Northern Ireland

This is the second time we’ve visited the wonderful coast of Northern Ireland.  The first time, two years ago, was in the middle of summer with the sun out, the air was warm; it was also July 12th - “Orange Parade Day’ in Belfast.  Which was pretty exciting for us to observe. Businesses were closed and there was little traffic on any of the motorways. It was pretty easy to get around town.  This time our trip up north there were fewer tour buses, but much more traffic on the motorways and no parades.  Not such an easy city to drive around when it’s business as usual in Belfast.

Bimbo's car

So, let’s just get this out of the way – I had my first fender bender.  With 4 lanes approaching the roundabout, merging and having to decipher which exit I needed –Waiting behind another car I looked right and see NO CARS – (yee haw) the lady (bimbo) ahead of me starts off, so I start rolling – then she stops!! (don’t ask me why?!!!) I tried to miss her but instead slightly bumped her right rear fender.  Barely a scratch on her car, but now the glass is broken over the left front light on my car, and there is a little dent and scrape along the front.  (cuss word) Apparently after one has a car accident you are to sit and wait for the police to show up, we did for 1 hour!  All the while I’m on the phone with Enterprise following their instructions on what to do when you’ve had an accident.  We moved over to a gas station, the police took their report – I even got a breath analyzer (so many firsts in Ireland!) Really nice police.  Everyone left, and we waited for AA (roadside assistance) to show up.  We thought maybe they’d tow the car and bring us another (NOT) Almost 4 hours later, two show up and say, nothing we can do but maybe cover the bulb. Nice guys.  They phoned the local Enterprise only to find out we could drop off the car, but they would not rent us another (different country thing).  We kept the car with it’s broken headlight cover.

My car

I don’t like driving at night, but thankfully both headlights worked.  We arrived late to the Causeway Hotel but not so late that we could not get our Mulled Wine (another first) and relax in the bar. 

The Causeway Hotel is by far one of my most favorite hotels.  It was built in 1841, added on to over the years but there are still only 28 rooms.  I love staying in older places that have been kept up, but you can still see their original character shining through.

The next morning, we drove over to another of my most favorite places, the ruins of Dunluce Castle.  Originally built by the McQuillan family in 1513, they were ‘displaced’ by the MacDonnell’s of Antrim and the Clan MacDonald of Scotland in the 16th century.  This is a magnificent location.  The ruins sit high on the cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.  I did not know this the first time we came, but beneath the castle and rocks, is a cave – the Mermaid Cave. (closed to public now)

It’s said this is where you can hear the banshee of Dunluce Castle.  The banshee is said to be Maeve Roe, the only daughter of Lord McQuillan who tried to marry her off to Rory Oge.  She refused and attempted to steal away with her lover Reginald O’Cahan out the Mermaid’s cave, but their boat was ‘dashed against the cliffs of the white rocks’ and her body was never recovered.  Legend says she still weeps for her lost love.  We listened but never heard her, perhaps it was too cold.

Dark Hedges

I have read that due to the many tours, and tourists harmful nature, the road of the “Dark Hedges” will be closed to traffic soon.  We were fortunate that only a couple of other individual cars were there, but I could see the lack of concern from tourism could easily ruin this location and beautiful old trees.  The trees are bare now, but when fully leafed, a great and peaceful shade is cast over the road; making this place almost unworldly.


Next up, and certainly more impressive is the Giants Causeway. It’s unique formation of hexagonal rocks formed by a volcano 60 million years ago was recognized in 1986 as a UNESCO World Heritage site.  Or was it Finn McCool that formed the rocks into their unique shape?  I love this legend and must tell it to you! 

Someone across the water in Scotland (Benandonner) is giving Finn a bad time.  So, Finn grabs chunks of coast and throws them into the sea.  They form a path, so Finn decides to go over and teach him a lesson.  Well, turns out that Benandonner is a huge and terrifyingly massive giant.   Finn runs back across the stone path only to be followed by the Scot.  Finn’s wife (quick thinking and wise wife) disguises him as a baby. Invites the scot into their home stating that her husband is out but will return soon, but please don’t wake the baby while you wait.  Well, Benandonner thinks if the baby is that big, daddy must be enormous, and retreats to Scotland destroying the path as he goes.

