2,317 kilometers (1,439 miles) driven, 1,849 pictures taken, 15 days of traveling, and 1 happy-to-be-home traveler.
Ireland 2015: Day 15 – Dublin to Boston
Ireland
Ireland 2015: Day 14 – Galway to Dublin
The “going home day”. I’ll admit I’ve been thinking about home for several days now, wanting to be in familiar surroundings, but at the same time not wanting vacation to end. I woke up this morning to sun in Ireland, and felt a little sad to be leaving. It’s hard to believe I’ve been here for two weeks. Things I did on my first couple of days feel like a distant memory already. But I’m also very ready to be home. I repacked my suitcase last night, which was no small feat. Zipping it closed this morning was a small miracle!
Ireland 2015: Day 13 – Connemara
Well, the weather miraculously cleared up for one last day in Ireland. My plan today was to visit Connemara, an area west of Galway known for it’s more rugged beauty. Connemara is also one of the areas of Ireland which retains the Irish language; all road signs are in Irish only. I set off relatively early from Galway along the coastal route and stopped first at the Spiddal Craft Village. The village is several individual vendors set up in little shops around a small common area. I didn’t end up buying anything, but it was fun to browse the jewelry, artwork, and other local handcrafts.
Ireland 2015: Day 12 – Doolin to Galway
Here are the things I miss about home today: sleeping in my own bed, knowing where everything is when I need it, buying, cooking, and eating my own food, and driving my own car on the right-hand side of the road. And here are the things I love about Ireland: the people, the history, the incredibly picturesque landscapes, and the music. I’m heading home in two days, and part of me wants to leave now and part of me wants to stay here (or at least take Ireland home with me!). There are some vacations where I want to soak everything in because I don’t know that I’ll ever be back (the Cotswolds is a recent example of that). There are other places I’ve traveled to where I absolutely know I will be back (I had that feeling on my first visit to Turks and Caicos and returned a year later). Ireland definitely falls into the latter category: I will definitely be back.
Ireland 2015: Day 11 – Dingle to Doolin
Today I visited my ancestral hometown of Cahersherkin in County Clare, near Ennistymon. I wish I could say I met some long-lost distant cousins, but that didn’t happen. I did visit two cemeteries where Shannons and Finucanes are buried (both family names). In fact, Cahersherkin is more like an area, not an actual town.
I asked a gentleman walking on the road if I was going in the right direction and he pointed down the street and told me it was at the crossroads. The crossroads were two single lane roads through the local farmland. I didn’t feel any strong pull telling me that this was home, but it was very neat to see. I kept thinking that my ancestors could have helped to build the stone walls and buildings I was driving by.
Ireland 2015: Day 10 – The Dingle Peninsula
“When life gives you lemons….” Once again, I woke up to cloudy skies and the threat of rain. I determined to make the best of what is becoming a common theme the last few days. I set off from Killarney after breakfast heading toward the Dingle Peninsula. Known as another lesser-visited area, the Dingle Peninsula is the northernmost of the southwest peninsulas heading up the west coast of Ireland. It wasn’t long before I hit Inch Beach. I was determined to put my feet in this side of the Atlantic Ocean, and this seemed like as good a place as any to do it. You might expect the Irish waters to be cold, but compared to Massachusetts, it wasn’t shocking. I met a gentleman walking his dog on the beach and he said this weather is not what summer in Ireland is typically like.
Ireland 2015: Day 9 – Killarney
Can we just talk about Irish dairy for a minute? Every single dairy product I’ve had on this trip has been so creamy and fresh! The cream, the butter, the ice cream… so good! On my mental shopping list for the day I get home, I’ve already added Irish butter and cheese. I’m probably thinking about dairy tonight because (a) I’m hungry and (b) I had the world’s best soft serve ice cream cone this afternoon.
Ireland 2015: Day 8 – The Ring of Kerry
Another cloudy/rainy/foggy Irish day. I got an early start so that I could beat the masses and tour buses on the Ring of Kerry. I wish I could say I loved it. Maybe it was the solitude and beauty I experienced “off the beaten path” the last couple of days. Maybe the weather was to blame. Either way, it wasn’t my favorite day of vacation.
But there were some bright spots to the otherwise dreary day. I spent about an hour and a half exploring Ballycarbery Castle and the two nearby stone forts. The castle dates to the 1500s and stands high in a field overlooking the river Fertha. You can look into the first floor rooms, but the fun (at least for me) was climbing up the narrow stone steps at the back and exploring the rooms above the main floor. The fact that these old ruins are just sitting there and that you can just drive up and start exploring continues to amaze me!
Ireland 2015: Day 7 – The Beara Peninsula
Off the beaten path. That is exactly how I would describe the last two days in Ireland. Mizen Head, Sheep’s Head, and the Beara Peninsula are three of the lesser-traveled peninsulas in southern Ireland. The tour buses can’t easily get to many of the places in these areas, so there are far fewer people. Just my type of day! I stopped at Muckross Abbey in Killarney before heading to the Beara Peninsula. I plan to spend the day in Killarney National Park on Friday, but the Abbey is a short walk from the main road and I decided to check it out. I was there before 9AM and had the place almost to myself. The friary dates to 1445 and is well preserved. I can’t say that my visit turned me into a history buff, but I wandered around in awe of the building and tried to imagine the friars who lived there walking through these same doorways and arches. You can actually climb the winding stone staircases up into the tower and around the vaulted cloister.
Ireland 2015: Day 6 – Kinsale to Killarney
Today was the day I decided I love Ireland. Not that I didn’t enjoy the first few days of the trip. I did. But today was filled with countless “I can’t believe this is real” moments. It was that awesome.
Traveling with Laura 