Blog 10--final blog

Blog 10—Final blog probably

I left off on the Dingle Peninsula, which was our favorite of the three rings (peninsulas). The movies, “Ryan’s Daughter” and “Far and Away” (Cruise/Kidman) were filmed in the area. Parts of the coast are wild and rugged like Big Sur or Mendocino. Out in the Atlantic are the Blasket Islands (I had never heard of them either). We visited the most amazing state-of-the art center, which told their story. People lived on these barren islands for centuries until right around WWII. Some people spent their whole lives on the islands. The economy was basically fishing and possibly some agriculture. The men would row ashore (about 30 minutes) and then walk 12 miles to sell their wares. What is so fascinating about the islands is that a large number of the inhabitants became writers in Gaelic and there is a whole genre of their literature.

From Dingle, we had a lonnnngggg ride heading to the Cliffs of Moher. (See my comments on Irish roads in the previous blog).

The cliffs are high, perpendicular cliffs to the sea—very spectacular. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to see the center—just the cliffs. We drove through the Burren, an unusual geographic formation that looks barren, but is teaming with both arctic and tropical foliage. My big regret of this trip is that we couldn’t spend more time at the cliffs or the Burren. We stayed in a tiny seaside town, Kinvarra, where for dinner I sampled a local delicacy, black sole. (only the outside skin is black). We spent the next day in Galway—just walking around the town enjoying he ambiance.

That night we went to an early 16^th century authentic castle, Dungaire, in Kinverra for dinner and an outstanding show. We were welcomed in a small stone room, where a harpist played while we drank mead. I didn’t realize it was 18% alcohol until I finished my second glass. Then 53 of us went up, up, up and around a narrow stone staircase into a small stone banquet hall.

The meal was not authentic, but was surprisingly delicious: smoked salmon with salad, the best potato soup ever, chicken with mushroom sauce, string beans, carrots, potatoes, brown bed, apple pie with cream and red and white wine. We were expecting a Renaissance show, but instead the two singers/actors presented a show of Irish history through song and scenes from early times to about the end of the 19^th century including highlights from Joyce, Synge, Casey, Yeats. Their voices were magnificent, and we thought the entire experience was outstanding.

Today on our way to Dublin airport, we visited two excellent historic sites: Castlemount, the largest Palladian House in Ireland, where we enjoyed the tour, a delicious lunch, and even a concert. The irony was that the concert hall had a bust of George Washington. Evidently the lady of the house in the late 17^th century was very into politics. Here we were in Ireland on the Fourth of July sharing a concert with our first president!

Our final stop was Malahide, the most complete castle in Ireland, inhabited by different generations of the same family for 800 years. On the grounds was a model train museum. Dan was in heaven! All’s Well that End’s Well! For Auld Lang Syne. Shirley O’Lee (Read PS)

PS—The castle tour guide told the following story. I don’t know if it’s an old one, but I had never heard it. I loved so hard that everyone wondered who the ugly American was:

In Northern Ireland, during the troubles, a man was stopped while walking down the street. He was asked, “Are ye Protestant or Catholic?” He answered, “I’m Jewish.” Well, the other man replied, “Are ye Protestant Jewish or Catholic Jewish?”

Blog 9 observations

Blog 9 Observations

1. The Irish wit is marvelous.

Dan and I have been sampling Irish whiskey throughout Ireland.

In one pub, he was trying to decide whether to have ice or not.

He asked the bartender, “How do the Irish take it?” Without missing a beat, the bartender said, “From the bottle.”

The whole country has been following the World Cup. Last week, we were all watching the game in a pub. We asked the man next to us, “Has England played today?” He quickly replied, “No, Germany beat them 4-1.”

2. Driving in Ireland is for suicidal maniacs. Most of the roads are narrow, filled with potholes, and yet, the speed limit is 60 miles an hour. My boobs bounce up and down and my head swings from side to side. Of course, we get behind the inevitable truck going 15 miles an hour. Unless the truck driver decides to pull over, it is impossible to pass. When someone does pull over, the custom is to give him the finger (no, not that one—it’s a thumb’s up!)

3. On the rockiest mountain, in the wettest bog, along the most remote seashore, there are fairly large, modern houses on large areas of land. I’m not sure there are enough people in Ireland to fill all of the houses; yet, they seem occupied. Despite the poor economy, we have not seen any poverty, and we’ve covered a lot of territory. The only sign of it has been the number of educated people overqualified for their jobs. There are 232,497 B & B’s in Ireland. I know. I’ve counted them all. We have stayed in 2 super luxury ones and in one working farm house—dairy cows.

