Ireland in pictures
it has been quite a while since I have posted any updates; I promised myself I would take some time tonight to ftp some photos to my web site and post them to my journal so that everyone could see what we’ve been up to lately!
we are still living in Dublin of course, and have been taking every opportunity to tour the surrounding countryside. During August we took a trip to Northern Ireland; I stayed in Belfast for one night and then met up with the rest of the family in County Antrim (we stayed in Bushmills, where they make Bushmills Whiskey at the oldest licensed Whiskey distillery in the world) for the rest of the long weekend. Some photos from that trip:
a rainbow over the coast of Ballycastle, Northern Ireland. In the bottom right hand corner of the picture you can see the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.
a path along the cliffs leading to the aforementioned rope bridge.
in early September my parents came to visit us for two weeks; for the first week of their visit we took a trip to County Galway on the west coast of Ireland. We stayed at a 150 year old farmhouse (in Ireland it is quite popular to rent a vacation house for a week or two) near Headford, close to the border of County Mayo. Some photos from that week:
Connemara. As you can see, Connemara is a very beautiful part of Ireland. I was fortunate enough to capture three swans in that photo.
the family on a beach near Roundstone.
the cliffs of Inis Mór. My father and I took a day trip to Inis Mór, the largest of the Aran Islands, where we went to Dún Aonghasa, a well-known fort constructed in the Iron Age several thousand years ago. The fort is basically a stone construction right on the edge of the cliff (it forms a half-circle around the cliff face which then drops into the sea). It was quite an amazing thing to experience.
the chevaux-de-frise surrounding Dún Aonghasa. You can see here jagged stones placed several thousand years ago to slow potential attackers from reaching the fort (these were especially effective against those on horseback).
finally, here are some photos from life in and around Dublin:
me, Callum and the guinea pig. Taken at Glenroe Open Farm in County Wicklow.
swingin’. Similarly taken at the Glenroe Open Farm, which also featured a good sized playground for children (not to mention a nice walking trail with a SECRET GARDEN).
snails. Okay, if you must know, there are a ton of snails in Dublin; after a rainy day (and in Ireland most days are rainy days) tons of snails come out of the woodwork to crawl around willy nilly. At any rate, one day Callum and his minder walked up and down our street collecting as many snails as they could find; they ended up finding over 30 snails (not to mention a few slugs) which they then deposited in our front yard. 20 minutes later and the snails had all disappeared – strangely enough they all took off (relatively speaking – I suppose it was more of a meandering off than a taking off, these are snails we’re talking about here!) in the same direction. That would of course be the direction away from Callum and his minder.
that’s all for now!
Wow! The kids are growing up so FAST!! They are so beautiful 🙂 It sounds like you all are having a wonderful time!
Have you all had an opportunity to get out to the Ring of Kerry? I’d love to see pictures of you and the family up at the Ladies’ View, or something. 🙂
we did do the Ring of Kerry a few months ago – unfortunately I don’t recall the Ladies’ View, so I don’t think I have any pictures from there. I will try to upload some good scenery pictures from there however – it was really beautiful!
That’s where my ancestors are from. 🙂 My dad’s side of the family is originally from Cork, while my mom’s maiden name is McGillicuddy — the family for whom McGillicuddy Reeks are named.
I’ve seen pictures. I really want to travel there someday.
Those cliffs rock. I hope to get back to Ireland again and see more of it (like cliffs and stuff) than Dublin and the bit around the city I saw.
Bushmills rocks. I got a 21 year old bottle for a celebration at work. Very smooth.
Oh, and snails rock. You should edit the photo to do a count like I did in:
But not miss all the snails (like the one on the right). Btw, I did not collect the snails, I noticed them all there next to my driveway one morning when getting into my car (or getting out, I don’t remember).
Fabulous. Ireland is so bloody scenic. 🙂 All of my photos from Irelend are on film, I don’t know where they are, and I don’t know what they are of anymore. 🙁 Hooray for the digital age, where at least it’s easy to name your pictures. 🙂
Very cool! It sounds like you are having a good time over there.
We took a trip to Southwest Ireland in 2003. My favorite was Dingle and the Dingle peninsula. I’d love to rent a house out there overlooking the cliffs and ocean. 🙂
Jesus, you all are so damn cute. Glad you’re having fun and thanks for the update. 🙂