I flew Delta business class to Ireland. I left from Atlanta (ATL) and flew to Dublin (DUB) by way of Shannon Airport (SNN) in Limerick. Ireland is really beautiful from the air.
Continue reading
Ireland
A Different Visit to Ireland
Author: Carla Kirby
Crannmor Country Guest House
Dunderry Rd, Trim, County Meath, Ireland
I spent my first night in Ireland at Crannmor Country Guest House, a Georgian house that was built in 1825.
Continue reading
Trim was the first town I visited in Ireland. It has a castle, old town walls, ruins of an abbey, a priory and the tower from an old hospital.
Continue reading
Trim Castle is beside the River Boyne in Trim, County Meath, Ireland. It is the largest Anglo-Norman (Cambro-Norman) castle in Ireland. It was built by Hugh de Lacy. He was granted the lands by King Henry II of England in 1172 for his part in the Norman invasion of Ireland.
Continue reading
I left Trim after breakfast. I was making my way to Leixlip. I passed through Summerhill and Kildare and had some lunch.
Continue reading
At the very top of my list of things I wanted to find when I was in Ireland was Leixlip Castle. It is not open to the public. The book The Follies and Garden Buildings of Ireland by James Howley describes the “fine gazebo which still stands in the grounds of Leixlip Castle, at the meeting of the Rye Water and the River Liffey.” So, I found where the Rye Water and the River Liffey meet and looked for the gazebo.
Continue reading
So… things didn’t work out the way I expected. I totaled the rental car. And the hospital…
Continue reading
Greenacres Bed & Breakfast
Kilteel Road, Rathcoole, County Dublin, Ireland
Greenacres Bed & Breakfast was a very comfortable inn in Rathcoole, one of the little villages around Dublin. It is convenient to Dublin, Leixlip, Castletown and some other places I was hoping to explore.
Continue reading
Sunday I met city kids with ponies, played rounders and was completely welcomed by new friends.
Continue reading
Monday morning, the car rental company came to pick me up with the new car. I thought it would be a huge deal, but it just wasn’t. Good thing I had bought the extra insurance!
Continue reading
Maple Leaf Guest House
Cork Road, Windgap, Dungarvan, County Waterford, Ireland
Maple Leaf Bed and Breakfast is on the Cork Road in an area near Dungarvan called Windgap. Windgap overlooks the estuary of the River Brickey, the Cunnigar, a 2 mile sandbar at the mouth of Dungarvan Bay, across to the lighthouse on Ballinacourty Point.
Continue reading
Lismore Castle is in the town of Lismore in County Waterford. It was in a decorating magazine years ago. I tore out the pages, so I don’t know what magazine. I just wanted to drive by and see it on the way to Swiss Cottage. It is beautiful and I spent longer than I had expected.
Continue reading
I left Lismore Castle, heading toward Cahir on an unnamed road that paralleled R668 heading into the Knockmealdown Mountains.
Continue reading
The Unnamed Road from Lismore met up with R668, the road that runs along the Knockmealdown mountains. The road climbed and climbed with beautiful views. The Vee is the steep switchback as the road descends. The Golden Vale, or Golden Vane is panoramic pastureland visible from the mountains.
Continue reading
I decided to drive to Cahir Castle along the ridge of the Knockmealdown Mountains. I had read about Grubb’s Monument, marking where Samuel Grubb was buried standing up overlooking the beautiful Golden Vale.
Continue reading
From the Vee, the switchback on R668 driving down the Knockmealdown Mountains, I drove through beautiful forests and valleys. In many places there are miles of old walls on the sides of the road. It was still early and I was in no hurry. I took various little roads, drove through a few small villages. Sometimes when the road forked, there were signs, but I was sure glad I had the GPS. I could take any little road I noticed. I passed beautiful lush fields, farms and cattle. There was remarkably little traffic.
