TravelStream™ news feed for member liamleprechaun on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/liamleprechaun en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Fri, 12 Sep 2008 10:37:44 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1221228120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1221228120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1221228120/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 10:37:44 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland

Watch this spot for future entries about our day in Dublin! It was wonderful!
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Kildare Town, County Kildare, Ireland

I'll never get tired of that joke, but I'm sure many of you are already sick of it!

Anyways, I doubt I would have chosen this as a site that I had to see, but it was very interesting, and the Japanese Gardens here were absolutely beautiful!

Be sure and ask me about "Tommy the Teaser," because its too long to write about, but worth the telling!

After the tour of the Irish National Stud, we made a quick stop at St. Brigid's Well, which is seldom included on the big bus tours. It was an inspiring place for me for some reason, and I lit a candle for my brother Michael who is having procedures and treatment for a heart tumor. Let's hope the visit helps him!?!

I would rate these as great places to visit on the road to or from Kilkenny and Dublin!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220738400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220738400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220738400/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 09:27:00 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Kilkenny, County Kilkenny, Ireland

We only stayed in Kilkenny for one night, and I think we stayed at a place called Rioch Court Accommodations?!? It was a last minute change, as the town was bustling do to the Kilkenny Cats, Hurling Team being in the national playoffs on Sunday! Every pub and restaurant was packed with fans, all decked out in their teams colors of gold and black! We got into town too late to do much touring, but I got a few pictures at night of the castle and the shopping center.

Our hostess Bridgett had some of the loveliest china throughout the house. Her made to order breakfast on Sunday was also wonderful!

We attended mass, (except Audie and our tour guides,) on Sunday morning at St. Patrick's Church. A quick mass, which was ended with the best wishes of the priest for the Kilkenny's success in the championship game, including a mention of the parishioners that were on the team!

After mass, we toured Kilkenny Castle, and then went shopping. Many gifts later we were on the road to my namesake, "The Irish National Stud!"
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Blarney, County Cork, Ireland

It has been said that most people come to Blarney Castle and kiss the Blarney Stone and then receive the "gift of gab," Others come to top off their tanks!!! When I kissed it, the workers thanked me for "refilling the stone" again!

It was well worth the 153 stairs you need to climb to get to the top of the castle wall and lay on your back and kiss the Blarney Stone! It was a shame that Audie's knee wouldn't allow her the climb, but then she's not a Blarney kind of woman, is she!

The view was spectacular from up there, and I highly recommend it to anyone that can make it!

There is also some very neat gardens and other things around the castle that many people don't bother with. Just look at the pictures to see some of the other cool things!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220729400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220729400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220729400/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 08:41:29 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Cashel, County Tipperary, Ireland

One of my personal favorite castle type stops was at the "Rock of Cashel," where St. Patrick was said to have converted a king over to Christianity. As the story goes, during the ceremony St. Patrick would pound his staff on the floor as part of the ritual. Only this time, St. Patrick supposedly drove the stick through the foot of the king by accident. The King never said a word, as he thought it was part of the ceremony!!!

Our tour guide Jeff McElwee diverted us from the regular tour and showed us many things you wouldn't normally hear about during the tour. There was a giant Celtic Cross that was struck by lightning in 1962. The parts of the cross are still laying where they fell, behind the cross, but seldom does anyone ever go there to see them. I took a picture of it for everyone, (See picture...)

We also went down the road a bit, where tour buses can't go, and took a few pictures from a unique angle.

The unusual stone monument to St. Patrick was badly worn from the elements, so the original has been moved inside, and a cast was made for the outside duplicate.

I'm glad we made this stop!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220360100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220360100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220360100/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 08:10:09 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Donore, County Meath, Ireland

What a great World Historical Site! Burial tomb, over 5000 years old, who's entry lines up with the winter solstice! Very cool to be in a site that's even older then the pyramids! Highly recommend this stop on anyone's trip over!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220402700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220402700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220402700/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 08:05:58 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Oughterard, Western Ireland, Ireland

From Newgrange, we traveled west, past Trim Castle where much of the movie "Braveheart" was shot! Our next stop was Clonmacnoise, where we saw our first Celtic Crosses and then took a very interesting trip on a "Bog Railway," where we learned all about the "harvesting" of pet for heating fuel!

Back in the van for an exciting fast paced drive over to Riverside, Oughterard, Co. Galway where we stooped long enough to change our bog covered shoes, and head out for a nice dinner at "Breathnach's Bar." The food was wonderful, and the host and staff delightful!

We celebrated Lee's 72nd birthday with a local fisherman who was eating with his family at the bar, (how appropriate!) Don Molloy turned 80 today also! If that wasn't enough, there was a nice man from Dublin who was also celebrating his 73 birthday! He proposed they all meet back at the same pub in 20 years for a drink!

Back to the B&B for rest... (finally!)