After our pneumonia and being housebound for so long it was great to get out and tour Ireland again. Our two days were filled with rest, relaxation, good food, a couple of firsts - our drive back to Athlone was uneventful.

PHOTO ALBUM

Irish Health Care

When we started on this adventure we hoped to be able to experience as much of Ireland as possible.  However, we never intended to be part of their medical system.  But alas, we were.   For 5 days Tom and I found ourselves as patients in the Portiuncula Hospital with pneumonia.

In the beginning we thought we had colds, something we’d be able to get over. (like we always have in the past) Honestly, knowing that in Ireland the air is wetter and colder we both figured we’d come down with a cold now & again.  BUT, the air is much colder and wetter than either of us had imagined.  In our second week of coughing, chills and lack of sleep, no help from over-the-counter meds, it was time to contact a doctor.  We contacted the Primary Care office and they recommended the doctor on-call that day – Dr. Rosemarie O’Leary.   Called her office and they were closed for lunch (really?!?) ‘leave a message and we’ll call you back after 2pm’.  When her office called back she suggested we come in right away otherwise we’d have to wait till later in the day to be seen.  We both struggled to get dressed, called a cab and headed out.  Buy 3pm we were sitting in her office to discover -cash only-.  Tom had to drag himself up the street to the ATM for cash, as I attempted to sit up straight in the lobby.  After seeing us both and listening to our lungs she shipped us off to the hospital in Ballinasloe (closest one, about 30 minutes away).

Portiuncula Hospital was built in 1943 as a nursing home by the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood. Became a hospital in 1945.  The name comes from the place where the Franciscan’s began in Italy, Portiuncula. There have been some improvements and additions made over the years, but you can still see it’s age throughout the hospital.

When we arrived, with nothing but the clothes on our backs we were asked our name, local address & phone number.  No passports, no ID, no insurance information – nothing else was asked.  After about 10 minutes I was called in first, Tom attended me.  They took both our vitals and escorted us into the ER.  This is very much like any you’d see in the US, but it’s smaller, more crowded and many more people wondering, or just lingering about.  (not sure what they were all doing) I believe the gal in the cubicle next to us had a multiple personality disorder.  One minute she’s talking like an old lady but when threatened by anything (flip a switch) she became a little girl, scared and screaming to everyone to leave her alone and go away.  This just the first of many entertaining people we would come across during our stay.

After blood work and an X-ray, I was admitted at 1am with pneumonia.  Tom had yet to be worked on which really pissed me off.  They told me he was in the que, but not as critical as me.  I was wheeled off not knowing what was going to happen with him.  I did not appreciate that at all!   I was admitted into the St. Joseph wing in a two-person room with a private bathroom.  My first room-mate was Agnes, about 80 years old and she smoked in the bathroom.  (Really?!!!)  The night nurses were wonderful offered me a cup of tea and toast, got me all set up and left me to breath the second-hand smoke from Agnes.  When morning rolled around I complained profusely to the morning nurse, Ruth about the smoking in the bathroom all night and the difficulty I was having breathing it in.  (you know me, I REALY detest Cig smoke) She was aghast and yelled at Agnes, reminded her she was not allowed to smoke in the hospital – she must take it outside.  Well, she took it across the hall to the public toilets.  By now our bathroom reeks and there is no way I’m using it.  Ruth did tell me that Tom had also been admitted, just down the hall in the St. Francis ward, also pneumonia.  Most patients arrive with their own PJ’s, bathrobes and slippers, toiletries, etc.   Unlike Tom and I who came with nothing.   I was given a hospital gown.

Dr. Castillo

We both had the same doctor.  Dr. Arolqui “Aro” Gonzalez Castillo, a respiratory specialist from Cuba. Super nice guy.  He came around each morning with his crew (newbies).  He liked the sounds my lungs made – apparently each side made a different wheeze they all had to listen to. I was glad to be such a good learning tool for them. Turns out Tom’s treatment was a wee bit more aggressive than mine and when we were released he was diagnosed with COPD.

