. We even used the radiator in the hallway. We appeared to be the only guests staying at the B&B. Fortunately dinner was a short walk back towards town. The rain had stopped for our trek to supper. The food was delicious. We listened to a bit of live music and headed back to the room for dum, dum, dum SURGERY! One member of our party had gotten a bit of plant stuck in her hand at the Ring of Kerry, another member held the flashlight, and the remaining member got to perform the extraction. (hee, hee, hee) After three attempts, a bit of soaking, and watching Frozen, the miscreant plant was removed.

    Tomorrow we are headed back to Leixlip and babysitting!

    Tuesday, March 25 – Day 9: Ireland

    We wake up and check on our soaked clothing which was left hanging all night on the radiators both inside our room and in the hallway. Since we seem to be the only guests, who cares if our clothes are lying everywhere right? Yes, they have finally dried so we have things to wear today. We have a delicious full Irish breakfast – only after breakfast do we find out that it is possible to have a smaller Irish breakfast. Same items, just less of them. Now we know if we ever visit Ireland again. Towards the end of breakfast we see two guys walk past our “private” dining area – apparently we weren’t the only guests. Oh well, they came back after 1:30 AM so I’m sure the didn’t notice the upgraded hallway decor. (Unless they were really quiet as Julie and I were up until 1:30 watching Frozen!)

    We finish breakfast around 9:15, hurry to pack our clothes, and get on the road for one last drive across Ireland. We make it back to Cessy’s right as planned a little after noon. Now for an exciting afternoon – two wild ladies watching Donncha! I decide to make brownies while Julie and Donncha watch BabyTV. You all know my cooking skills – they’re even better in Ireland. Everything went smoothly – after Julie showed my how to turn on the oven. I only forgot one button – the one that allowed it to heat up. (Cessy has a temp cheat sheet so no problem there). The timer was reset twice and maybe a third time. I was sitting in the living room with Donncha watching BabyTV when Julie said “Erika, are the brownies still in?” Burnt Brownie! It smelled good and was crunchy, just like a cookie. I think those made it to the compost pile after we left. Well I’ll leave the cooking to those who know how.

    For dinner we had Apache pizza. Yes, Native American themed pizza in Ireland they are proud to be Irish owned and operated. We ordered the Geronimo Pizza (sweet corn, mushroom, pepperoni, red onions, and peppers), Hiawatha (Hawaiian – ham and pinapple), and Chicken Apache (chicken, corn, pineapple, and mushroom). They were all very good. The Geronimo was probably the best.

    Wednesday, March 26 – Day 10: Ireland

    Soaking up the last bit of Ireland.

    Leisurly get up and ready for a late start. Head out sans Donncha (David is watching him) for breakfast and shopping at Avoca. After circling around looking for the correct Avoca (Google doesn’t always take you to the place you want to go), we stop at the Fernhouse Avoca. While Cessy parks the car, Julie and I do a little “window shopping.” in the shop which is an upscale version of Cracker Barrel. We head into the tea room section are seated and soak in the decor. It’s a classy establishment with an eclectic/modern antiquing twist. The chandeliers have a forks and spoons hanging down connected by ribbons. Some of the tables resemble picnic tables with each board painted a different color complete with the chipped paint appearance. Some chairs are wooden backed while others have been covered and padded. Since this was our last relaxing breakfast in Ireland, we opted for a traditional Irish porridge (we’d had our fill of the Full Irish Breakfast and wanted to try something different). Porridge, cream, honey, and fruit – delicious and filling. To wash it down we had sparkling lemonade. We also tried the bread variety tray – white bread, brown bread, nutty bread, and cheese bread toasted with butter and jelly. Yum!

    While allowing the food to settle, we toured the shop and picked up a few more souvenirs. They had Fluff! I also saw a marshmallow kabob – sorry, Craig, it was too long to fit into my suitcase.

    Afterward we head over to Powerscourt House. The sky is overcast and appears that rain is imminent. We drive up to the parking area . . . and find the Avoca we were searching for originally. Good thing we went to the first one (I picked up Mom’s souvenir from there). We toured the grounds which were very well manicured. Nothing like Rick Steve’s video – no sun and no people. But well worth the visit. Stepping out of the House you see a vast landscape and a path leading down to a gigantic pond with a fountain. After touring the pond and walking through the boat house we make our way to the Japanese garden. A beautiful area with winding paths, rivers, bridges, a pagoda, and a secret cave – feels like we stepped into “Treasure Island”. From here we walked to the tower – we were able to climb the winding staircase to the top. This area of the garden has a wide variety of trees which were planted over the span of 200 years.

    Instead of taking the easy route beginning with a slight hill to the pet cemetery, we start downhill for the Rhodedendrum garden and walk up a STEEEEEP hill to the pet cemetery. (I’m very thankful we don’t have the stroller.) Here the family pets were buried. The animals ranged from dogs to cows to horses. After reading all the plaques, we continue our tour past the dolphin pond and into the flower and rose garden. The only plant which seems to be blooming is the Daffodils which grow like weeds in Ireland. (Think clover, but instead its a daffodil) They are all over the forest floor and spread throughout the fields. After the flower garden we step into the rose garden with the focal point being the Juliet fountain, built for solitary contemplation in honor of the Viscounts Mother Juliet. This ends our self guided tour and we meander back into the house and wander through the various sections of the gift shop.

    Since we are in Europe, we stop by the grocery store to stock up on chocolate before our return.

    From here we head back to Cessy’s house to check on David and Donncha and eat some supper. Cessy makes a delicious chicken dinner with rice. I’m going to miss that cooking (Mom, be prepared, I’m coming over for food!)

    After dinner, Julie and I pack up in preparation for the return trip home.

    …To Ireland day-by-day listing