The Eastern Shore and "No Photography or Touching" Signs

I only half-halfheartedly apologize for not posting any updates, because while I know you all want to hear about my travels, I have been too busy meeting too many people, and seeing too much to have time to upload photos and write to you all. My first afternoon here, after getting a bit lost trying to find Temple Bar (the area which is named for its famous pub), I got a map and began exploring for real. I found a beautiful park in which I wandered around for a while and then made my way to their main art museum. The highlight for me was Irish landscapes done in the impressionist style and art my Irish expressionist Jack Yeats.

But that's more than enough about art... Let's get back to the scenery right in front of me! I spent a very nice morning in Dun Laoughaire, a fishing village south of Dublin. Very nice and yes, Eliza I did see Farrell's pub! That afternoon I saw the Book of Kells and the Long Room in Trinity College. I so wish that we had been able to take pictures in there! The Book was stunning- all that detail and vivid colors that there were able to create from rocks/minerals in the 8th century! And the Long Room - so amazing! It had the wonderful smell of old books and the ladders to the high-up shelves... I could have stayed much longer but it was closing time and they probably wouldn't have appreciated me trying to read the books anyway.

Photos and more stories about Newgrange, my hike today and rugby will be posted tomorrow (hopefully)!

Left Turns on Red, Fog and Bogs

Aren't the cliffs a site to behold?

Irish Road

Days two and three in Ireland had me traveling outside of Galway on tour buses to see some of the natural wonders of the region. My first tour was up to the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher, the second to Connemara. The first thing to share is about the buses and road themselves. Drivers on the right side, driving on the left side of the road is strange. I keep looking the wrong direction first when trying to cross the road when walking around Galway. The left turns on red when on the tour buses also surprised and entertained me every time. As for the roads themselves, if you can imagine narrow, winding roads with no shoulder to speak of and full-size tour buses trying to navigate them while avoiding the other cars and trucks driving down the road, you'll know what these tours were like. Only a handful of times was I truly afraid for the other people on the bus -- because I sat on the left side and would have been safe from sideswipes!

The Cliffs of Moher?

My attempt at a self-portrait in the Burren

As for the scenery, here's the rundown: The Burren, which we came to first, is Ireland's region of craggy exposed limestone pavement. One area we visited essentially looked like the moon's surface! I won't go into many details of how it was formed, but essentially ice covered the land during the last ice age about 10,000 years ago which then melted and eroded the top layer, exposing the limestone. It was beautiful in a gray/barren kind of way. The Cliffs of Moher, the second major stop on the tour, are 215m (700ft) tall cliffs that drop off into the ocean. They're beautiful, but I only know that from the postcards in the visitor center and the video we saw on the bus. The fog was so think on top of the mountain that we could barely see 50 feet in front of us, much less out and over the edge to the water. I was quite disappointed, but we stopped at the "mini cliffs" a 30-ft tall version of what we should have seen. I had an opportunity there to do a bit of rock scrambling and bouldering, which was wonderful fun!

All I can say is it's beautiful

Today's tour was absolutely stunning. We headed to Connemara, a region full of mountains and lakes. This is what Ireland had looked like in my mind, but after seeing it first-hand, the picture I knew didn't come close to comparing. The land was every shade of green, with stone walls separating farmers' land, sheep dotting the mountainsides and a few homes with thatched rooves and half doors. The lakes and mountains surrounding reminded me of Lake George (shout out to the family who's there right now!), except that instead of tree-covered mountains, it was grass-covered mountains, which again provided such a wonderful range of colors of green. My favorite part was the drive through Lough Nafooey Valley (lough = lake). I completely fell in love with this region and while Ireland and Galway are the first locations on my trip, I know that Connemara will be the first place I will return to on my next trip to Europe. (Yes, I'm already starting to plan for it!) Driving through the valleys we also saw miles and miles of peat bog, some of which was being cut and dried, but most left alone since the need for peat to heat homes is almost unheard of anymore.

Shades of Green

Besides natural beauty, we did stop at a castle turned abbey, a friary in ruins, another abbey in ruins, an old bridge that's famous for being in the movie "The Quiet Man" (John Wayne and Maryanne somebody or other?) and a few other sites. Wonderful days in a wonderful country.

Kylemore Abbey - happily situated!

Pictures will be added hopefully in a few hours, because the cord to connect my camera to the computer is in my room, not to mention that I've been on this computer for way longer than I'd like and uploading photos on this internet connection takes forever!

Where I fell in love with Ireland

Rainbows aren't only for Leprechauns Anymore

Ireland is beautiful.  We all know that fact, from personal experience or through pictures and movies.  Being here for the first time has proven to me that while it may be green and lush, it also is gray.  I have seen blue sky for approximately 10 minutes in the two days I've been here.  If I didn't know that the sun does in fact shine, I would question it in Galway.  However I also think that that fact is the reason that all of their houses and buildings are painted a variety of fun colors.  Walking down any street - main tourist area or back road - you see each home or business a unique color, even if they are all part of one structure.  The streets are a mixed up rainbow, with walls, trim, doors and signs all different but somehow complementary.  Their fishing boats follow the same pattern, and the colors make me smile as I walk along the waterfront.  Here are a few photos for your enjoyment.

My first look at Ireland through the clouds!

The only bit of blue sky in two days, but a rainbow of houses!

An out of service fishing boat.

The weather is quite cool - long sleeves, sweatshirts and scarves required, especially when on the waterfront.  I hope those of you sweating it out in 100+ degree weather aren't too jealous!  More to report after a trip to the Cliffs of Moher tomorrow!