Tina & Me

Interesting about their medical system, if you are going to have a procedure done you really should be a patient in the hospital.  If you’re not, you can get in line for the same procedure, but it may take up to 18 months, so most folks become patients.   So, on the ward you’ve got non-sick folks waiting for a procedure, dementia patients, comatose patients, and sick patients (like me). Agnes was one of those non-sick folks waiting for a procedure – they shipped her out to RESPITE (temporary care) and moved in Tina, another non-sick patient waiting for her procedure Tuesday.   I really liked Tina - she was a great hoot of the Irish kind.  After hearing my sad tale of how we came to be, both of us in the hospital – with nothing (not even a phone charger) she took pity and gave me a new pair of undies, and her kids went out and bought Tom new socks.  Let me tell you, having to put on your boots each time you use the bathroom gets old, but we had no alternatives but stocking feet & that was not an option!

There was one dementia patient on my ward, Mary Francis.  I know her name since the nurses yelled at her all the time.  “Mary Francis, stop that”, Mary Francis, get back to your bed”, “No, Mary Francis”.  She came in one-night peaking at both Tina and I, but the nurses caught her and sent her back to bed.  They had to keep our main doors locked because they found her out on the pubic street one day.

Tom had much better tales to tell of the shenanigans going on in his ward.  Seems each time he visited me he had another story to tell.  The first would be Tony who liked to play his radio loud, all day.  A little old man that, at first, did not like the ‘F**king American tourist from Athlone” but as the days wore on he came to really appreciate Tom being there and having him as a champion in his corner.  In fact, when we were discharged, Tony had a tear in his eye as he said good-bye to Tom.  This because of “Brian”.

The story of Brian: As Tom sat in the chair next to his bed, a grubby guy came in proceeded to sit on the corner of Tom’s bed and put his dirty coat on his pillows.  Well, Tom took the coat, handed it back to the guy and said "I’d appreciate you not putting your coat on my pillows, I have to put my head there".  The guy stood up and called Tom “rude”, saying this was his bed and left.  Turns out he was a new patient that was set up in the perpendicular corner of the 5-man room they shared.  BUT he had been there before and that was the bed he had.  As Tom is down telling me these stories we joked that this guy would probably be in his bed when he returned.  – guess what?  Yup, he was!  Stretched out, head on pillows and feet (with shoes) on the blankets.  Tom immediately reported this to the nurses who reprimanded Brian, returned him to his own bed, then stripped Toms bed and gave him clean sheets and blankets.   For days, Brain continued to get into everyone’s business – snooping around each table and going through everyone’s stuff.  Only when he attempted to look at Tony’s stuff and was told to leave it alone by Tony did Tom swat his hand away and yell for him to “leave Tony’s stuff alone, it’s not yours”.  Nurses of-course hear the yelling and come in to the remove Brian, again.  One night he peed all over the floor (in a couple of places), which of-course caused the nurses to turn on the lights (3am) and clean everything.  Next day, they ended up moving Tom across the room next to Tony, so they could put Brian there, so he’d stop bothering everyone.  The final straw was one-night Tom is sleeping sitting up because of his breathing, and Brian moves the curtain back and starts to go through Tom’s stuff.  Tom bounds up, points his finger at Brian and tells him “NO!”, “leave me alone you creep” which caused Brian to back up very startled.  Brain was move out the next day, obviously not quite right in the head.  But he, like Mary Francis had no business on a ward with people who are just sick and not mentally challenged.

Tom did have a couple of favorite nurses as well.  One in particular brought a shirt for Tom and two tops for me from home.  So thoughtful. 

We found the chapel in the hospital, which turned out to be a wonderful, peaceful respite for us both.

The nurses were delightful, and very attentive, but they had their hands full with the entire spectrum of patients (and families) to deal with. It seems a lot to ask of them, but this is something they expect to be part of their training.  When they train they go to school for a week, then the next week they work in the hospital (to pay for their schooling).  They do this for however long it takes to learn and train.  Since it’s government run it does not cost them, and they get no salary during training.  But let me tell you - they work for it!

