End of the Ireland Trip

Our final day in Dublin was a bit warmer than our first day there, thankfully. We spent part of the day doing our last-minute souvenir shopping. Aside from that, we visited both Christ Church and St. Patrick's cathedrals. Both have a lot of historical and architectural significance. We had a nice lunch at a bistro near the Jameson's visitors center, and then spent the early evening packing.

That evening we walked to the Temple Bar area for dinner, crossing the Ha'penny Bridge over the Liffey on the way (pictured). After dinner, we went to the Friends Meeting House for a rehearsal of Gloria, Dublin's lesbian and gay choir. This group is larger and much better established than the men's chorus we visited Monday. The sounded great as they prepared for a very busy week. After rehearsal we went next door to the Ireland Film Institute for drinks with some of the members, and we had a great time getting to know them.

We had a fairly short night, as the cab for the airport came at 5:45. That was about 1/2 hour earlier than we needed, but we had plenty of time at the airport to check in, get breakfast, clear security, request our tax refunds, and go through customs.

We boarded the plane and left a few minutes early, taking off just after the sun came up. I watched the patchwork fields and lakes get smaller as we rose in altitude until we finally passed the west coast. Then the captain told us there was a problem with a redundant safety monitor of some sort, which didn't cause any problems, but they didn't want to cross the Atlantic without it. So we headed back to Dublin, landing an hour and 45 minutes after we left. Once on the ground, we learned that a replacement part was en-route from Amsterdam. About three hours later, the new part was installed and we were ready to go again.

We were re-booked on a flight out of Atlanta, about four hours later than our original connection. We landed at O'Hare just before 9:00 Central time. By the time we got the bags, picked up the car, and drove home it was 3:45 am, 27 hour after we began the journey.

It was a long and exhausting journey, but we saw and experienced a lot, met some great people, and had a wonderful time. We haven't been able to identify our favorite part of the trip, but we have discussed places we would visit again if we ever get a chance to go back. This trip  was a life-long dream for Barry, and we're so glad we got to make the trip together.

And we've already started discussing ideas for our next trip together!

Finally in Dublin

We've had a busy couple of days. Woke up yesterday in Larne and headed out for Islandmagee, once the seat of the Magee clan. It was a beautiful morning, so the drive was great and we took our time exploring some cemeteries and coastal areas on the peninsula. Interestingly enough, we found no Magees in the cemeteries - only a McGee ans some McKees  - but we found many graves with Jim and Gywen's family names.

Leaving Islandmagee, we took a beautiful drive through Carrickfergus amd Belfast toward Dublin. Unfortunately, the weather got worse the farther south we went. We stopped along the way and caught the last tour of the day at Newgrange, a 5200 year-old Neolithic burial site. It was pretty cool, and it's amazing to imagine how the people moved all of the rocks to the area and built these massive strictures.

After Newgrange, it was of to Dublin and the home of our good friend Orla, who cooled a wonderful Irish meal for is. It was great catching up with her and learning more about her life here in Dublin. After dinner, we spent a good amount of time returning the car to the airport and finding the eight bus to take back to our guesthouse.

This morning we took the complete 90 minute bus tour of Dublin, then jumped back on the bus to go to Trinity College. There, we had a nice, colorful tour before seeing the Book of Kells and the long room in the library. After a quick lunch in the student union, we hopped on the bus to the Guinness Storehouse for the tour and complimentary pints at the amazing Gravity Bar, which features 360 degree views of the city. It was a great place to relax and watch the sunset.

After catching the bus back to the area of our guesthouse, we headed out to a rehearsal of the newly formed Dublin Gay Men's Chorus. It was fun listening to them prepare for their Christmas concert, and after rehearsal we joined about 10 of them for drinks in a nearby pub, The Flowing Tide.

It's difficult to believe we only have one more dull day here.

Belfast Update

We've had a good time in Belfast. Yesterday began with a taxi tour of the city, which wasn't quite what we expected. Rather than a comprehensive tour of the city and its key sites, we got a tour of only the working-class  neighborhoods and murals. We learned a lot about the history of the political troubles, but the story seemed a little one-sided. I still have a difficult time understanding the depth and passions behind the different factions and why there hasn't been more progress to unify the city.

After the tour we went to the Public Records Office to do genealogy research.

Very interesting, although we didn't find much. From there we went to the Ulster Historical Foundation where Barry had an appointment with a researcher. Again, we didn't find much. While he was there, Jim explored part of Queen's University on foot.

Yesterday evening we headed to Ulster Hall for the annual Belfast Beer and Cider Festival. Dozens of drinks on tap to try, with live music and lots of people. As we drank, we met and chatted with a new friend Alan and his wife.

After that, we met Gywen for supper. We wanted to eat at the famous Crown Bar, but they didn't have room to seat us. We found a nice French restaurant instead.

