Marlie

I tend to get pretty detailed while writing a trip report. This is pretty long, so if you don't like Lengthy reports, I'd skip this one. I really don't want to bore anyone.

May 13th, 2005

FRIDAY

We started our trip at the airport in Chicago only to sit on the run way for two and a half hours because of bad weather over Lake Michigan. When we finally got to Boston we had missed our connection to Shannon by 10 minutes.

I can’t say I wasn’t disappointed but American Airlines did give us a room at a nearby Holiday Inn and scheduled us on the next flight the following evening. To add to my frustration one of our bags turned up missing (mine). They told us it had gone to Shannon. After arguing with baggage claim for 45 minutes, trying to tell them there was no way it could be on it’s way to Shannon, a amazing man, a wonderful man… came out of the back room, magically carrying my green flowered suitcase. I am blaming all this on it being Friday the 13th!

We met some new friends, Jill, Rene, Ed, and Scott who along with us missed their flight to Shannon. It was nice to have a group to grumble and moan together with. We all took the shuttle to our hotel and had a late night pizza, and got to know each other more.

SATURDAY

After calling Ireland to change a few of our reservations, calling our dog sitter Beth, to ask if she would watch Marley an addition day, our family to let them know of our new travel plans, we found ourselves with a day in Boston and wondered what to do. We decided to rent a car and drive to Salem. We toured Seven Gables, then drove to Rockport, walked around and just enjoyed our unexpected extra day of vacation.

SUNDAY

We finally made it to Ireland! We said good-bye to our four flying friends and all went our separate ways. Craig and I drove off in our little Hertz rental car, leaving behind my Vera Bradley duffel that contained our heavy coats and tennis shoes in the parking lot. How could we do this? Of course I had to blame my husband. I wouldn’t have left such an important thing lying in a parking lot. We didn’t realize this though until we got to the Rossevel ferry, 3 hours later.

While packing a change of clothes in our back packs for an overnight on Inishmore we looked hopelessly for the duffel. Realizing it was no place in the car I was pretty unhappy to say the least. I figured the islanders would find two goofs wearing leather walking shoes, frozen to death on the island later that night. What will happen next? We were not having good luck so far. Hoping our sweatshirts would keep us warm under our spring jackets we ran to catch the ferry before it left.

We had a calm ride on the way to Inishmore and once there rented our bikes. Pedaling along the road to our cottage, Man of Aran, we passed a little pub called Joe Walky’s. Picnic tables were placed throughout the front lawn and music came from a group of men seated around one of the tables. We got a drink and just relaxed in the warm sun listening to the singing and music. Now this is what we were thought Ireland would be like.

Deciding that we should get to our B & B which was 4 miles away we started off again. An elderly man stopped us and asked where we were going. He gave us directions that would take us along the coast road and said that this way we would miss the hills.

It was a beautiful ride. Once in awhile we passed other cyclists, a pony cart or the occasional tour van but usually we were by ourselves on the road. I couldn’t believe how still it was all around us. The scenery was beautiful; on one side of us was the ocean and the other were hills separated by small stone fences everywhere. At one of our rest spots we heard a repeated cuckoo-cuckooing sound. I looked around until in the distance, I saw a large brown bird sitting on a stone fence.

After riding around bend after bend I began to wonder if we were lost but we finally came upon our cottage and parked our bikes. Our room was very small but the atmosphere of the cottage made up for it. Starving, we asked about the little town that we had heard was near by. The town turned out to be two restaurants that closed at 4:30. With only a half hour before the town closed we hurried to get a very late lunch.

Again we sat outside this time at a little thatched roof cottage called Teac Nan (cute little place and the food was great) and shared a bowl of soup and some brown bread not wanting to get too full before dinner. Luckily the Man of Aran Cottage served dinner so we wouldn’t starve that night. A lady where we had lunch told us about a place called Craig’s pub a mile away that we thought we would visit after dinner.