They fed us a lot of food, breakfast at 8am, lunch at 12:45 and Tea at 5pm.  Lunch is the biggest meal of the day with 5 o’clock tea comes a cold plate or salad.  You can have tea any time and a bun or sandwich at 9pm.  Just one time Tom asked for coffee and was given coffee each and every time-thereafter. Even the kitchen staff was extremely thoughtful.

The medical care and staff was excellent.   But I would not recommend getting pneumonia just for the experience of Ireland's Medical system.

Dublin National Gallery

We took a drive into Dublin specifically to visit the F.W. Burton exhibit at the National Gallery.  It did not disappoint. I got to see my all-time favorite painting "Meeting on the Turret Stairs".  I was not allowed to take any pictures of the show, this one is from the internet.

Once we parked, we took the tram (Luas) around the city.  Stopped off at that a famine monument and continued to stroll through town (snapping pictures as I do - see photo album).  Finally arriving at the National Gallery.

No matter who the subject was, Sir F.W. Burton did very well at getting whatever expression he wanted onto canvas.  He did not like to paint in oils, so this, like most of his other paintings, is done in watercolor.  The story behind the piece is just as magical.  It's about a poem of a maiden whose father had her guarded by 12 knights. However, one knight caught her eye, they fell in love, met secretly. However, they are found out and the knight is killed, she too dies in the end.  Burton decided to tell the tale of the love and passion between these two, rather than the harsh ending that befell them both.  What I found most remarkable is that his 'rough drafts' are also shown alongside the finished piece. These sketches were done in chalk and are themselves wonderful pieces of art.  Glancing between the two pictures you can see what changes he made, whether it was the placement or proportion of a hand, or the length of a sword.  The finished product was a masterpiece.

The gallery houses very many fine pieces of art, it was well worth the 3 hours we spent wondering about.


One of the best parts of the gallery was the stairs leading to the exhibit - so cool!!

PHOTO ALBUM

Galway by Train

Fall has fully embraced Ireland, and winter seems to be approaching fast.  Experiencing this cold wet weather has us creating our own form of hibernation. We don’t seem to have the urge to venture forth, onto the muddy pathways and walk the ruins, or investigate the lesser known forests.  We’ve slipped into "what can we do indoors” mode.  Yea, yea – we’re lightweights.  But we also figure when spring bounces into Ireland we too shall bounce back and go forth.  And, that’s Okay!

We took a train ride into Galway, just to refresh ourselves with this marvelous & exciting town and to actually see the route taken by the Macnas Parade.  Trains can be wonderful adventures, but we’ve had a tough time of figuring out the seating.  We both dislike to ride backwards, but can’t seem to find a formula to guarantee we’ll ride forward.  Alas, alas this trip was no different.  I specifically reserved the exact same seats for both the coming and the going (just to test the system – figured I’d have a 50/50 chance) and I’ll be damned -  both ways we sat backwards!!  Obviously, different cars each time.  I suppose we could be like the locals and just buy our ticket, be first in line to board and take our chances to find that perfect seat. However, since we board in Athlone – which is half way through the journey in either direction it’s not likely we’ll get a good seat on our ‘going’ part of the trip.  Coming home should be alright, so perhaps next time we’ll challenge ourselves and do like the locals do.

I like Galway; its right on the Atlantic, has a great bay, lots of boats and numerous beaches to visit (when the weather is better).   There are several small streets in Galway, many pedestrians only. It’s easy to get turned around and lost on them, which we’ve done a couple of times, but I’m getting better knowing which way is which.  Also, many tourist type stores along with your ‘normal’ department stores.  Galway likes to host lots of events and festivals.  There always seems to be something going on and always street entertainment (buskers).

Later this month they’ll have their Christmas Market in Eyre Square.  This is a large park in the middle of the city, adjacent to the train station (easy to find).  Also, adjacent to the park is a large indoor mall which was incorporated in and around the old Medieval city walls. Makes for pretty cool architectural features, but 'll never get used to finding a butcher in a mall.

This trip was primarily reconnaissance for the Christmas Market which will be a nighttime adventure – on the train.

