Radharc Na Mara Westport

... cliffs. The ocean views were breathtaking, and the sheep didn’t mind sharing them with us.

At the end of the drive, we went to the information center where we found out that a castle we had passed and neglected to photograph, was that of Grace O’Malley, the pirate queen. It was also the one picture I had promised my grandson, so we knew we had to go back. First, though, we drove around the rest of the island. We took the narrow and winding road to ...

... at some point and make it all the way to the peak.

When we got down we stopped at the Irish Famine Memorial which was really interesting. It is a large metal ship, but its covered with skeletons in memory of all the people who died on "the coffin ships" when they were emigrating out of Ireland. It was a pretty moving sight and I am glad that we stopped there....

Alot of these pictures have the same title, but they are different

... and given 7,000 acres. Still a lot, but not nearly as much or as good of land as they had. The Inside was furnished as it would have been in the 1900's (we werent allowed to take pictures inside) and got to see how the landlord would conduct business with his tenants...by hiding behind a secret bookcase and having an agent do everything! The grounds were absolutely beautiful too. There is a large lake ...

1st stop Ballintubber Abbey...

This Abbey has been around for a while to say the least....It is here that St. Patrick baptized the people of the area in 441 A.D.. There is a bit of lore to how it came to be
in the modern state it is now. It was said that the clergy of the church took in the prince of Turloch because he was fleeing the vengeance of Turloch's queen who wanted her own son to sit the throne. The clergy of the ...

... pudding this morning..Sister Leigh said it tasted like dog, I thought it tasted like a biscuit that had been laying next to a sausage...Sister Carolyn thought it was a cross between a snausage and a bisuit....maybe Dad wasn't so far off that dog thing...

I am having a great time...looking up even more that I have my clothes...

sister carolyn here...all good...everyone still getting along...funny people on bus the first day two ladies late and we ...

... The water was delightfully misty and mysterious. We did get a wonderful view of the castle from the water too. The water was rough so we did not stay out long. Everyone enjoyed the stories of the lake and the castle, the spirits served by Jack and the accordion music supplied by Martin.We had dinner in the bar and then enjoyed piano and singing in the drawing room in the evening.
The next day dawned fairly clear so we ...

My bag has been packed. And re-packed. And unpacked. And squished.
I've informed the hotel of my late arrival.
I've got (some) foreign cash.
My electrical batteries are charged.
My print outs are in a waterproof folder in a waterproof bag.


Agh!

... that we sell it in Atlanta too... We went through a town called Murrisk and passed the Abbey (The ruined Murrisk Abbey just to the seaward side of the village was an Augustinian abbey founded in 1457 by the O'Malley family.) We stopped at a little place for a coke (we stop for cokes all the time), but wished we didn't because it was really dirty and we can only imagine what was in our drinks. We rode ...

... walk the better. Suffice to say it ended almost as soon as it began with us running away from an escaped and extremely irritated bull. We didn't want to blame our new hero Joss for the outcome of the Burren walk and decided to give him another chance the next day by trying out his suggested horse-shoe route of Mweelrea. We parked where he suggested and looked at the map in the book which seemed to suggest that we climb up a sheer cliff-face. "It looks worse that it is, sure ...

... by coach-loads of old people in the adjacent visitor centre. Just what is it with old people these days? Back when I was young they were seen and not heard, always polite to their juniors and never much in a hurry to get anywhere. Now they were noisy, boisterous and pushed me out of the way with elbows or handbags when, heaven forbid, I stood in the way of that must-have leprechaun tea towel or pretty picture ...