are we on vacation again?

Today was our last day in Ireland for this go around.  Of course it was another fun filled and packed day.  We started by going back to the airport because our wifi stopped working so we had to pick up another one.  It was also a good test run for our run to the airport tomorrow.  It took us about 25 minutes, not too bad.  From there we drove to Doolin to take the ferry under the Cliffs of Moher.  I think we took the wrong ferry, or at least not the one we had been researching.  It was still good.  It's such a beautiful place.  From there we had lunch at a roadside stop.  We kept driving until we weren't near any more tour buses.  The day didn't end there.  We went to the Aillwee cave and saw a bird of prey show then toured the cave.  My only complaint there is that the stores close at the same time as the last cave tour... No shopping for us!  But, still not done.  We drove around the Burren some more and saw th...

So we left the timeshare today and went north, not all the way north, but north of where we were.  We're staying in Ennis tonight and tomorrow, then unfortunately we are leaving Sunday.  We drove from Killarney towards Doolin via the Shannon ferry.  We picked it up in Tarbert and got off in Kilrush for €18.  It's a very short trip, about 20 minutes.  It was fun. We drove along the Wild Irish way a little further and went to the Cliffs of Moher.  Beautiful, but a LOT of walking.  It was €6 each to get in.  We went to the Hotel Woodstock where we're staying for the next two nights.  It's a very nice place, the restaurant was excellent.  They have a 3 course dinner for €25 each, it was yummy.  Well, time for bed.

This is becoming a trend.  We wake with no set plans and wing it from there.  We got another late start and our initial plan was to drive about 2 hours east, but we got waylaid with the prospects of something shiny when we drove through Kenmare.  There was some kind of market going on down town so we stopped and hung around for a while.  There was a flyer for derreen garden, so we decided to check it out.  A shop keeper told us it was about a half hour drive, and in about 1 1/2 hours we finally found it.  It was well worth the trip.  The gardens were first planted in the 1600's and have been cared for ever since.  If you like rhododendrons this is like Mecca.  There are many varieties and colors, and they grow as big as trees!  Just gorgeous!  They even have about 20 fairy houses, we didn't see any fairies though. On the way back we found a Mexican restaurant in Killarney, called Casita Mexicana. It was actually pretty good.  T...

Yes, we spent another day in the car.  Today we drove the Ring of Kerry and saw all the sites we could fit into a very long day.  It's a good thing Tracey likes to drive!  We started at the Kerry bog village and saw a couple of very old Irish wolfhounds, some ponies and some chickens.  The story of the people during the famine is interesting too. The sightseeing was different since we were in a cloud embankment, but it gave a kind of peaceful and eerie feel to the day. We stopped at one of the road side stores that had a heritage trail, it was very interesting.  A transatlantic cable was run from that town across the Atlantic to connect half the world in the 1800's.  It's amazing how far technology has come.  We even stopped at a bakery and had chocolate chip cookies before returning to Killarney for supper and bed.  Another great day.

We got a later start today, which probably wasn't a good idea, but no crying over spilled milk.  Speaking of which, Bubba spilled about a 1/2 a cup of coffee all down the front of himself.  Then of course it was the road's fault or the cover's fault. Since it's not the first time it has happened, maybe he should think about where to lay the blame, but I digress....  We drove a lot again today.  We didn't really have much of a plan other than to go south. We ended up driving through Killarney National Park again. We saw a LOT of sheep, a goat and even a red deer.  It is a beautiful park.  We drove a little ways on a road that may have been a walking path. Still not sure, but when the pavement went away, we turned around.  Again, beautiful!  At the other end of the park we followed the signs for the ring of bearra.  I think we lost it at some point, but the scenery was beautiful. At the end we even came to an oyster farm, I never saw one before...

As usual we started the day with no plan. We woke up early, maybe because of the 14 hour nap the night before, but we were up around 8 which is very early for me.  With no plans, we poked around for a few hours and then decided to go to Killarney National Park.  We got a little lost, but we rented a wifi hot spot from the car company for €10 a day so my iPhone Maps saved the day.  After we parked we started to walk towards the Abbey.  A jaunty driver stopped us and asked if we would rather take the jauning cart, so for €40 total he took the three of us to the manor house and the waterfall and then back again. It was fun and the horse (patches) looked happy.  From there we went to Dingle.  We went to an art center (An Diseart) that was once a church and has beautiful stained glass windows by Harry Clarke from the 1920's. The room was still set up as a chapel, but I don't know if that was just a prop.  We ate at a place called the diner.  It had exc...

After a very long layover then a 6 hour flight we arrived in Shannon, Ireland.  It's a bit damp and a bit cool, but it is beautiful! Everything is lush green and some of the early spring flowers are in bloom.  It took us about 3 hours to drive to the timeshare, but that was with stops every so often looking for an ATM machine.  Finally a very nice woman at the supermarket gave us some euros.  We were worried about  through the toll road. We finally went to a regular bank and used a real ATM , aaaaawwww!  It worked!  When we got to the check in for the timeshare, we were supposed to go,to another property, but the lady at the desk told us there was availability here, so we stayed.  It's nice, two bedrooms, two baths.  It has electric heat in each room and one's not working. It's a bit nippy! I fell asleep at 6 and now it's 9 pm and I should be asleep, but it is fleeting, although not for long I believe.  Let's see what tomorrow brings.