PHOTO ALBUM

Irish Halloween

Folks that know me, KNOW I love Halloween. It is my favorite holiday.  The decorations, getting dressed up, music, candy, pumpkin carving, witches, scary stuff, did I say – decorations!  I love everything about the holiday. I had no idea what to expect here in Ireland, but I knew for certain it would not be the same as it has been for me in the past.  That’s part of what I hope to experience this year.

I did a wee bit of decorating, but did not want to buy something I need to pack up and bring home.  My sister, Pat, took pity on me and sent a Halloween care package.

 Milk Jug Witch

Derry

I had heard there are a couple of great events close to us here in Ireland and just had to decide which one was right for us to attend in order to celebrate this marvelous holiday.  Dublin’s festival is the Bram Stroker Festival.  Galway has the Macnas Parade and Derry has the Under the Samhaim Moon Festival. The festivals go on for the long weekend with lots of stuff to do and see.  Derry seems more geared to children and families (carnival rides, fireworks, parade, bands).  Dublin seems more geared to young adults (lots of blood, guts, gore, zombies, drinking and more drinking) Galway has the Macnas Parade which is an artsie-fartsie theatrical production with artists, large puppets and floats performing for a one-night parade.  BINGO.

Macnas

Macnas

 We anticipated a very large crowd for the very narrow streets of Galway for this parade, but it looked intriguing and probably fun. So, when I saw an ad for parade volunteers I jumped at it. Thinking I’m so smart, we can be IN the parade rather than standing on the street with 40,000 of our closest friends.  As it turns out I did crowd control – ahead of the parade and Tom was not able to participate since he was not dressed in black.  So, he watched the parade, on the sidelines, with his closest friends.  All-in-all it was a great experience, a wonderful way to participate in the Halloween festivities here in Ireland.  I think the biggest celebration is Samhain. (summer's end)  This is when fall become winter and the vale between the worlds of the living and the dead are at their thinnest.  Great bonfires are lit, and folks anxiously await their deceased kinfolk to come calling.

As the holiday approached I kept waiting for some signs of Halloween, anywhere. BUT Ireland simply is not commercial. There is no gross spectacle of decorations – anywhere.  Slowly, the stores began to put a few items on the shelf’s, a few window decorations went up here and there.  I had also heard that turnips were carved, not pumpkins.  So, I anxiously watched for “Halloween turnips” in the stores – something worthy of being carved.   Never appeared.  Just a few days before the 31st a couple of the stores had large crates of pumpkins.  I’m not sure if they are locally grown, or imported.  In fact, I’m not even sure they are pumpkins.  They are not the perfectly orange round variety found in the states.  These are some strange shaped, colored and textured pumpkins.  After cutting into ours it smelled like a melon – tasted like one too. Our sort-of round pumpkin had this little pointy tip on the bottom, not your standard looking bottom, so we tried the new method of carving out the bottom.  Worked great and gave us a perfectly level sitting pumpkin.

Since we live in a gated community we were not sure how many trick-or-treaters to expect.  This is also fall break from school.  The last Monday of October is always a bank holiday and is called Halloween Holiday.  I think they tried to get kids to go on Monday, but it never stuck so they came out on the 31st.  All 13 of them. 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

P.S. I prefer Halloween in the states.

Rock of Cashel

So far, this was one of the toughest blogs to write, words are not coming easy to me. Not because of the location, it’s great, but because of my own viewpoint. Possibly, I’m transitioning between being a tourist in Ireland to becoming an inhabitant of Ireland.  We’ve seen so many ruins, I’ve learned so much history and discovered so many stories. History repeats itself among these ruins and the stories seem to be blending into one another for me – thus making my blog tedious. Yet, this location seems particularly difficult for me.  The Rock of Cashel is a wonderful location filled with lots of real and mythological history. It’s perfect for getting all your boxes checked when visiting Ireland and wanting to see ruins, an old castle or abbey, some marvelous vistas and of course very picturesque.  I don’t mean to belittle the location, because it is all that and I’m glad we visited it. But when you must pay to enter, it’s a sure sign that not all is golden – but staged for storytelling. 

So here is some history on the Rock of Cashel. 