Continue reading
Cahir Castle, County Tipperary, is one of the largest castles in Ireland. I visited it on the way to see the Swiss Cottage and I am so glad I did not miss it. It still has a keep, tower and defensive walls. The inner ward has a gatehouse and great hall.
Continue reading
Other than Leixlip Castle, I most looked forward to seeing Swiss Cottage. And it was not available to tour when I was there. But, I walked out to it.
Swiss Cottage is perhaps the finest example of cottage orné of the Romantic Movement.
Continue reading
Hollymount House
Upper Cahir Abbey, Cahir, County Tipperary, Ireland
Hollymount House was the most modern place I stayed in Ireland. It was very comfortable. Breakfast was huge and spectacular. And available earlier than many other places. The shower was superhot, once I learned how to heat the water.
Continue reading
I left Cahir early, on my way to the Cliffs of Moher. I went through Tipperary and Limerick on N18.
Continue reading
Driving down the M18 somewhere past Shannon, I saw something. Using Google Maps, I retraced my course and found it is the Belvedere Folly, the Gazebo at Dromoland Castle.
Continue reading
I drove through County Clare to the Atlantic Coast. I saw the countryside to the Atlantic, through Ennistymon, Lahinch and Liscannor.
Continue reading
If you are going to Ireland, you have to see the Cliffs of Moher. They are the Cliffs of Insanity in the Princess Bride movie.
Continue reading
The drive from the Cliffs of Moher to Doolin was beautiful. I drove down R478, Ballard Road, along the coast. I drove through Burren karst pavements, beautiful green fields, passed ruins and castles to Doolin Harbour.
Continue reading
Craggy Island B&B
Ardeamush, Doolin, County Clare, Ireland
I had a wonderful surprise in the morning at Craggy Island Bed and Breakfast!
After a day around the Cliffs of Moher, I had a beautiful drive along the sea to Craggy Island Bed and Breakfast. Everything was new. Breakfast was delicious. Bev O’Connor was so very hospitable. Her husband, Adrian O’Connor is a local musician. It was an excellent choice to explore Doolin’s traditional Irish music pubs and the Burren. Doolin Cave is also nearby.
Continue reading
I left Doolin early, making my way toward the Burren. In the morning mist, I could see a tower in the distance. I found the entrance to Ballinalacken Castle near the intersection of R477 and R479, near Lisdoonvarna, Fanore and Doolin in Killilagh parish, County Clare, Ireland.
Continue reading
I left the Doolin area and headed up into the Burren. I found a castle, abandoned houses, an old school and an old tomb or something.
Continue reading
Driving through the Burren in Ireland I saw an amazing phenomena. Cows that seem to grow fat on pastures that are mostly rock.
Continue reading
I made my way along the small bays of Galway Bay on R477. I saw Ballynacregga Castle and Finavarra Tower, another Napoleon Tower, this one with an oval footprint. The route drives between the beautiful ban and the solid limestone hills of the Burren. I also visited the little village of Kinvarra and its quay.
Continue reading
I left Doolin, wandered through the Burren and found my way to Galway Bay. I found Dunguaire Castle as I drove along the shore.
Dunguaire Castle is a tower house built around 1520 by the O’Hynes clan. It is near Kinvarra on the Galway Bay in County Galway, Ireland. It is named after the fort that was here before the tower house was built. The castle is small, with a 75 foot tower and defensive walls.
Continue reading
I drove through the Burren and along Galway Bay, then turned toward Shannon Harbor and the Grand Canal. Near Ardrahan I stopped to photograph a thatched cottage. I parked where it was a bit wider on the other side of the road. A woman came out and asked me to photograph her horse. It was one of the most wonderful things that happened on my trip. She showed me medieval ruins, farms and so many animals.
Continue reading
I drove through the little village of Ardrahan, through County Galway, County Roscommon and County Offaly. I saw more ruins and castles and crossed Shannonbridge, one of the oldest bridges still in use over the River Shannon.