Joe and Maura were very nice hosts and a fun couple. They served a delicious dinner. We visited with the other couples staying at the cottage and thought we would venture out to the pub we had heard about. We walked about 10 feet and got so cold so we had to run back. We couldn’t ride our bikes as it would be dark soon and of course we didn’t have a car. We went back to our room and giggled as we decided were prisoners in our room. After flying 6 hours, driving a rental car on the left, taking a ferry, and biking around an island we decided it was time for bed anyway and decided to read a while before calling it a day.

maitaitom

Good stuff. Look forward to reading more.

akm_tn

Looking forward to more...am planning an Ireland trip year after next.

Amy

Marlie

Before I post the next day's report I would would like to thank everyone for all the tips, reports and advice we have gotten from this site. I think I had read everything on Ireland before we left. Lots of good information here!! Thanks again.


MONDAY

Our room at Man of Aran was not ensuite so Craig packed up his gear and left to take a shower. A second later I heard a large bang and hurried to open our door to see what it was. Craig dressed only in his jeans was on his knees holding his head in the hallway, shaver, shampoo, and towel scattered around him. “I hit my head”, he moaned. I started laughing and couldn’t stop. Of course I was sorry he hit his head, but what a site. I pulled him back into our room before anyone else could see my half dressed husband lying on the floor. Craig had a spot on his head that looked liked a floor burn. After composing himself he started off for the shower again. In his defense the ceilings were low and the doorways even lower. Craig just forgot to duck. We decided to always pick rooms that included bathrooms in the future.

While I packed up, Craig talked to a couple from France, Morgan and Patrick. They had called a van to come to take them to Kilronan, to meet the morning ferry. Craig decided we should leave our bikes at the cottage and ride along with them. His legs were sore from the day before.

Once in Kilronan we had an hour before the ferry came. It was sprinkling and chilly so we popped into a sweater shop and looked around a bit.
I asked if there was an internet café in town and was surprised to hear there was one at the information center/library. I hoped to type a message everyday to family at home. While writing my message I noticed a little mouse scurry pass me. Needless to say, it wasn’t too long before I pushed the send key.

After the ferry took us back to Rossaveal we headed for Connemara. We stopped in Roundstone at Dog’s Bay. It was a beautiful beach we walked along the shore and climbed some rocks and just enjoyed the view. Next we stopped for lunch in town. While we were eating we saw Morgan and Patrick, the French couple from the cottage that we had met the night before pass by the restaurant window. Afterwards, we saw them again while walking around town and so we stopped to talk.

Next stop was Clifton where we had reserved a room at the Faul House a farmhouse B & B. We walked around town and decided to drive the Sky Road before going to Faul House. I had heard that there were magnificent views from this road. I don’t remember much of the scenery because we weren’t on the road too long before a car passed by and Craig moved to the edge a little for it to pass. We heard a large noise and stopped to see what we had hit. A rock half buried at the side of the road ripped our tire apart. Craig pulled off into someone’s driveway. A man stopped and asked what happened. Craig told him and he asked if Craig knew how to change a tire. Craig answered, “It’s been awhile.” The guy said okay and took off again.

To make a long story short we got the jack out and couldn’t figure out how it went together. There was no manual in the glove box and although we tried for a long time we finally gave up. Craig decided to walk to the next house and ask to use their phone. On his way up the hill a car stopped and it turned out to be Patrick and Morgan again. Patrick just started laughing when he saw the car. They pulled ahead of us and were so kind to help. After a half hour or so we had the spare on and promised to buy them a drink if we should run into each that evening as we were both staying in Clifton that night.

The Faul House was about a mile out of Clifton down a tree lined road. Our room was cozy, large and peach colored, with a king sized bed and sitting area. The doorways were normal heights so I didn’t have to worry about Craig having any accidents. Kathleen suggested a couple of nice places for dinner, gave us directions to a tire store, told us when breakfast would be served and left us alone. We cleaned up and drove back to Clifton. We decided to splurge on dinner that night as we had a stressful afternoon, and had dinner at Mitchell’s and even ordered dessert afterwards.

