Experiencing the Ring of Kerry- and what does weather have to do with it?

On May 15, we boarded a coach bus for a tour of the Ring of Kerry.  The weather was not very promising-- grey, overcast, intermittent rain.  We missed some of the views, but came away with an appreciation of the history and beauty of the place and the people.  I'll ask Tom to post a video of what we all agreed was the highlight-- a demonstration by a sheep farmer of the skills of his herding dogs.  Actually, the video is more of a lesson in all the different kinds of sheep there are.

Today's weather is beautiful, and we're hoping it holds in Galway-- a trip to the Cliffs of Moher is in the works if it's not like yesterday.

Riding the Rails to Galway

Today is our longest rail trip of this adventure.  I think the trip if driving from Killarney to Galway is less than 80 miles, but because there is no direct route, there are 3 legs of the journey:  Killarney to Mallow:  Mallow to Limerick Junction; and now Limerick Junction to Galway.  All told, over 4 hours.

Christi and Scott are wisely recharging:  John's doing something electronic; and Lilli is reading her travel guide on Galway.

Reunion Complete

We left the Bonnie country of Scotland this morning in a slight drizzle and flew above the clouds in some very nice sunshine back to Ireland.  Arrived to rain and very strong winds.  Made for an interesting landing.  Our thanks to the pilot of Aer Lingus.  Took a quick taxi back to the Garnish House and walked down the street for a bite to eat and a drink. I have taken a liking to Irish whiskey or tea. Met up with John and Lilly shortly there after and have been talking ever since.

Nuff said!

Scotland with Rabbies

Jude, our tour guide says it's not Rabies, Rabbi's, but the Scottish version of Robbie after the poet Rabbie Burns.

Jude is 5' 2 1/2" very important. She gave a four part story of Mary Queen of the Scotts- told as we traveled to Loch Lomond, Callendar for lunch at Mohr Bread cafe, Doune Castle and finally Stirling Castle.  She was colorful and a very impressive multi tasked- kept our attention as she told stories while navigating traffic, roundabouts and still managed to wave at every tour driver we passed.

Photos will follow.
Christi... of the Scotts

Ireland and Scotland

What are my impressions? Two countries with a rich and ancient cultural tradition. Countries with a fighting spirit of desire for their own freedom and independence. Hard work and love of life as witnessed by one of our Dublin cabbies--holding a seemingly mundane occupation but who has seen more of the United States than I have, traveling the country in a motor home. He's been in 31 states and fixing on increasing his total to 33! The Irish and the Scots don't need superpower status to be proud and self-confident nations. They are direct and friendly, and with the exception of one unhappy tour guide, never afraid to ask how they can be helpful. The big cities like Dublin, Cork and Edinburgh are frenetic with activity. Getting directions can be a little general for an American's taste, but you get to where you want to go eventually and have an adventure in the process. Pedestrian crosswalks are awful, even terrifying but you can certainly test your courage. Food is local and every nationality and cuisine you can think of. The Irish and Scots love their stout, beer, whiskey and Scotch and they love a good story--usually exaggerated for effect--and a good laugh. But never make the mistake of thinking them unsophisticated. They are proud of their writers and poets, cynics and wits and are more culturally self-aware than any other nation I have visited.

Tom and his Guinness

I wanted you all to know that Tom has had his share of Guinness.  Here's the documentary evidence.

At the last stop of the day today, though, he decided that he was, after all, in the home of Murphy's Stout, and he should try at least one.

Trinity College continued

We really enjoyed our Alex-led tour of Trinity.  The last stop was at this sculpture, of which I believe there are 4 on distinguished campuses all over the world, including the Vatican and UC-Berkeley.  It's a sphere within a sphere, and there are multiple interpretations of its meaning.

Alex left us at the entrance for the Book of Kells exhibit, which is almost as much about monastic life and the history of communication as it is about the book, which is actually in 4 volumes; one for each of the books of the Gospel.  We saw 2 of them on display (temperature and light controlled, in a case that goes into the floor each night like our Declaration of Independence; only 2 are on display at any one time for security purposes.

The exit for this exhibit brings visitors directly to the Long Hall of the Old Library at Trinity.  I've always admired the beauty of the Library in photos, so to see it in person was quite a treat.

Dublin: Sunday Mass and Trinity College

The stamina of the Empty Nesters minus Two was tested on Sunday; and they passed with flying colors (more later about how we felt on Monday!!!).  We started with breakfast at Sandymount Hotel, and then walked to St Mary, Star of the Sea for 10am Mass.  It was the Family Mass, and the children's choir was outstanding.   That's Tom with the blue backpack.

After Mass, we walked to stop #14 on the CityScapes HopOnHopOff Bus Tour and boarded.  We got off the bus to visit Trinity College, but stopped at the VAT bar to get our complimentary Guinness.

On to Trinity, where we were talked into a student-led 35 minute tour and introduction.  It was a good decision-- lots of information in a short time, and Alex is a pretty impressive young man.  Big takeaway-- almost none of the architects was paid for their work in designing the buildings of the old campus
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Day One

We arrived at Dublin Airport about 8:15am Saturday morning just slightly bleary-eyed, which may have been a blessing as we went immediately to the endless winding queue to be admitted to the country with all the other non-EU residents (John and Lilli will breeze through the other line!). The agent checking us in said, "There can't be too many Kellys in Minnesota."  If he only knew....

We stopped at the official information booth and asked about the best way to reach our hotel (Sandymount Hotel.). There we were advised that with 4 of us, it might be more cost-effective to take a cab.  Our cab driver gave us an annotated short tour of the city center (well-annotated, as you might guess) which might not have been more cost-effective, but was definitely more colorful.). We asked for advice about a local pub, and he suggested Paddy Collins in Ballsbridge.)

We dropped off our luggage, and headed out to Paddy Collins on foot (at about 11:30am) for our first Guinness of the trip....

And They're Off!

We had a little trouble getting this photo posted-- not a lot of wi-fi available during flights.  But here we are after boarding the Atlanta to Dublin flight.  The flights went well; we watched lots of movies and, unfortunately, didn't sleep much.  It's time for this blogger to hit the hay--more later,

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Ireland and Scotland in 2017

And so it begins...we are now 37 hours to departure time and the house seems to have calmed.  The Twins are playing in the background and the bags are set out ready to pack.  Who knows what adventures lie ahead for the "Empty nesters minus Two plus Two".  Only time will tell.  We hope and anticipate that our friends and family will follow our antics as we traverse the foreign yet inviting lands of Ireland and Scotland.  Bidh mi 'gad fhaicinn (I'll be seeing you-Scottish)