Continue reading
I drove into Birr. The road ends at the walls of Birr Castle.
Birr Castle is the private home of the Earls of Rosse and family. It is not open to the public, but the grounds and gardens are.
Continue reading
There is a lot to see at Birr Castle, but I came for the telescope. Called the Leviathan of Parsonstown, it was the largest telescope in the world from 1845 until the Hooker Telescope was completed at Mount Wilson Observatory, California in 1917.
Continue reading
Birr Castle Gardens are open to the public. There are 120 acres with five miles of walking paths. Two rivers, the Camcor and the Little Brosna meet within the Castle Demesne walls forming a lake and waterfalls. An amazing display of rare plants and trees grows here in beautiful profusion. There are over 2000 different species of plants collected by the Earls of Rosse on their travels around the world or given to them by some of the most famous plant hunters.
Continue reading
Shannon Harbour is a very small village built where the Grand Canal meets the Shannon River. At one time it was a very busy area. If you descend from Irish Immigrants, your family likely passed through Shannon Harbour. Now much of it is ruins.
Continue reading
The Harbour Masters House
Shannon Harbour, Birr, County Offaly, Ireland
The Harbour Master’s House was built in 1806; just five years after the Kingdom of Ireland and the Kingdom of Great Britain were merged in the Acts of Union. It was built to house the Shannon Harbour Master and his family. Shannon Harbour was purpose built to support shipping on the Grand Canal which joined Dublin to the Atlantic, crossing Ireland to the Shannon River. If you descend from Irish Immigrants, your family likely passed through Shannon Harbour.
Continue reading
I left Shannon Harbour with all day to make it to Ballycastle. I took side roads and wandered around. I don’t know where I was. I’ve tried looking at these photos to see where I was.
Continue reading
Ardaghmore Bed and Breakfast Guest House
35 North Street, Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland
The Ardaghmore Guest House was built as a private home in the late 1800s. It is extremely comfortable and clean. The location is on the Causeway Coastal Route, ideal for visiting Giant’s Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge and Dunluce Castle.
Continue reading
Ballycastle is a small town in Northern Ireland on the Antrim Coast in the Glens Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town is right on the sea. You can see Rathlin Island and all the way to Scotland. This was where I stayed. I made day trips to Giant’s Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, the Old Bushmills distillery and Dunluce Castle.
Continue reading
Kinbane Headland is about three miles from Ballycastle in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on the way to Giant’s Causeway. The walkway leads along the cliff with views of a long narrow headland with castle ruins. The path is narrow and stepped. The view is beautiful, Rathlin Island, birds, flowers and ruins, and, of course, sheep.
Continue reading
I took Clare Road to Whitepark Road, the Causeway Road on the way to Giant’s Causeway from Ballycastle, Northern Ireland.
Continue reading
The Giant’s Causeway is a World Heritage Site in County Antrim on the northeast coast of Northern Ireland, three miles northeast of Bushmills, the oldest distillery in Ireland, four miles from Dunluce Castle, eight miles from Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge and thirteen miles from Ballycastle, where I stayed.
Continue reading
Dunluce Castle might be the most well-known castle in Ireland. It is a romantic ruin dramatically set at the very edge of the cliff on the Antrim Coast near Giant’s Causeway and Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.
Continue reading
Old Bushmills is the oldest surviving licensed distillery in the world. Sir Thomas Phillips of Bushmills was granted a royal license in 1608. I toured the distillery in Bushmills, County Antrim, Northern Ireland.
Continue reading
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is a white-knuckle crossing, a windy rope bridge from sheer cliffs over a deep chasm to an island that rises sheerly out of a turbulent sea. The chasm is a little over 75 feet deep and almost 66 feet wide. And it seemed more.
Continue reading
I got up early to drive from Ballycastle to Derry/Londonderry. I had the address for the Kingdom Hall, programmed it into the GPS and set off confidently. It was a beautiful drive. I saw a McDonalds! Coffee! No… Even McDonalds makes foul coffee in Ireland. I am not a coffee snob, but this stuff is really bad. Just give up and drink tea.