For over 400 years it equaled the Hill of Tara as the center of power in Ireland. It was the residence of the kings of Munster, until the Norman invasion. In the 11th century King Muircheartach O’Brien gave the Rock to the Church, a decade or so later an archbishop moved in. There are numerous buildings on the hill, some dating back to the 9th century, some survived – others did not.  King Cormac’s Chapel was one of those that survived and according to the storytellers, the main attraction.  It’s beautifully carved doorways and colorful wall paintings are all wonderfully preserved.

One of the first things the Christian’s did when they moved in was build a Round Tower. Not the tallest in Ireland (we’ve seen that at Kilmacduagh Abbey) but is still impressive at 90 feet with the entrance door about 12 feet off the ground.  The main cathedral was built in the 12th century just about the same time the town of Cashel was founded.  The cathedral was used for worship until the mid-17th century.  It’s an impressive location with lots of wonderful Irish high-crosses throughout on numerous graves. Even more impressive are the many carvings still visible after 800 years.

Down the hill from the Rock is the Hore Abbey, founded in 1266 by ‘independent’ Benedictine monks. However, in 1272, the Archbishop dreamt that the monks were going to kill him, so he gave the abbey to Monks from the Mellifont Abbey; a Cistercian order. I don’t know what happened to the Benedictine Monks after they were kicked out. The Archbishop also gave the Cistercian monks private land, other buildings and working mills. Most of the abbey was built in the 13th century, with many structural changes taking place over the years, but it never prospered, and all property was given to James Butler, 9th Earl of Ormond in the 15th Century.

Please be sure to look at the pictures, they are the best reflection my experiences.

PHOTO ALBUM

Ophelia

Well we survived one of Ireland’s greatest storms, Ex-hurricane Ophelia.  By the time it reached our shores it was a tropical storm.  Ireland had not experienced a storm such as this since 1987 and 30 years to the day!  The storm came up along the west coast, across the tip of Ireland and headed off to Scotland.  There was a lot of forewarning, schools closed, buses stopped running, the Shannon airport closed and all the Dunnes' stores, over the entire island, closed for the day in anticipation of the storm. People were being warned not to get out there and take pictures (they did anyway - iggets).  Even a couple of windsurfers had to be rescued from the high and wild water surge.

We walked over early to the Tesco for our weekly shopping, it was not crowded and all was quiet.  It was a beautiful morning, the sun was out, and there was a slight breeze. I found the clouds very interesting; from what we could see 3 different layers all going in different directions.  Slowly the winds picked up along with the water in the river.

Borrowed from the internet
   

At one point the wind was so strong it was pushing the water back up the weir so you could not see any water flowing back down over it.  We could hear the wind howling down our chimney and little waves crashing on the walls below our patio.  All the water fowl safely disappeared from sight, with the exception of one swan who tucked himself safely into the reeds across the river.  At one point we watched as the life saver ring pulled itself from the post on the floating dock and bounced around in the river until it too finally came to rest along the opposite shore of the Shannon.  I continued to check the weather stations for any updates and/or damages.  Seems the loss of power was the biggest problem for over 380,000 homes and businesses. There were numerous trees down and due to fallen trees 3 folks lost their lives.  The weather and condition updates continued all day, the communication was excellent and thoughtful.

The entire storm event seemed to be personal to this island and its people. This morning this was posted on the internet with a request for prayers for the families.








Schools remained closed today and the weather channel asked that if you don’t have to travel, don’t.  They are not sure how long it will take to clear even the smallest of roads of fallen trees and/or debris.


 This little video was from our patio.

Trinity College

We decided it was time to take a train ride.  We took one with little fanfare or difficulty to Dublin.  A 1.5 hour, most enjoyable, train ride.  I really don't like driving into Dublin, it's like any big city.  Cars, people, buses, scooters, motorcycles and trams going every which way.  It's busy, crowded and generally just another big city.  The train enabled us to relax, sit back and enjoy the views.

We walked into town rather than take the tram (Luas, it's called) and after stopping for a delicious elevensies at the Bus stop Café we headed to today’s primary focus, Trinity College.

