Month: June 2018

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: We begin with a talk and slide show, “A Ramble Down the Ol’ Bothrain”, before we depart by motor coach with a local expert to explore the Ring of Kerry. The Ring of Kerry is made up of spectacular coastal and mountain scenery, enveloping the towns of Glenbeigh, Cahersiveen, Waterville and Sneem.

Lunch: Served in Cahersiveen.

Afternoon: The field trip continues.

Dinner: In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

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Our breakfast at the hotel was one of the best so far and included capuccinos. The view is stunning.

Dennis Kissane, a local farmer, gave a wonderful talk from a rural view. He was also our guide as we traveled around the Ring of Kerry. Very informative and entertaining.

Amazing 360 degree vistas – no pictures would do it justice. So stunning!

Speaking of beautiful, after dinner in the hotel we took a stroll down to the lake.

Tomorrow morning we head to Dublin.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: We depart Cork by motor coach for Killarney, via Blarney Castle – home of the famous Blarney Stone. Tradition dictates that the gift of eloquence is conferred on all those who kiss the stone!

Lunch: Served in Blarney.

Afternoon: We continue on to Killarney, and en-route we’ll enjoy a visit to Muckross House, a magnificent Victorian mansion spectacularly situated close to the eastern shore of Muckross Lake. As we arrive into the town, we’ll then have a short orientation walk around the local area.

Dinner: Three course served and plated dinner In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

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After another great coffee at the Bookshelf and breakfast at the hotel we left Cork behind and headed to Blarney Castle.

We both kissed the Blarney Stone! I swore I would never do such a thing and risk an unidentified lip fungus or worse. And we were concerned about the physical demands of the climb for Barb – but we made it and both kissed the stone.

We then travelled to the historic Muckross House in Killarney. No photos were allowed inside, but just imagine Downton Abbey. (We saw the rooms where Queen Victoria and Prince Albert stayed when they visited just months before Albert’s death.

No time to visit local pubs or breweries, but there is a nice pub here in the beautiful Lake Hotel with some local brews.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: This morning we begin with free time to explore the fascinating city of Cork. Your Group Leader will be able to offer advice and give directions.

Lunch: Taken out at the Queenstown Centre, Cobh.

Afternoon: Regrouping before lunch at a pre-agreed location, we travel to Cobh by motor coach, where we will be treated to an expert-led walk of this attractive port town, followed by a visit to the Queenstown Story exhibition. Here we retrace the steps of 2.5 million adults and children who emigrated from Ireland on coffin ships, early steamers and finally on the great liners.

Dinner: Dinner will be taken with local host families in the surrounding area.

Evening: Spend some time this evening getting an insight into life in a modern Irish home as you enjoy dinner with your host family.

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We started our free morning in Cork with a visit to the delightful coffee shop across the street from our hotel. The Bookshelf was once a library and now serves gourmet coffee.

We ate an F. I. B. back at the hotel including some fresh honeycomb.

With a few hours to ourselves we strolled the downtown streets of Cork and visited many shops. I bought a Bb penmywhistle in a great little music shop and had a pint of Beamish stout at the Welcome Inn (full of locals).

Lunch was a treat at Market Lane. I had a delicious Irish red ale called Wisdom Ale from Elbow Lane Brewery (right next door … but alas, it was not yet open).

At 2:00 PM we boarded the bus for Cobh (pronounced Cove) and visited the Heritage Center and had a very engaging tour of the town.

This was the last port of call for the Titanic as it headed out into the Atlantic on its fateful voyage in April 1912. There is much tribute to the ship, the crew, and her passengers.

We became truly immersed in Irish life as we joined Teresa in her home up on the hill. She was born and raised in Cobh and her children and grandchildren live there.

She served us a delicious home-cooked Irish dinner followed by dessert, coffee, and Jameson Irish whiskey. What a magical day!

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: We board the motor coach to transfer to the city of Cork. En route we will experience the Burren. We will meet a local expert (Maria) who will lead us through one of the largest karst limestone landscapes in Europe, stopping for a short hike on its moon-like terrain. Next, we will stop to take in the natural wonders of the world-famous Cliffs of Moher, with time to linger by the cliffs which rise like a cathedral into the sky some 700 feet above the wild Atlantic Ocean.