Continue reading
I drove to Belleek Pottery along A46, Lough Shore Road. It was a stunningly beautiful drive. This is where I saw the most adorable thatched house on my trip.
Continue reading
Arch House Tullyhona
59 Marble Arch Road, Florencecourt, Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Ireland
When I got to Arch House there was some kind of mix up. Someone who was supposed to have checked out didn’t, so there was no room. Rosemary Armstrong said not to worry. She called around while I had a good dinner.
Continue reading
Florence Court is an excellent example of mid-18th century Irish Palladian architecture near Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The setting is beautiful, in the foothills of Cuilcagh Mountain, overlooking Benauglin Mountain, watered by River Larganess and River Finglass. The house is well known for exquisite Rococo plasterwork and Irish furniture. And it wasn’t open when I was there.
Continue reading
I really wanted to see the Florence Court Heather House, a garden feature at Florence Court Estate in County Fermanagh.
Continue reading
So… My last day! I have to get on a plane and fly home the next morning. I had a different plan, but instead I decided I would try to do some of the things I missed on the days I slept through after the car wreck.
Continue reading
I went back around to the other side of the river, back to the castle gates and they were open!
Continue reading
Leixlip Castle Gate Lodge stands outside the gates. Although it looks Gothick, it was actually built in the early eighties. Before I walked in the gates, I took these photos of the Gate Lodge.
Continue reading
I was invited to wander around Leixlip Castle and take photos. These are photos of the castle from the outside.
Continue reading
The Front Hall to Leixlip Castle exemplifies Mariga Guinness’s style that “combined fantasy with history and the grand with the laid-back, all in a natural and seemingly uncontrived manner that belied the careful thought and planning behind it. Desmond’s views on restoration – that ‘a certain amount of shabbiness is an appropriate characteristic of an old house in any country, particularly Ireland'”
Continue reading
At least when I was at Leixlip Castle, this was set up as a dining room. This is the room called the Gothic room in Irish Houses & Castles. The book shows a dining room in the tower. This is one of the oldest parts of the castle. I love these windows!
Continue reading
A print room was a decorative scheme specific to Georgian times. Prints and engravings of pictures were pasted on the wall, then decorated with cut-out garlands, frames, festoons and ribbons. It was the first decorating style that was a hobby, usually for the lady-of-the-house.
Continue reading
Leixlip Castle is filled with beautiful and whimsical things. In the drawing room, the gigantic Georgian dolls house is used as a cupboard.
Continue reading
The stairs and hallway of Leixlip Castle are beautiful!
Continue reading
There are no photos of Leixlip Castle Kitchen in any of the books or magazines I have. Here it is!
Continue reading
Before I was invited to see inside Leixlip Castle, I photographed outside. The dogs led me around. Continue reading
The Garden Temple was built around 1920. It was made from salvaged pieces.
Continue reading
There are a few outbuildings surrounding Leixlip Castle. Here are more photos.
Continue reading
Where the the Rye Water meets the River Liffey a Boat House Gazebo stands at the water edge. Before the dam was put in, the water flowed through the bottom of the boat house. The top used to be comfortably finished inside, with a fireplace.
Continue reading
James Howley in The Follies and Garden Buildings of Ireland, one of the books I planned my trip with says “…the Wonderful Barn is… arguably one of the finest follies to be found in Ireland.” It is not on the tourist maps, but I had enough information to find it.
Continue reading
I visited Jehovah’s Witnesses Branch Office when I was in Ireland. I stopped to take photos and was invited in and shown around. They even invited me to stay for tea!
Continue reading
At the very end of my last day in Ireland, I went to the Skerries. It is a little seaside town on and around Red Island, a tied island sticking out like a thumb into the coast just north of Dublin.
