Our 3-day tour of Ireland was beautiful and any doubt that I had about Ireland being my favourite was erased. I could definitely live in Ireland on a permanent a basis, and if I do find my Irish boy I might actually do just that.
The Paddywagon tour was a little weird as by the end of it all we had had 3 different tour guides. We started off with Joe but only had him until lunch on the first day. Our first stop with Joe was Phoenix Park, which is the largest enclosed park in Great Britain at 17 500 acres. Would be a beautiful place to go for picnics and also houses the Dublin zoo which is apparently the 2nd oldest in the world.
In the park we drove past the Duke of Wellington monument but Joe doesn’t think much of it and we didn’t stop. Apparently the Duke of Wellington was born in Ireland but aligned himself with the English, upon his death it was not known weather he should be buried in Ireland or England so his remains were dumped in the sea.
Next stop was the Rock of Dunamase, which is basically the old ruins of a castle, not sure why it is called a rock. You will notice it again later. The Gaelic name is Craigg Duhn Mhase. Joe also stopped at the Rock of Cashel but we were just parked on the side of the road and took a pic from a distance.
Next tour guide was Gabe, he stayed with us till lunch on the last day so I consider him our main tour guide. Gabe gave us A LOT of history but he kinda jumped from one thing to the next so it was difficult to follow. I do however remember him telling us that pub licences are no longer issued, because it was decided that there were too many pubs in Ireland, so basically if you want to open a pub in Ireland you have to buy out another pub and hence get their licence in the process. This can go for the region of 300 000 Euro…ouch.
Blarney Castle was our next stop – in a very beautiful area but LOTS of stairs to climb to get to the top. I went all the way to the top – stood in a queue and kissed the Blarney Stone which was supposed to have given me the gift of the gab.
The Paddywagon tour was a little weird as by the end of it all we had had 3 different tour guides. We started off with Joe but only had him until lunch on the first day. Our first stop with Joe was Phoenix Park, which is the largest enclosed park in Great Britain at 17 500 acres. Would be a beautiful place to go for picnics and also houses the Dublin zoo which is apparently the 2nd oldest in the world.
In the park we drove past the Duke of Wellington monument but Joe doesn’t think much of it and we didn’t stop. Apparently the Duke of Wellington was born in Ireland but aligned himself with the English, upon his death it was not known weather he should be buried in Ireland or England so his remains were dumped in the sea.
Next stop was the Rock of Dunamase, which is basically the old ruins of a castle, not sure why it is called a rock. You will notice it again later. The Gaelic name is Craigg Duhn Mhase. Joe also stopped at the Rock of Cashel but we were just parked on the side of the road and took a pic from a distance.
Next tour guide was Gabe, he stayed with us till lunch on the last day so I consider him our main tour guide. Gabe gave us A LOT of history but he kinda jumped from one thing to the next so it was difficult to follow. I do however remember him telling us that pub licences are no longer issued, because it was decided that there were too many pubs in Ireland, so basically if you want to open a pub in Ireland you have to buy out another pub and hence get their licence in the process. This can go for the region of 300 000 Euro…ouch.
Blarney Castle was our next stop – in a very beautiful area but LOTS of stairs to climb to get to the top. I went all the way to the top – stood in a queue and kissed the Blarney Stone which was supposed to have given me the gift of the gab.Our first night on tour was in Killarney and I discovered a very romantic little trip. We went on a horse and carriage ride through Killarney National Park. Our horses name was Captain and our driver/guide was Martin. It was really gorgeous and more than that I just can’t say. Mom did find a really eerie looking tree though and we thought we would include it.
Next day we left and landed up at the Cliffs of Moher – again beautiful. I am beginning to think that I am overusing the word. lol As we were walking about there was a dude playing a penny whistle and further up a lady playing a harp it really gave the whole area an Irish feel, very homely.
Ireland has just as many myths and legends as any of the other places that I have been but the story of Dunguaire Castle is just funny. Apparently if you walk around the castle anti-clockwise you will regain your virginity. Yeah right! Anyways the whole bus walked around the Castle anti-clockwise anyways.
Second night we stayed in Galway and mom had told Gabe that I was looking for an Irish boy. This put him on a mission to get me drunk so that I hooked up with some Irish boy at one of the pubs. He started by teaching me how to drink Guinness. Yes believe it or not there is a technique. So I had my first pint of porter ever. Not bad – actually better than normal beer.
Next day we left and landed up at the Cliffs of Moher – again beautiful. I am beginning to think that I am overusing the word. lol As we were walking about there was a dude playing a penny whistle and further up a lady playing a harp it really gave the whole area an Irish feel, very homely.
Ireland has just as many myths and legends as any of the other places that I have been but the story of Dunguaire Castle is just funny. Apparently if you walk around the castle anti-clockwise you will regain your virginity. Yeah right! Anyways the whole bus walked around the Castle anti-clockwise anyways.
Second night we stayed in Galway and mom had told Gabe that I was looking for an Irish boy. This put him on a mission to get me drunk so that I hooked up with some Irish boy at one of the pubs. He started by teaching me how to drink Guinness. Yes believe it or not there is a technique. So I had my first pint of porter ever. Not bad – actually better than normal beer.
Last day and last stop was Clonmacnoise, an ancient Celtic Christian ruin. One of the coolest parts is the whispering archway. It is apparently where people gave confession. If you whisper into the archway on the one side and someone stands on the other side with their ear to the archway you can hear them clearly, even though anyone else around can’t. I tested it and it works – REALLY cool. It was here we had lunch, mom took a pic of a Robin, and changed buses and tour guides once again. Eric became our guide and took us back to Dublin.
2 comments:
Cool tree!! :)
mom's quite old.
How many times did she need to walk around the castle?
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