Borrowed from the Internet

Two years ago, the line to see the Book of Kells and Library was out the door and around the building (summertime tourists). The campus is still crowded, but now it's students. This time, we were able to walk up to the counter and buy our tickets and walk right in.  Cameras are not allowed so there won't be any of my shots to share of the 1500-year old books, but I did borrow one from the internet. Originally there were 4 books, today bound in 2 volumes.  Written in Latin they glorify Jesus and his messages (gospels).  They were created by Celtic monks and believe to be used for ceremonial purposes. There are very nice commentaries and displays on how the vellum and various pigments were made and used.  There is also a description on how the books were rebound in the 19th century.  I was mostly impressed with the script itself and the decorated gilded pages.  The handwriting is meticulous, delicate and beautifully done – and the lines straight on the page!  I would describe the drawings by the original artists throughout the books as lavishly-gentle & delicate.  It’s thrilling to know we can look upon something so old, and that they are in such excellent condition after all these years.

I was in awe as we entered the library, more specifically the Trinity Library Long Room.  Reminded me of Hogworts.  Even though it’s considered a tourist attraction it’s still part of the main college library.  We chatted with one of the docents, Ken and he indicated there were over 200,000 first additions in that room.  Just let that soak in for a minute 200,000 first additions!!  Numerous collections, manuscripts, literature, journals, depositions & plays. Can you imagine looking at Shakespeare’s original handwritten plays?! They’re here too! In 1801 the Library was endowed with “Legal Deposit Privilege” and continues to receive copies of material published for safe keeping. What a fantastic building, and all those books. I bet there are some books the students aren’t allowed to check out.

PHOTO ALBUM

St. Finbarr Chapel

We drove to the Gougane Barra Forest (aka boonies) to find the most coveted and highly photographed St. Finbarr Chapel.  I knew we’d be out in the middle of nowhere and was pleasantly surprised to find a hotel adjacent.

The Gougane Barra Hotel has been in operation since 1936 and is currently run by 5th generation Neil and his lovely wife Katy. (A whole bunch of various family members too). This is another one of those special places that will stay with me always.  It’s old, but in a charming way.  When we arrived, the only sound we heard was the breeze through the pine trees – a very favorite sound of mine.  I would describe it as very serene and peaceful.  Looking out across the lake I could see St. Finbarr’s Chapel.  Over the years, I’ve seen so many different photographs of it, I was filled with such excitement (almost giddy) to actually be seeing it in person.


Throughout the hotel there are numerous large glass display cases filled with dolls.   I asked Katy who collected the dolls and she just groaned and rolled her eyes at me.  Apparently, no one did or does.  It started many, many years ago when a couple of guests sent dolls to Neil’s mom as a thank you and she displayed them.  Since then it seems this ‘thank you’ trend has continued.  They have over 260 dolls from all over the world.   There are many different rooms to sit and enjoy afternoon tea, or relax and read one of the many books on the bookshelf. 

The hotel is right next door to the entrance of the forest; where there are many different hiking trails if you are so inclined.  We arrived too late to take off on a hike, but if we ever return I sure hope to.








Dinner was exquisite in their elegant dining-room, nice soft Irish tunes playing in the background, lovely view of the chapel and the server was 5-star!  Probably the BEST meal I’ve had in Ireland to date.  After dinner I rolled myself outside to get some sunset pictures of St. Finbarr’s chapel and walk off my meal.

  

They also host many weddings.  One had just taken place the day before we arrived.  Every year they  close down November 1 and reopen  April 1.













Being optimistic, I awoke early to see if we were going to get any sunrise. I was pleasantly greeted with the rising sun (and a few other photographers with the same idea). I got some pretty good shots of the chapel with refection from a couple of separate locations.   BUT once the sun moved up and over the mountains and shined directly on the hills I got the most spectacular shots I’ve ever seen. The color of the hills was stunning. Of-course, I took a gazillion pictures and have had a very hard time choosing which one(s) I like best. So, I left them all in the photo album. 😉  Within 1-hours’ time the clouds rolled in and the remarkable setting was gone.

We came for the chapel, but would return for the hotel (and food).

PHOTO ALBUM