We kept looking around for Morgan and Patrick, but figured they left town so they wouldn’t have to rescue us from anymore predicament we might have gotten ourselves into. We stopped at a pub and listened to music and then had a wonderful nights sleep in a soft bed with thick heavy covers.

NEDSIRELAND

Do you mean 'Clifden' or 'Clifton??'

It shouldn't have taken 3-hours to get from Shannon to Ross a'Veal, which, by the way is in Connemara or the region known as Connemara. I have played golf at Connemara Isles Golf Links, just across the causeway from Ross a'Veal.

Your 'Adventures in Ireland' title is appropriate. It appears you were testing Finnagle's first law: If anything can possibly go wrong, it will.

Marlie

Nedsireland,

Thanks for the correction on the spelling of Cliften. I knew that it was spelled that way, but kept typing Clifton for some reason. I went through and fixed it on my original report.

Well, it did take us right around 3 hours to get from Shannon to Rossevel, but maybe it was because we stopped for breakfast, then again a couple of times for sea sick pills, which we never found. Someone on the flight over said they had a real rough ferry ride and everyone was getting sick. Since I couldn't find any medication because all of the drug stores were closed on Sundays, I was glad the ride over was so smooth.

Well, I'm ready to post our next days events. I hope I’ve spelled everything right. I keep finding mistakes.

Robbyn

amelia

I love your report, Robbyn.

Marlie

TUESDAY

Breakfast was a traditional Irish breakfast again. Craig loved this, but I wasn’t a fan of the sausage and was getting tired of eggs so I got a thin pancake and fruit.

We took a walk along a path at the farmhouse then started off to town to search for the Tire Mart. Once there we found out they didn’t have a tire to fit our car. A new shipment was due in between 1 and 2. I could be worse I told Craig, what if the shipment wasn’t due in until tomorrow, or even the next day. Our spare would not take us far so we had no choice but to wait. We walked around town, found a library, used the internet and then had a long conversation with the librarian there. We had a coffee at an outside café, did some shopping and decided to go back to the tire place and hope that the right sized tire was in with the new shipment.

The delivery truck pulled in minutes after we got to Tire Mart. A half hour later, with a new tire on our car we were set to go. Someone from Fodor’s wrote about a beautiful drive through the Lough Inagh Valley so we got directions and were glad we did. The views were breathtaking. We just kept saying over and over again how beautiful everything was. The lakes, the mountains, the pine trees, it was all so striking, peaceful and quiet. We passed people cutting peat, I wanted to stop and take a picture, but figured I wouldn’t like someone driving by taking pictures of me working and so decided against it.

Sheep were everywhere; in the fields, at the side of the road and walking across the roads. We had to stop the car once when we came upon a sheep that was in the road just standing there. We sat in our car waiting for the sheep to move until a truck coming from the other way slowed down and honked his horn. This caused the sheep to run back into the field. Okay, so we are idiots.

We stopped in the small towns that we passed visiting a shop or two. I had seen a knitted cap just outside Cliften and couldn’t decide whether to buy it or not. Later I wished I had and looked for one just like it for the rest of the trip. I never found one.

Near Leenane we saw some plants growing at the side of the road and Craig thought they were giant rhubarb plants. I said they weren’t and so at the next shop we came to Craig had to ask the salesperson if he knew what they were called. The guy got out a plant book and found a picture of what Craig was talking about. He said they were called Gonorrhea. There was silence for a minute and then Craig said he didn’t think that sounded right and the man agreed. Nothing else was said. Anyway for the rest of the trip Craig had to point out every Gonorrhea plant we passed.

