Inishbofin House Hotel & Marine Spa

... brother in Cleveland. It was fun to talk with them for a while before we went back to the lodge. Because it had wireless, I was able to upload my blog, and I worked on that for a while. We had some tea and biscuits and went down to our room to finish watching some TV. I had told Bernie not to turn the heat on for just the two of us, and there was a little chill in the room. Once we got under the very heavy duvet, though, we were more than warm enough, and knew we would sleep well.

... bare feet and let me tell you it is not a smooth walk. Hundreds of people even go so far as to walk 21 miles from Ballintubber Abbey where St. Patrick baptized the people all the way to the mountain and then climb it... IN ONE DAY....crazy. One of my roommates says that she and her dad climb the mountain at least 2 times a year and she has seen old woman upwards of 80 climbing the mountain in just their bare feet...

Me and my group ...

... the Budget where anxiety was high because now there was real cause to be worried as we were going to be let loose on the roads of Ireland in a stick shift that is on the wrong side of the car and also driving and the left side of the road.

When we arrived two chaps helped us with our paper work and without further instruction led us to our car and let us loose on the roads. Our car of course is American made and just happens to be a Ford Focus. I was the first to drive and very ...

... 200.00 a person and that is for the cheap rooms without views. We didn't go inside but the grounds were beautiful. It has lots of gardens, a river and a lake surrounding it. If you are coming to Ireland for a special occasion consider staying at this sweet castle.

In Westport we checked into our great B&B. It's no castle but it is right downtown and there was even a music festival going on about half a block ...

... at a gas station armed us with a map, and on we went. Winding around on narrow roads, on the left side, sitting on the right side, with the stick on the left side, has been an adventure. We all tensed up every time a big truck came along. Some of the roads had a stone wall on one side (no shoulder) and so there was no room to make room. It's amazing we still have our mirrors. On several narrow, windy roads, the posted speed limit was 100kmh (61 mph ...

Inishbofin translates to "Island of the White Cow". It is truly a step back in time and it really gives you a glimpse into what life was like for the people of Ireland, long ago. We departed at 7:45 and caught the ferry at Cleggan. It was a pretty rough day and a few members from our group got sick. I felt bad for them, while at the same time, I was loving the rocking and the dipping ...

... di isole e isolette. Ci mostra anche un pezzo di torba e ci spiega il processo di produzione. Il suo costo è ancora concorrenziale e molti irlandesi continuano a farne uso. Mi colpisce una domanda di un partecipante al tour. Nella metà dell'800 in Irlanda la carestia delle patate ha mietuto molte vittime. Come è stato possibile che anche nel Connemara molti siano morti? Non potevano nutrirsi di pesce, presente in abbondanza nella regione ...

... giornata è stellare e tutto splende.
Arriviamo in città saltando la Sky Drive, che ci riserviamo per domani, oggi siamo troppo stanchi.
L'ostello, il Clifden Town Hostel è ok, abbiamo una stanza privata con vista sul laghetto. La cucina è a disposizione, ma ceniamo fuori, da Cullen's che serve una ottima zuppa ( adoro le zuppe irlandesi, col pane nero!ma perchè ne danno così poco?). La signora che ci serve, che ha l'aria di essere anche la cuoca, ha anche ...

... it was raining pretty hard, so we didn't go to it. Stopped at a cafe for tea and had a gorgeous view of the mountains and shipping yard. The drive out West was really beautiful. The mountains, lakes, and evergreens reminded me of home and I kept having to remind myself I was in Ireland. Sure it has the green fields, sheep, and stone walls, but there's a lot more to the landscape than most of us realize. It often looks like that country drive ...

Tuesday 20th June. Gale force wins were forecasted so I decided to seek out Mike Thewlis. I had a lie in and got up around 1100.I bought 25 litres of diesel at the Marina office and had a good chat with the Marina manager. I was told the previous evening that Mick Thewlis drank in the Corner house early in the day. I got up to the Corner House around 1230 and found that Mike had already been there and had left already. The ...