Lunch: Lunch will be taken at the Cliffs of Moher cafe.

Afternoon: We continue on to Cork City. Ireland’s second largest city, Cork was founded in the 7th Century and is today a bustling, lively little city.

Dinner: Three course served and plated dinner In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

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We finally opted for a lighter breakfast of yogurt and granola to give our arteries a break. No photo needed.

Burren was surreal. So quiet, natural, and intoxicating.

Part of Princess Bride (among other films) was captured at the Cliffs of Moher. Breathtaking in scope and grandeur it is a must for any visit to the Emerald Isle.

Tomorrow we will have adventures in Cork and in Cobh.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Take in an informative lecture on “The Celts and the West of Ireland”, followed by an expert-led walking orientation of Galway City in the company of a local historian.

Lunch: Served in a traditional Irish restaurant, Ard Bia on the river at Spanish Arch.

Afternoon: Free time.

Dinner: On your own to enjoy what you like.

Evening: At leisure.

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Great lecture on the Celtic world by Cian Marnell. Tour of the medieval walls and the city was also quite enlightening.

After a delicious light lunch the rest of the day was free. After some shopping and a couple pub stops (Murphy’s and King’s Head) I went to Salt House. Oh my – great craft beers from their own brewery (Galway Bay Brewery). I wish I had found them two days earlier!

Alas – We leave the Celtic heart of Ireland and all the street musicians behind in the morning.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Today we travel by motor coach for a full day exploring Connemara. A broad peninsula between Killary Harbour and Kilkieran Bay in the west of County Galway, Connemara has long been regarded as the real emerald of Ireland. Expect to see Cong and Kylemore Abbey – the oldest Benedictine abbey in Ireland.

Lunch: Served in Kylemore Abbey.

Afternoon: We continue on to explore the sleepy seaside villages of Connemara, stopping at Lough Inagh Lodge in the village of Recess. Enjoy the opportunity to try an Irish Coffee in this beautiful old hunting lodge, nestling on the shores of Lake Inagh. Our day continues with a visit to the award winning Cnoc Suain Heritage Centre for an insight into the rural folklore, traditions and way of life in the west of Ireland, as well as enjoying an Irish coffee demonstration.

Dinner: Served at Alan Cruiscin Lan in the village of Spiddal.

Evening: Return to Galway by motor coach after dinner, followed by free time.

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Breakfast…oh, yes: F.I.B.

What a beautiful, educational, and fun day! We we climbed and wound from the Atlantic shire into the mountains. We drank in the most lush (40 shades of green) landscapes composed of trees, grass, peat bogs, fjords, lakes, rivers, castles, sheep, cathedrals.

The Kylemore castle/abbey is almost fairytale in its dreamy setting.

Next up was a stop at Lough Inagh Lodge for a hilarious and tasty lesson in making Irish coffee.

CLICK HERE to watch the video.

We experienced life where it had stood still for hundreds of years at the Cnoc Suain Heritage site. We tasted indigenous foods, listened to the lovely Irish language in poem and song. We learned to dance and listened to wonderful folk music by a local musician (I even got to play a tune with him!).

Photos / videos cannot begin to do the day justice. Your senses need to be bathed in the plethora of mesmerizing stimuli. The colors, contrasts, aromas, sounds and silences, flavors,

And the sheep. Lots of adorable sheep! (Factoid: there are 4 million people in Ireland and 8 million sheep.)

Still in awe of beautiful sunsets after 10:00 PM.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: We depart by motor coach for Galway – the cradle of Gaelic culture in the West and often referred to as the “city of tribes”, as it was home to 14 famous merchant families. We’ll make a stop at Drumcliffe, the final resting place of famed Irish poet W.B Yeats. Yeats is remembered as an important cultural leader, as a major playwright and as one of the very greatest poets of the century. The epitaph on his gravestone is well known: “Cast a cold eye / On life / On death / Horseman, pass by!”

Lunch: Lunch will be served in a restaurant en route.

Afternoon: The transfer to Galway continues.

Dinner: In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

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You know:

We enjoyed quite an eventful morning. In Drumcliffe we visited the grave of WB. Yeats. We then stopped at the Glencairn Waterfall and saw sheep and had an ice cream cone.