We had planned on stopping in Cong since we had seen the “Quite Man” but it was out of the way and Craig was tired of driving plus we had reservations in Doolin for the night so we made our way south.

On the way to Doolin we wanted to drive through the Burren, but got lost about 3 or 4 times. Once we ended up on a road that turned into a path and after awhile we saw a truck stopped in front of us. A farmer was dumping feed out for his cattle. I think we must have driven down a path in a farmer’s field. He probably thought we were nuts. For about the 5th time we asked directions and this time gave up on the Burren and just decided to go to Kilfenora.

Again someone from Fodor’s had written about a place they stopped at for dinner called Vaughan’s Pub and it sounded so nice we wanted to stop there. It was getting late and we were very hungry so we stopped in Kinvarra and had an ice cream along the way. I asked to use the bathroom and was told it was upstairs, and that I should be sure to mind the stairs. I wasn’t quite sure what she meant right away and had a confused look on my face. I decided to just say, “Okay.”

This was not our day for finding places; we got lost a few more times before finding Vaughan’s. Craig had looked up their menu on the internet before we left home and had his heart set on a cabbage and bacon dinner. Finally we found the restaurant and were so happy to get out of the car. The lady at the bar told us they weren’t serving food as they were having some construction going on. I couldn’t believe it. I told her we had come all the way from Wisconsin and how long we had waited to have dinner here. I let her read the passage I had cut and passed from Fodor’s to our trip notes about Vaughan’s. She read it and thought it was so nice, she called another person to come and read what someone had written about their place. (Tropo, this was from your post of “Did you have a favorite moment in Ireland”.)

Then she said to me, “Tell me this and tell me no more…are you coming back this way again? We will be serving food in about a week.” I had to tell her we wouldn’t be back this trip. She then told us about a short cut to Doolin, which turned out to be an even narrower road than we taken before and I was sure we were going turn up in another farmer’s field.

Much to my surprise we were on the right road and actually ended up at our destination. What a neat area, new and old homes, old castles, and dramatic views just as you come over the hill into town. When the ocean met the sky it looked like the edge of the earth. You could even see the Cliffs of Moher from town. Of course there were lots of B & B’s but also shops, restaurants and pubs. We got into town about 7:00, checked into Cullinans, our B & B which we enjoyed very much and went straight to Gus O’Conner’s for dinner. Craig was happy to see they had cabbage and bacon on the menu and I ordered a fish meal which was delicious. While we were eating we saw another couple that had stayed at the Man of Aran Cottage with us. We said hi and they said they were going south tomorrow too and figured we might meet up again during the week. It soon got pretty crowded and we couldn’t see the musicians so we decided to find another pub.

We talked with a couple outside of O’Conner’s for a while and they suggested a place called McCann’s. It wasn’t too far so we decided to walk. Someone was singing “Cockles and Mussels” as we walked in the door. We found a great table and sat down. One man was playing a violin, someone else was singing, another played a guitar and harmonica. It was great. I forgot my camera, only time I didn’t have it. I was sorry as I could have gotten some great shots.

Thistledew02

Robbyn

If I have half the memories of our trip to Ireland that you have already had I am sure to have a great trip. I can't stop laughing, Gonorrhea, too funny. Please keep writing I love your stories.

mexicobeachbum

I'm enjoying your trip report, thanks. You've hit some familiar chords with me. Our family did a three-week driving trip to Ireland last summer, and we hit some of the same spots as you. I'm glad you made it to Kilfenora, one of our favorite spots outside of Doolin. I may have been one of the people who mentioned Vaughn's. Sorry they were closed, it's a great place. Doolin is a neat little town, and much easier to visit, I'm sure, when you went there, rather than in the summer. Your stories about getting lost and having minor mechanical problems are familiar, too.
We liked McGann's and McDermott's across the street, as well. O'Connor's was too crowded when we were there, also.
I guess the best thing about the unplanned events, getting lost or some other diversion, is that you meet people you wouldn't have otherwise met, and they are often very kind and helpful. Keep up the good report!
By the way, the plant is called gunnera, and is a relative of the rhubarb plant. We have it growing in our garden.

