The Maltings Birr

Zobaczmy jak pieknie bylo w Irlandii przez te 4 lata
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Let 's see how beautiful it was through those four years :)

... be great having Kevin with us for the drive to Athlone--not only for the extra company, but to have his advice for our first experiences driving in Ireland! We actually got the hang of it more quickly than expected, despite driving on the left-hand side of the road, shifting on the left, monitoring speed limits in kilometers per hour, and interpreting the often strange road signs.

We spent some time at ...

... larger tour group came in behind us. Crowded and consumed with camera flashes, the abbey was suddenly not as peaceful as I had hoped it would be. I decided to make my own way to find some peace and explore. I started following the trail that lead to the gothic chapel on site. It was much more quiet out by the chapel, and I realized that the trail kept going , but no one was following it once they past the chapel. Score. I followed the little path covered in leafs lined with ...

Founded in 1620 - best known for the family's contribution to astronomy. In 1845, the world's largest telescope at the time was built here. The 56 ft wooden tube is supported by two walls.

In the gardens, they apparently also have the world's largest hedge-row.

A medieval monastery in a remote spot along the River Shannon. Founded in 545-548. A group of stone churches, a cathedral, two round towers, and three high crosses remain. The Pope also held a mass here.

Nearby, there also is a ruined castle just outside the grounds.

... combustion engine and what was the world's largest telescope (72") from the 1850s to the 1900 or so. The telescope's housing mechanism is still set in the gardens - very impressive. We walked, after, into town and found a delightful little café for lattes before heading home. The drive back wasn't bad at all - though we hit a lot of traffic in downtown Dublin. Went to a local pub for dinner (fish and chips; bangers and mash; Guinness), enjoying the festive atmosphere.

... like that for too long! Then we spent the night in Kinsale a lovely fishing village then on through the cute town of Clockankilty and around the Mizen Head peninsula but it was quite misty so there wasn't a lot to be seen along the coast. Next we went to an amazing National Park called, Gougane Barra. It felt like a magic forest where a little elf was going to jump out from behind one of the mossy trees. We went for a hike up to the highest ...

... if it was a single and I told her it was unless I got lucky, Damian had a bit of a laugh. I went for a shower and soak and on the way out of the room for some grub I met Catherine walking up the hall. I couldn't get over how blonde her hair was, it didn't look normal. She said I was taking both sides of the corridor and I only had two pints. We went back to the room for some TLC and afterwards went to the restraunt with the rest of the gang. It was a good night even though we were all very tired.

... the doctor about the other fifty pints. He replied, "Lucky I didn't tell him about the sixteen gin and tonics either!" Paddy: He was an exception. Benny: I remember Morrissey's had a bakehouse. There was seven or eight bakeries in the town then. No bakeries left now. There was four butchers. The quality of meat was very high. It'd have to be with four butchers ...

... the amount of money of money we paid for it. While I recommend the Morehampton Townhouse, I have to say that I'll probably try staying somewhere else if I go back to Dublin.

After checking out of the hotel around 10 a.m., we grabbed the bus outside the hotel and went back to Dun Laoghaire. There, we rented a Toyota Corolla from County Car Rentals on a three day contract. We also paid a little extra so that we could drop off the car at a location ...