This morning we spent nearly three hours at the Titanic Experience. The museum opened earlier this year, and it's fantastic. Very high tech and high touch, it covers the early industrial history of Belfast, the ships construction, its launch, fittings, maiden voyage, sinking, aftermath, pop culture references, 1985 discovery, and underwater exploration. We certainly could have spent more time there.

Soon we're off to Island Magee and Larne!

Ireland, Thanksgiving Edition

This morning we were up early to visit Giant's Causeway on the Antrim coast. There is a nice new visitor's center which explains the geologic feature and some of the surrounding mythology (Finn built it, you know.) The weather was cool and breezy, but dry so we enjoyed walking around the site.

Soon we were off to Belfast. We arrived in time for Barry to spend about an hour and a half looking into family history at the Presbyterian Historical Society. We didn't find much, but we got some leads on things to look for during our research tomorrow.

The historical society is around the corner from our hotel, so we checked in, and them we had a few hour to explore. We're in the neighborhood of Queen's University so we walked past some of the university buildings to the botanical garden. Also nearby is the very nice Ulster Museum, so we got to spend about an hour there.

After changing at the hotel, we went to dinner at the Grand Opera House (yum) followed by a very funny show "One Man, Two Guvnors." It is a big farce, with elements of a minstrel show and some improv. Quite a good time. Tonight we stayed in the hotel and made plans for tomorrow. There is a lot to do here, and we've got to cram a lot into a day!

First Day in Northern Ireland

The Derry Travelodge wasn't the best accommodation in the world, but we weren't there long and it was cheap. Following a basic and rather plain breakfast, we set out to walk around the city for a couple of hours. We went to the Bogside, the traditional Catholic neighborhood just west of the original walled city of Derry. The Bogside was, during the civil rights struggle, known for a time as Free Derry. We went to the Free Derry museum to learn more about the oppression of the working class people, the civil rights movement, and the Bloody Sundy massacre which happened at this site. Here along the street there is a series of murals commemorating those times and other similar struggles for civil rights.

From the museum we walked up the hill to the city wall (built in the 1600s) and into the city centre. We saw the Diamond, billed as the only square roundabout in the world. I don't want to tell the locals that we have at least one in Indiana (see: Paoli). We grabbed a takeaway lunch and soon headed up the coast to Bushmills.

In Bushmills, we took a tour of Bushmills Distillery, the oldest licensed distillery in the world. The King granted its charter in 1608. Unlike at Jameson, here we toured the working distillery so it was interesting to see the bro duct being jaded and the bottling line. Today, they were actually bottling Jameson's. Jameson's doesn't have a bottling facility, so they send their whiskey to Bushmills for bottling. Of course, we got a sample at the end of the tour.

After the tour, we headed toward our B&B in Portrush, passing the remains of Dunluce Castle along the way. The sun was already beginning to set, but the site was open for another 1/2 hour so Barry and Jim took the time to exploe the ruins as dusk fell. It's a very dramatic site, to be sure. I would have enjoyed a little more time there to explore more, read some history as we walked, and hike down to the cave and the shore. Unfortunately, you can only do so much when the sun sets before 5:00.

The town of Portrush is a delightful seaside resort village. Of course, in November it's mostly closed. We found a wonderful bistro for dinner, and lots of other people were there enjoying it, too. Only later did we discover the place listed in our guidebook. We came back to our spacious room to read more about the history of Northern Ireleand and post to the blog before turning in.

Sunset from Dunluce Castle, Antrim Coast, Northern Ireland

Along the coast is the town of Portrush, where we've stopped for the night.

An Adventurous Day

Yesterday we drove 30 km from Galway to a tiny airport where we boarded an 8-passenger plane to fly to Inis Mor. It was a beautiful drive a lot the shore (in spite of a slight mishap with the car) and a nice, quick flight. Once we got to the island, we found a driver who offered to take us on an island tour, which was good because we weren't sure how we were going to get around the island.

The island is 9 miles long and 3 miles wide at its widest point. Originally all limestone, the people have built stone walls all over the island, and filled the plots with seaweed and sand to make soil so they can farm and raise livestock. The main draw to the island is the prehistoric fort, dun aengus, 2500 years old, on the top of a 300 ft cliff. We walked up to the fort, which I think ins the windiest place on the planet. When Barry peeked over the ledge, hits hat blew off with amazing force and flew way outside the fort and down the hill. I thought we would never see not again, but Barry actually found it on the way back down!

We had some lunch at a small cafe and then went on to see and old, ruined monastic site before heading back to the village. We went to a pub to wait for our return flight, only to learn that the flight was cancelled due to the gale-force winds. Fortunately, there was a ferry returning about 1 1/2 hours later, and the seas were calm enough for the ferry to run. We got back on shore about 2 hours later than anticipated, and then had to go back to Galway to pick up our laundry. Finally we were on the road for our 3 1/2 hour drive to Kerry, arriving at 11 pm. The Kerry Travelodge isn't fancy, but it felt good to get in the beds.

