Follow Kevin and Sue as they circumnavigate Ireland.
A Week Out
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It is a week from today that we fly out for this next adventure. Much planning/scrambling is taking place. (I really dislike computers.) I guess that I am a luddite. Stay tuned.
Our drive today across the south of Ireland compared to so many others on this trip was almost boring. The terrain was reasonably flat but the roads were anything but straight. We saw something other than sheep for a change. It was obvious that we were travelling through 'dairy' country. Holsteins dotted the landscape and for the first time we actually saw evidence of grain growing and even a few corn fields. As we were sitting enjoying our bottle of wine in our room last night (bought downstairs in the hotel bar), we decided that we should visit the Rock of Cashel. This is a castle built originally in the 12th Century and given to the church by the local 'king'. It is somewhat of a mythical religious shrine. Extensions were built in the 13th and 15th Centuries. It is now of course a ruin as most of these old castles are today. The architectural abilities and workmanship of those long ago days puts our buildings today to shame....
This afternoon we took a Black Cab Tour of Belfast. For more than 90 minutes we were toured through the streets of Belfast looking at the political murals commemorating the years from 1969 to 2000. This period is commonly known as the 'Troubles'. Although interestingly enough, our guide only used the term once instead choosing to refer to the time as 'The Conflict'. This was a political conflict between the catholic sector led by the IRA (Irish Republican Army) against the British Government. The IRA wanted political independence for Northern Ireland. The IRA used bombs and targeted killings. The Police/British Forces used just about as brutal of tactics. About 3000 people were killed during the conflict. A wall was built between the Catholic section of the city and the protestant territory. Still today, 24 years after a peace agreement was signed, the wall still exists. All but one of the gates between the 2 areas ...
A boat ride was in store for today out to Inis Oirr. Inis Oirr is the smallest of the Aran Islands. It is one desolate piece of rock. They have very little soil. They make more soil by mixing seaweed with sand and spreading it around. Can you imagine? The island has 300 permanent residents. The island has 500 to 600 cattle. They graze in fields the size of postage stamps. Daily they are moved to a different field. It makes no sense! But our tour was a fun one. We took a horse and wagon tour of the island. Thomas was our guide. He has lived here his whole life. Toby was our horse. To say that Toby had an attitude would be putting it mildly. He moved at his own pace and as Thomas said, "he cannot be persuaded otherwise but he is a good horse'! While other horses and wagons were galloping past us, Toby just plodded along! It was a fun experience. On our way back we were treated to a ...
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