Marlie

I'm glad you are enjoying my report. We really did have a wonderful time even with the little things that went wrong. I had about 4 pages of notes that I took from Fodor's while planning for our trip. Such good advice and referred to it the whole trip. I can't image going on a vacation without Fodor's help. Thanks again to everyone!

Okay Mexicobeachbum...what I'd like to know is does this giant rubarb plant taste like rubarb? Thanks for your post.

Marlie

WEDNESDAY

I think our best breakfast of the whole trip was at Cullinans. Again, Craig got eggs, sausage, and bacon while I got an omelet and fruit. We packed up and drove to the Cliffs of Moher. It was raining, cold and windy. It was also pretty cloudy so I guess we didn’t get the best view of the cliffs. We had a nice walk and then stopped at Doolin Craft Gallery. I was talking with the sales lady and told her how we had missed the Burren yesterday and so she gave us directions to the Dolman. So glad we didn’t go home without driving through the Burren.

Then to the airport again to pick up our duffel bag at Hertz. Thank goodness they had it, now we could be warm again. It was lunch time and we felt like a plain old hamburger and fries so we pulled into the McDonald’s parking lot.

We drove through Bunratty and were so happy we decided not to spend our last night there. Yes, it’s convenient to the airport, but when there is so much beauty in Ireland I just didn’t want to end our trip there. Adare was a nice town and we stopped to look around. We were on our way to Killarney and thought we had better get reservations so we called the Carriglea House and they had an open room. We then started our long drive south.

Killarney was a nice town, but a little too big. We walked around town, decided to have dinner at an Italian place and had a very good salad and pizza. It had stopped raining and so we walked around a little longer then went to our B & B which was very nice. Carriglea House was great; it’s a 200 year old home and felt very warm and welcoming. We stayed in an upstairs room in the carriage house which was off to the side. Our room had a separate sitting area with a T.V. Craig watched a movie while I feel asleep reading.

THURSDAY

After breakfast we started our drive to Kenmare. We stopped at Killarney National Park and took a walk in the woods. We climbed some rocks, got stuck in the mud a few times, then climbed a hill and spotted a mountain goat. We stopped at the top of Moll Pass to stretch our legs. Visited the gift shop, where Craig spotted some jars of Lemon Curd. We thought they would be great gifts and so we bought all they had.

As soon as we drove into Kenmare we knew found our favorite town of all. We just loved it. It would be the short of town we would move to if we every lived in Ireland. We had asked the lady that rang up all our jars of Lemon Curd if she new of a nice B & B in Kenmare. She told us about the Hawthorn House. So while Craig went to see if they had any rooms for the night I went to the post office/internet café. It was truly a “Tidy Town.” Kenmare had two streets lined with colorful shops. Hawthorne House was at one end of the two streets. The rooms were clean and nice, the bed could have been a bit softer, but the location was perfect.

Once we had unloaded the car we got back in again and began our drive through the Beara Peninsula. It had been raining off and on all morning but now the sun was out and we saw our first rainbow.

Again it was a beautiful drive. One thing I didn’t like about the roads in Ireland (besides the fact that they are narrow and I worried the whole trip if we would get in a head on collision) is that there are no shoulders to pull off onto to just sit and look at the scenery. There are far too little lookout points to stop at and most of the time there is someone behind you so you can’t just stop or slow down. We did find a picnic area and we stopped there to soak up some of the country side.

When we got to Ardgroom we decided to stop for lunch. We found a little pub called The Village Pub. We ordered a bowl of soup and sandwiches. It was a neat little place with a fire going, and only about 2 other customers inside when we walked in. I found out that a ham salad sandwich is not ground up ham with mayonnaise but sliced ham with lettuce, onion, tomato. All the soup we got was puréed. It’s really quiet good that way.