4. There are a lot of bald men-- whether by genes or shaved heads by choice??

5. Music: We’ve enjoyed a number of evenings listening to wonderful music: guitar and violin; harp, guitar, and “low” flute played by 2 excellent singers; accordion. The audiences in pubs include great grandmothers through tiny infants in prams with all ages in between. Each pub seems to have its own special characters: seedy looking men, with bright red cheeks, bulbous noses, who are either in advanced stages of alzheimers or are in a drunken stupor…I’m a thinkin’ the latter! (By the way, I’ve started dropping the endings of words.)

6. Food: We have not had gourmet meals (we are not gourmet eaters), but we have not had any bad meals. Most of the food has been very, very good. I’ve particular enjoyed the fresh fish: cod, salmon, sole. Mushy peas are served with pride: “We have mushy peas on the menu tonight,” enthusiastically announces the waitress.

Think Del Monte canned peas mashed up. The soup is outstanding—especially the potato leek. The portions are huge, and when Dan (the carnivore) and Shirley (the borderline vegetarian/fish eater) can agree, we share meals. We both agree that Irish whiskey is delicious!

7. Despite the beautiful green fields, we have not seen any agricultural products growing although the fruit and vegetables on display in a farmers' market were prize winning specimans.

This will probably be my next to the last blog, in which I’ll cover Dingle, Cliffs of Moher, Gallway, and our fun, fun evening tonight in a castle.

Blog 8

Blog 8 2 Rings

I am writing this while in our car on a ferry crossing the river Shannon.

The most famous ring in Ireland is the Ring of Kerry. It is usually so crowded that tour busses snake along the road bumper to bumper I’m not sure why! We spent three days doing 3 rings, and it was our least favorite. If we had to do it over again, we’d skip it.

We spent our first day in Kenmare driving the Beara Peninsula. It was a wild ride that started out on a beautiful (what road in Ireland isn’t!) narrow road lined with huge ferns. We went up and up a windy road over a mountain of stark beauty with huge boulders through the Healy Pass (take note, Michele and Tim). While it started out clear and sunny, half way on our journey it turned windy and rainy. We were headed for a cable car that holds 5 people and a cow going from the mainland to Dursey Island. Unfortunately the operator was taking a 3-hours lunch, or maybe it was fortunately because I wasn’t exactly thrilled about hanging high above an inlet of the Atlantic on a wild and windy day in a cable car so old that it used to carry cows! We continued past a beautiful lake and through tiny fishing villages, stopping in a town so small that we only had one restaurant option for lunch. For lunch, we had only 2 options: ham and cheese sandwich or a cheese sandwich. We opted for the ham and cheese. It was one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever eaten, with 3 layers of delicious bread, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, onion, delicious ham and cheese. On the wall above our table was a picture of a very elegant lady dressed in a wide-brimmed pink hat and coat. It turned out to be the owner’s mother on her 100^th birthday. She lived until 102! I could only think of my mother!

The most interesting part of the Ring of Kerry was an ancient, prehistoric (is that redundant) round stone ring fort. Its only entry was a very narrow hole in the wall. I seriously think no one over 200 pounds could get through. In ancient times, the chieftan and his people would all live inside. On the outside today were many sheep and cows. It was obvious that they somehow squeezed inside because telltale droppings were all over and it was imperative that we watched where we walked. It was too rough to go out to the Skellig islands, where monks had settlements prior to 1000 AD. We did cross over to Valencia Island, which was the eastern terminal of the first transatlantic cable, whose western terminal began in Newfoundland. At one end of the bridge was a public toilet that won the award for “tidy toilet: (I kid you not!) Throughout Ireland, villages complete for the “tidy town” awards, and we passed through many of them.

Kenmare, where we stayed for two nights won the gold medal of tidy towns. . Half way along the Ring of Kerry, in the middle of nowhere was a chocolate factory, selling world famous candy. They were very generous with their samples, and even the non-chocolate eater (me) liked it enough to buy some. Leaving the ring of Kerry, I nagged and nagged dan to go to the Muckross House, which was only 20 miles away, but which took an hour going and coming. Muckross House (meaning pig house) is the most beautiful Victorian in Ireland. We were surprised to find a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area. The house at one point, had been purchased by the family who built Filoli. They were owners of the Empire gold mines and owned the water rights that supplied SF). I didn’t realize it, but there are pictures of Muckross House on the Walls of Filoli (If you’re not from northern CA, you may not get this reference. Filoli is a large garden estate between San Jose and San Francisco.) Again, an excellent tour! My favorite story:

The owners prepared 6 years for a visit from Queen Victoria and Albert spending an enormous sum on new carpets, wall coverings, furniture, and even new uniforms for their servants. Victoria stayed only 2 nights. The owners were hoping to recoup the money by gaining a title from the queen, which she had planned to give them. However, shortly after she and Albert returned to England, Albert died unexpectedly, and she went into severe mourning. The owners went bankrupt and had to sell their beautiful house and grounds. (I think this is when the Americans bought it). I have a lot more to write, but I’m used to the attention spans of special ed kids (nothing personal) so I’ll write more in a another blog.