Irish Adventure Conclusion

After our first week in Ireland we headed out of Killarney to head up the coast to the Cliffs of Moher.

Our coach boarded a ferry to cross the Shannon River .

And when we got to the cliffs they were all fogged in and we couldn't really enjoy the view...so we headed to the Visitor Center for lunch and to explore the museum...

We knew we would not find our Eastern European name in County Clare...but my sister married and O'Dea and that name was featured - and we met some other O'Dea's there, too.

And then the fog cleared and we had a great walk along the cliffs...do you recognize them?  The Cliffs of Insanity from the movie

 The Princess Bride. Our guide made sure to mention any movies or series that were filmed along our route and we loved that !

Then it was on to Ennis and a Medieval Banquet...

in a real castle!  Greeted by our host who was SO good...

We had a toast with the Lady of the Castle, then entered the banquet...notice there is only a knife.  We drank the soup from the bowl..

had a toast with mead...

great entertainment...

and ate ribs, chicken, veggies...all with our hands!

A farewell of pipe music, too!

The next day we were off to a traditional Irish sheep farm -

We learned how the sheep dog was trained and watched him herd the sheep...

Then inside the thatched roof cottage for tea and scones...

A bit of rest by the peat fire...

And it was a great visit!

Then it was off to County Donegal and Derry - 

On the way we passed the castle of Lord Mountbatten, who was killed during "the troubles".

And everywhere, such beauty!

Donegal, where we saw how authentic Irish tweed is made...

then we explored the town, and we always find a cemetery.

The tombstones are quite specific...many of them giving the address of where the person lived.

Then it was on to Derry - or Londonderry - depending on if you were Irish or English...Catholic or Protestant.

We had a wonderful guide, who gave us the history, explained "the troubles" and the violence that the town experienced over the years before there was peace.  He had a Chinese mother, an Irish father, and he was Buddhist...and married to a Catholic.  He sends his children to the only integrated ( Catholic and Protestant ) school in the area because he feels that by learning about each other is the only way to keep the peace.

Our hotel was very close to the Peace Bridge and we walked over after dinner to walk around and explore.

The window depicts the ship Mount Joy that broke the famine during a long battle...and the guide told us there is a Mount Joy in Pennsylvania named after this ship - we know!  Not far from us !

We headed the next day to Inishowen Peninsula and Malin Head - Ireland's northern most point.

You can still see the chalk markings that told the women pilots ferrying planes during WWII

A camper tent on top of a car!

It was so peaceful there...

The northern most pub in Ireland...some of the Star Wars movies were filed here.

A wonderful old pub with great Irish Coffee

and John had hot chocolate with Bailey's Irish Cream!

The next day we headed to the Giant's Causeway formed by volcanic activity millions of years ago...

Such amazing sights!

A drive through the country side to Belfast...

We toured the old, divided section and stopped at the Peace Wall...

our guide provided us with markers so we could add our thoughts to the many there.

A very moving experience.

The next day we toured the Titanic Museum - amazing!

Very interactive with a lot of personal stories..

and one of the deck chairs.  A sobering visit.

But, we could not resist getting this shot!

We spent our last afternoon in Belfast exploring on our own. Of course, I had to find the Belfast Library...and we were actually a little lost looking for Belfast Cathedral, so we stopped in the library and the librarian gave us directions!

A very impressive Celtic Cross.

Our hotel was beautiful - and during "the troubles" the most bombed building in Belfast because that is where all the media stayed.  

Right across the street were these two very old pubs -

which made it the perfect spot for our last dinner of the trip.  Fish and chips and mushy peas ( but John got cole slaw, too) and of course -

a pint of Guinness!

It was an amazing trip, and I cannot say enough good things about our tour director and the great trip that AAA Member's Choice and Collette Tours provided.  While we love Viking Cruises, this was a great way to really see all of Ireland.

Thanks so much for coming along on our Irish Adventure!  Since we have been home we have been working on some projects and enjoying the summer.  Hope you are having a great summer - how did it get to be August already???

Thanks for stopping by Our New Vista - enjoy the month of August!