To find out more about that great B&B visit: www.riverwalkhose.com For more about the great restaurant, and to see their menu, visit: www.breathnachs.com
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Killarney, Ireland

End of Day three... We had a lovely drive for most of the day today, and emotionally, one of the best... (Getting to see Little Kim!) While we skipped Bunratty Castle, we really enjoyed Durty Nelly's. We will be back another time to actually see the castle and the park, and visit the shops. Little Kim and her family gave me a very beautiful Irish blessing from the gift shop at Bunratty that I will always cherish!

We checked into our Bed and Breakfast: http://www.crystalspringsbb.com/ This B&B won our "most luxurious accomidations award," which was a tough one, as the Riverwalk B&B was a very lovely place for our first two nights.

We went out to eat, but I actually don't remember where??? It was a nice place, but I can't for the life of me remember where it was?

A little shopping, and I asked aroud for live music, but notheing seemed to be happening on Thursday night, so we headed back to our B&B for a good night's rest. While shopping, I found a gift box of "Michel Lynch" wines. Since that is both my brother's and my grandfather's name, (sort of!,) I had to buy it!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220630400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220630400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220630400/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 07:02:32 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Killarney, Ireland

Our second day in Killarney was a wet one! Very rainy, and cool. We headed out to "Muckross Place" an elaborate Victorian Age residence, (Castle by our standards!) It has been painstakingly restored to its original glory. The owner in the 1800's spent his fortune preparing the house for a visit by Queen Victoria herself, spending the equivilent of Millions of dollars in hopes that she would be pleased, and would grant him a title and more land. It turns out that she only stayed two days, and a month or so later lost her husband, Prince Albert, and went into perminent mourning. She forgot obout her host near Killarney, and he eventually went bankrupt, in part due to the amount of money he spent preparing for her visit!

After that, we went to the "Lady's View" where the queens attendants picniced looking down on Muckross. It was so windy and rainy that we took a vote and decided to skip the Beara pennisula or the Ring of Kerry, as it was just to "blustery" outside! We went back to Killarney for an afternoon of shopping and sightseeing!

Later that night we went to dinner at Danny Mann's in Killarney... another wonderful place! The music at Danny Mann's was wonderful, a group called "The Molly Maloane's." After dinner, most everyone else went back to the B&B, and I explored the nightlife of Killarney!

I was lucky enough to hear the last two songs of a couple of session musicians at a place called "The Crock of Gold," and later spent a half hour or so listening to another rebel duo close out their last set at a place called the "Dunloe Lodge." I was treated very nicely in both of those pubs!

I tried a couple of other pubs, "Mustang Sally's," and a place known as "The Grand" or "Sheehans!" That is the place I think would be perfect for Craic Wisely, so I talked with a manager and left him a CD. The Band that was playing was from Dublin, and they were good! I'm guessing that the place was rated to hold about 250 people, and I would dare say there was closer to 400 in there when I went in!

I had told everyone that I would take a cab home, but also remember that ever one also said it was about a mile and a half walk, so I chose to get some fresh air and go for it! It might have been a good idea to begin with, but that was before I had realized too many ciders were clouding my sense of direction! What should have taken me 30 to 40 minutes ended up taking me closer to an hour and a half, as I quickly got lost in a subdivision that had only one entrance and exit! So there I was, stumbling around in the dark, seeing only one other drunk who was not well at the time I asked her for directions! She simply pointed back to the way I had come and said "back that way" as she proceeded to empty her evenings meal and beverages onto the sidewalk ahead of me! I was proud of myself for not joining her with a sympathy puke!

After asking a cab driver for directions, I finally made it back, in time for a few hours of sleep before a world class breakfast prepared by our very lovely host Ilene. Her Oatmeal with Baileys is famous, but I chose good old fashioned bacon and eggs. (I love their bacon over their, much more like Canadian bacon!)

And so begins Day 5...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220631900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220631900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/liamleprechaun/1/1220631900/tpod.html Thu, 11 Sep 2008 15:19:59 -0400 Liam's first trip to the Emerald Isle!

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Bunratty, County Clare, Ireland

The highlight of the trip so far, (and probably the whole visit,) has been our stop at Bunratty, in Co. Limerick. Not because of the famous castle, and not even because of the great, well known pub "Durty Nellie's!" It's because I got to finally meet the cutest little angel in all of Ireland... "Little Kim!"

We didn't even bother with the castle, but we did manage to have the world famous fish and chips at the pub. None of it mattered once I got the hug I've been waiting for since St. Patrick's day this year!

For those of you who didn't know, Little Kim has a rare condition, and we spent a week or so raising some funds to help her mom with some of her expenses... It was all well worth it when I finally got to hold onto this little doll, and see she was in great hands with her mom and grandmother. I was so proud to have been a very small part of helping her Great-Uncle, Sean from America with the project! Of all the pictures I've had taken, or have taken myself in this beautiful country, I think my favorites will those with Little Kim in them!
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