On to Galway

This morning we left our friendly hosts in Ennis and headed to the Cliffs of Moher. We spent some time in the gift shop and visitors center before heading our to see the cliffs. It was mostly overcast, with gale-force winds, but foe the moat part the rain held off. The views were dramatic and constantly changing due to the weather. While the wind was challenging, we did enjoy a few minutes of sunshine.

Next we drove on the very curvy road to Galway. The weather limited our views along the way, but by the time we reaches Galway Bay we could see some beautiful sites, including castles along the way. In Galway, we went to the busy city centre to check out a laundrette, but it was closing so we chose not to leave our laundry there. Instead, we rook it to a laundrette closer to where we are staying.

Tonight we're staying in the lovely St. Jude's B&B in Salthill. We walked down the street for dinner and had some food food and locally brewed beers. Now waiting to see if we will go out and do something else tonight...

Another Day Down

This morning we watched the sun rise over the mountains and the Atlantic as we ate breakfast. Then Gywen drove us to the top of the pass to begin our second day of riding bikes. After three hours of riding through rain and gale-force winds, we dropped of the bikes and drove three and a half hours through the rain to our B&B in Ennis. After tea and showers, we went out in the rain to get dinner. We found a nice pub which actually had live Irish music! It only took us six days to find Irish music.

View of Waterville on Our Climb to the Pass

A Big Ride

Today was our first day of cycling in the Ring of Kerry. We had a filling breakfast at the B&B in Cahersiveen and then went into town to pick up the bikes. Casey was friendly and set us up with bikes, helmets, pump, repair kit, lock, and a map.

We headed out a bit later than anticipated, but still before Noon. As we began our ride there was a gentle rain which produced a great double rainbow  - to be expected in Ireland, I suppose. We rode inland and uphill to a pass near a wind farm, then past sheep and timber forests. All along they way we paused to take in the beautiful scenery. Eventually we turned to head back toward the coast, passing some pretty lakes along a high plain. We finally went back downhill, reaching the coast at Waterville. From there we had a dramatic three-mile climb along the coast to another pass, before cruising downhill to or resting spot for tonight, Old Forge in Cahirdaniel. It's a nice setting with beautiful ocean views, which we enjoyed as we drank our tea and ate cake.

This evening we went into the village for dinner at The Blind Piper, where the Ireland v. Fiji rugby match was on TV. I got the impression that nobody expected Ireland to do well, but they won 53-0! It was fun to watch, and I think the entire village was there.

Tomorrow we've asked our hostess to prepare an early breakfast so we can get a fairly early start back to Cahersiveen. We will take a different, more coastal route, but unless we can get the bikes in the car we will have to start with that long  climb to the mountain pass.

Overdue Update

Our fourth day in Ireland is almost over. (We do still plan to hit the local pub.) We didn't have wifi last night in Cork, so this update is overdue. Wednesday night after watching soccer we went to Henry Downe's pub to to try the house-distilled "No. 9" whiskey. It was fine; soon we struck up a conversation with the local customers Ellen and Billy, and the bar staff John and Killian. We chatted about Irish slang and movies before turning to local events and politics.

Thursday morning we followed our friend Conor's suggestion and drove through the Vee Gap on our way to the seaside village of Ardmore. It was a quaint little place and we got a bite to eat there. We checked out the round tower and cathedral ruins before checking out the small "castle" and the dramatic cliffs of the southern coast. (Spongiest grass I have ever walked on!) We were disappointed that we didn't have time to do the cliff walk, but we had to get to Midleton for our next stop: the Jameson Experience.

We had a very nice tour of the Jameson Distillery. We started with hot totties and an introductory film before touring the historic facilities where whiskey was distilled through the 19th century and up to 1975. (All Jameson brands are still produced on-site, but in modern facilities.) We learned about the process and saw the largest still in the world. Our friend Brian told us to volunteer at the end of the tour, so we did, and the three of us were selected as part of they eight who got to do a whisky tasting comparing Jameson to Johnny Walker Scotch and Jack Daniels. All very different, but of course Jameson was thee best. We enjoyed chatting with folks from the tour, including a man from California, a couple from Sweden, and French students, before heading on to Cork for the evening.

In Cork, we found dinner at Dan Lawry's Pub before going to Sin é for drinks and live music (not Irish music). Barry enjoyed the locally brewed Rebel Red and Jim liked the locally brewed Murphy's.

This morning we overslept and went to check out Cork's famous English Market. The market had lots of fresh meats and fish, as well as vegetables, pastries, and coffee. We also found a camera store where we bought a charger for Gywen's camera battery before checking out of the hotel and heading to Blarney.