Continue reading
Hillview House
Ballaghstown, Lusk, County Dublin, Ireland
I spent the last night at Hillview House B&B. I did not get there until late and I didn’t get any photos. The room was comfortable and very convenient to the airport.
Continue reading
So, the end of my trip. I drove to the airport, turned in the rental car, intact this time, and flew home. It’s hard to believe it’s been three weeks.
Continue reading
You drive on the left lane and the steering wheel is on the right. The speed limit signs are in kilometers. That is slower than miles, even if there are miles on your speedometer. Many roads are narrow with walls on both sides and signs are confusing or nonexistent. Get the best insurance!
Continue reading
I had a very hard time understanding anyone when I first got to Ireland. They were speaking English, but I was not understanding the accent. When I had to go to the Emergency Room, they called in an Indian doctor to “translate” for me, since I was not answering their questions right.
Continue reading
That smell? Like suntan lotion or a Pina Colada? That is gorse. When I opened the car windows, the fragrance was everywhere.
Continue reading
I had mixed experience with food in Ireland. Pubs were better than restaurants. At least for what I like to eat.
Most breakfasts were spectacular, when I was there to eat them.
Continue reading
The full name is Return of Owners of Land of One Acre and Upwards, in the Several Counties, Counties of Cities, and Counties of Towns in Ireland.
In the mid 1800s, land ownership was a disputed subject. Karl Marx lived in London. His writings influenced political thought and there was a lot of controversy over the distribution of landed property, the “monopoly of land.”
Continue reading
The Burren is a fascinating part of Ireland, a truly unique place. There are incredible panoramas with castles and ruins, dolmens, standing stones, forts and portal tombs,
You can’t see it, but under the Burren is networked with caves. Continue reading
Some see the Burren as just a barren, rocky wilderness. At first all you see is rock and maybe moss. But there is much more to the Burren. Continue reading
Someone pinned these paintings. I saw the kitchen first and I thought it might be the kitchen at Leixlip Castle. When I saw the one with the window, I was sure it was Leixlip Castle. It took some looking to find the artist. The paintings are by Hector McDonnell. Continue reading
I drove by an old school behind Ballinalacken Castle not far from the Cliffs of Moher. I wanted to learn more about it. Continue reading
When I stayed in Doolin, I heard bagpipe music. I stayed at Craggy Island B&B in Ardeamush. This is the home of musician Adrian O’Connor and his family. I spent a couple of days wandering. Traditional Irish music spills out of the pubs. Continue reading
The March/April issue of GO magazine from AAA has an article Land’s End – Discover the Islands of Ireland’s Western Connemara by L.A.Jackson.
It is about the islands off the west coast of Ireland. I saw them, but did not visit them. Continue reading
When I visited Ireland, I could not find out much about Samuel Grubb, whose beehive-shaped grave is near the Vee overlooking the Golden Vein. His home was just listed for sale. I learned more about him and got to see photos of the inside of Castle Grace. I also found an article about his mills. Continue reading
There are a lot of geographic features in Ireland. Areas vary from the granite, sandstone and limestone mountains to the karst area of the Burren, with limestone, shale and sandstone to the basalt columns of Giant’s Causeway. There are fields and fields full of sheep. And some of those fields are bogs. Continue reading
I was looking for something else and came across Thomas Conolly Papers from the National Library of Ireland. I have excerpted out the references to Liexlip Castle. Continue reading
I just found an old postcard of Leixlip. It was mailed from Dublin to the States in 1910 for a two penny and a half penny stamps. The postcard shows Main Street from the Rye Bridge where the Ryewater flows into the Liffey where Leixlip demesne Boat House is. Continue reading
I came upon an article about the family that lives at Tullynally Castle in Westmeath.
Continue reading
In the 1750s, Acheson Moore, an eccentric Irish Jacobite planted his demesne in the shape of a thistle. You can still see the outline on Google Maps. Continue reading
© 2024 Ireland
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