Anyway, it had really started raining pretty hard which had made the pub even more warm and comfy inside. An older couple came in and sat next to us, we chatted a while and then decided it was time to venture outside again in the wind and rain.

We drove through Eyeries, then onto Castletownbere. It was still raining, and I’d lost my umbrella that I had just bought the day before, so I pulled up my hood and walked around to look at some of the shops. He is in marketing for a grocery manufacturer and so he said he was going to stop at the Super Value and check out their products.

I wandered into a little book shop, found a couple of books and talked to the sales lady there. I told her what a cute town I thought Castletownbere was and what a beautiful area she lived in. She said most people miss this place as they either go to Dingle or the Ring of Kerry. I wanted to see the waterfall at Hungry Hill and so she gave me directions. She said the waterfall is the biggest in Ireland and was called The Horses Tall because of how it looks when it’s flowing.

We got to Hungry Hill but the road was closed because of the muddy roads. We were told we could see the waterfall from the road; we tried, but never found it.

We stopped at a cemetery, and then went through Healy Pass, which was pretty scary to say the least. I decided I didn’t want to go through Conner’s Pass after this. Yes, it was beautiful, but I don’t like riding on the edge of cliffs on a narrow path all that well. I couldn’t really enjoy the beauty when I felt like our car might go tumbling down a shear drop off at any time.

Back in Kenmare, we decided on Italian food again. We ate at Prego’s, which had a wonderful atmosphere, candles on the tables and scrumptious food. We walked around in the rain, stopped at a pub, listened to music and then walked back to our room for the night.

aggiemom

Loving this report - more please!

chatham

I ditto Aggiemom. Keep it coming!

hopingtotravel

So glad you got your coats back! That may not have happened in America. I left my raincoat on the X-ray belt when we left Dublin. Amazingly, 20 minutes later the stewardess on the plane brought it to me in my seat. Once you've been home awhile, the flat tire and the being cold memories will fade and you'll mostly remember how beautiful and friendly it all was.

LoveItaly

Hi Marlie, I have never been to Ireland but love books written about Ireland. Your report description is fantastic. And I note you two handled the various problems just fine. Good for you. And you lost your umbrella that you had just bought the day before, LOL. Oh yes, I can relate to that! Now I would have been screaching regarding the mouse - ick!

TravelerGina

Marlie: I'm loving your report as it brings back so many memories of my trip to Ireland eight years ago. We stayed with friends in Ennis, but also visited Galway, with stops in Ennistimon, Kinvara, Doolin, Listoonvarna (sp?) and the Cliffs of Moher. A trip to Kinsale included a stop in Adare, which we found to be one of the cutest little towns we visited. From your description of Kenmare, I wish we could have stopped there too.

We loved the pubs, the music, the scenery, the food, and especially the wonderful people!

Looking forward to the rest of your report.

Rachel54

Oh Robbyn! What a trip you had! You handled the pitfalls wonderfully. I fell off my seat laughing so hard at the Gonorrhea plant. My husband thought I'd lost it until I read it aloud to him. We both were wondering if maybe we'll see some Gonorrehea plants in Scotland.

MelJ

Having been to Northern Ireland last November and LOVED it (it's been about 4 years since I've been to the Republic), I am copying your report for our trip to the west coast, which I'm hoping to do next year.

This is great, Marlie, can't wait for more!!

Itallian_Chauffer

I'm loving this report. Also, am just too pleased that you also found Carriglea as much a gem as we thought it was. I'm always a bit reluctant to recommend places as different people have differing tastes, but I thought Carriglea was worth it. We are flying on American, next Fri., but I'm not worried about missing OUR connection, as the Boston to Shannon flight originates in Orlando. Can't miss that connection and shouldn't need to worry about getting 'bumped' in Boston!
Glad you didn't let a few bumps spoil your trip!
Bob