Blarney castle and its grounds were beautiful, and we enjoyed being there on an equally beautiful, mostly sunny say. Of course we did climb to the top and kiss that famous stone. We've got the pictures to prove it. From there, we drove on scenic back roads to get to Killarny National Park. The surrounding mountains and lakes were also beautiful. We took a horse-drawn cart tour around the grounds and up to an impressive waterfall. The forest around the falls was covered in an amazing green moss, just as one would expect in Ireland.

After dinner in Killarny town, we headed on to Strands End B&B in Cahersaveen, where tea and a warm fire was waiting. And now, we're off to the local pub!

Kilkenny to Waterford

Our second day in Ireland began with breakfast at the Kilkenny Design Center, next to Butler House and once the grainery for the Butler family and Kilkenny Castle. Then we had a nice guided tour of Kilkenny Castle, home to the Earl of Ormond, Chief Butler of Ireland and the Butler family for over 700 years. The family moved out in 1932(?) and the castle fell into disrepair until they sold it to the city in 1967. Now it is beautifully restored.

We made a quick visit to the protestant cathedral in Kilkenny, where Barry and Jim climbed the 100 foot round tower and took in great views of the city before driving to Waterford. There, we toured the Waterford Crystal production facility and got a fascinating look at that process. Did some shopping, too!

After checking into the Dooley Hotel, we walked around the city looking for a restaurant, finally finding a little Italian wine cafe. We just finished watching the Irish national soccer team lose to Greece in the hotel bar. (We were in the bar, not the soccer match.) Next we plan to head to a local bar which has been brewing it's own "No. 9" whiskey for years.

Day One

We arrived in Dublin a few minutes early yesterday morning. After resolving a couple of issues with the rental car, we headed south to Bray where Jim and Barry headed out on a 6.2 km cliff walk to Greystones. Meanwhile, Gywen drove the car to the other end to meet us, and took care of getting some cash exchanged for Euros. Along the dramatic walk (pictured), we saw seals, birds, and a surprising number of windflowers in bloom. The path was also lined with raspberries, so we enjoyed a few of those along the way. At the far end of the trail, we had planned to have lunch at the Beach House, but we were 45 minutes early for lunch. Instead, we drove down the road to a pub called the Coach House and enjoyed fish and chips and Blumers by the fire.

Next we headed to Glendalaugh, a one-time monastic settlement founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century. The name means Valley of Two Lakes, so as you can imagine it was a beautiful valley with two lakes. We walked around to look at the wonderful round tower (built about 1000 years ago), the building ruins, and the cemetery. We also took a hike through the woods and past a waterfall to the upper lake (pictured below). It was a beautiful site, but we couldn't help but wish for a little sunnier weather.

We ended the day with a drive to Kilkenny as darkness descended. We checked in to the lovely Butler House before Barry and Jim headed out for dinner and drinks at a quaint, cozy pub which was founded in 1324. We were all in bed before 9:45, which was understandable after a very short, restless night on the plane and the time change.

On Our Way!

Here we go! We got up at 3:30 this morning, in an effort to get ready for the time zone change. After breakfast at IHOP and some work and reading in the hotel room, we headed to the airport. The flight to ATL was uneventful, and now we're boarding for Dublin. We will arrive there at 7:00 tomorrow morning, so the next post will be from Ireland! This trip is a life-long dream for Barry, and we're thrilled to be going together (with Gywen!). By the way, there are a lot of Irish-looking people on this plane.

Starting Early

We've had a good first full day in Chicago. We started with some shopping at the outlet mall, followed by an awesome lunch at Carnecitas Aguascalientes in the Little Village. Then we made a quick stop to have a screw removed from a tire on our way to the Irish American Heritage Center library, where we're getting some advice on doing genealogy research in Ireland. It's like we've started our trip abroad without even leaving the U.S.

How fortunate that the library is open an hour later than we expected, and their main genealogy expert is here to help us. We could spend a lot of time here - we haven't even peeked in the museum or the Irish American hall of fame.

We're leaving here to head to Evanston for dinner with our friends Jaret and Karina.Is so easy to forget as the years go by how special someone is in your life but just a hug and it all comes back. I've [Barry] been so blessed to work with so many wonderful students over the years. 

Headed to Ireland

Our Ireland trip is almost here. We're leaving tomorrow for Chicago, where the plan was to watch the IU Men's Soccer team compete in the Big Ten Tournament. Unfortunately, they tied their last regular-season game, giving them a 4th place tournament seed instead of the regular-season championship and a first-round buy. They played their first game yesterday and lost, so we're spending three days in Chicago and the team won't even be playing. On a more positive note, we don't have to leave as early in the morning, we will get to visit friends, and we're seeing the musical The Burnt Part Boys.

We've just about completed our busy itinerary for the trip, and we created a Google map highlighting many of our stops.


View Magee/Johnson Ireland Trip in a larger map