Onward to the Glasshouse Hotel in Sligo for lunch.

On the continued journey to Galway, we stopped in Knock to visit the Knock Shrine and Basilica.

We arrived Galway at 5:30 PM, got settled in our room, then walked 0.3 miles to Thig Coili, a highly rated pub with traditional Irish music. Only had time for a pint, then back to the hotel for dinner. I will go there again during free time in a couple days.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Discover why Derry is regarded as one of the best examples of a walled city in Europe as we set out on foot with a local expert. Following the walk, we depart by motor coach for a field trip to the Inishowen Peninsula to take in the spectacular coastal scenery.

Lunch: Served in Walled City Brewery.

Afternoon:at Leisure

Dinner: In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

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A full Irish breakfast anyone? Yum. I’m scheduling a heart cath for the week we arrive home. 😊

Guide John Deery gave us a detailed tour of historic areas including a ringed fort and an ancient graveyard dating to 100 AD.

There are so many stunning panoramic views on the peninsula.

Next was a wonderful walking tour atop the city wall of Derry/Londonderry.

After a walk across the Peace Bridge over the River Foyle, we ate a tasty lunch at Walled City Brewery. I also enjoyed a private tour and great conversation with brewer/owner Andrew.

For more pictures of this day – CLICK HERE or go to the Photo/Video Galleries link at the top and choose today’s date.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: We board the motor coach to transfer to Derry, stopping en-route at Giant’s Causeway, a natural amphitheatre made up of hexagonal shaped basalt rocks, and a UNESCO world heritage site. We will begin in the capable hands of a National Trust expert as we explore the site, before some free time to allow you to make the most of this breathtaking natural phenomenon.

Lunch: Lunch will be served in the village of Bushmills.

Afternoon: Following lunch, we will enjoy a field trip to Bushmills Whiskey distillery, the world’s oldest licensed whiskey distillery having first been operational from 1608. The transfer to Derry then continues.

Dinner: In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

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Guess what we had for breakfast? Yep: full Irish again. Actually it doesn’t get old since every time I eat it I am reminded of where I am. Where else do you eat tomatos and baked beans with breakfast besides the UK?

We left Belfast behind and headed west. For some reason our schedule was rearranged and we pulled into the Bushmills Distillery for a 10:00 AM tour. It’s OK though: it was 5:00 PM somewhere. Fascinating tour and tasty samples. Tip: the 16 y.o. single malt is very smooth. Very.

The village of Bushmills is very quaint and pleasant. After a light lunch at the Bushmills Inn and Restaurant, we strolled about, then enjoyed some delicious, creamy, award winning local ice cream…in the post office.

On to Giant’s Causeway for some beautiful, almost other-worldly landscape.

It was a full day when we arrived in time for dinner at our next hotel in Derry.

For more pictures of this day – CLICK HERE or go to the Photo/Video Galleries link at the top and choose today’s date.

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: We begin this morning with a lecture on “The Legend of St Patrick: Ireland’s Revered Saint”. We depart by motor coach for Armagh where we will experience an expert-led visit of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, before continuing on to the Armagh Robinson Library.

Lunch: Lunch will be served at a local restaurant such as 4 Vicars in the centre of Armagh.

Afternoon: Following our excursion in Armagh, we will return to Belfast by motor coach for free time.

Dinner: On your own to enjoy what you like.

Evening: At leisure.

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Another full Irish breakfast to start the day. yes, there seems to be a predictable pattern.

Peter Collins (a professor at St. Mary’s) gave us 2, 000 years of Irish history in 1 hour! The “troubles’ in the North are making more sense now.

We enjoyed a scenic ride to Armagh, the ecclesiastical center of the island. At St Patrick’s Cathedral (there are any such named cathedrals in Ireland – this one being Church of Ireland, not the nearby Roman Catholic one) we visited the Registrar, the Library, and the cathedral and crypt.

Our evening was free, so we went to White’s Tavern (established in the 17th century), then had dinner at The Crown, and another pint at Fibber McGee’s.

For more pictures of this day – CLICK HERE or go to the Photo/Video Galleries link at the top and choose today’s date.