Fare Thee Well, Ireland !

 



Tom and I arrived home on Friday night to warm, humid South Carolina weather. Guess I won't be wearing the sweater/coat that I bought in Ireland any time soon!

We set off on our trip to Ireland to be a 'back roads' discovery of the history, culture, and people, and we definitely accomplished that goal. With its quaint rural lanes, rolling green hills, and stunning mountain vistas and landscapes there can be few countries  as rewarding for driving back roads as Ireland.

The winding roads of Ireland run through lush pastures to wildflower studded ways to granite columns falling dramatically to the sea. Along their leisurely way they pass  by ancient stone circles, megalithic tombs, Celtic crosses, medieval castles, round towers, monastery ruins, and stately homes and manors. They provided us ample opportunities for a leisurely stroll in a pretty town or village and  refreshments in the prolific 'pub scene' that Ireland is famous for.

And whenever we needed any type of assistance there were always friendly Irish folk around who were more than happy to help with directions. wherever we went Tom and I found the Irish people to be warm, polite, talkative, friendly, charming, humorous, and just nice persons to be around. Tom and I are extremely delighted with having taken the trip and we've talked about doing the northern half of Ireland in the future - and maybe for a little bit longer than 2 weeks so we can partake of the abundant hiking trail system throughout Ireland.

Some of my thoughts and observations about our trip and Ireland:

I did not like the driving on the left-hand side of the road experience. Although I was only a passenger I became a little too familiar with the bushes, rocks and drop-offs that were only inches from my side of the car !

With a few exceptions, the roads in Ireland are really, really narrow ! Driving in Ireland is not for the timid among us !

NOBODY says "Top o' the Morning" ! But, they do say "Cheers" when saying goodbye !

Everyone recycles - in each place that we stayed, there was a small bin for compost/kitchen waste, a bin for recyclables, and a bin for "rubbish". Glass and metal are recycled at large central recycling areas at "petrol" stations or street corners.

There were bicyclists on every road, no matter how narrow the road or how bad the weather.

We discovered that "Ramps" mean "speed bumps".

Instead of "under contract" or "sale pending", signs said "sale agreed".

Ireland is heavily dependent on tourism. Tourists are made to feel welcome everywhere, and many houses are also B&B's.

Almost every pub has live music. As we walked back to our cottage the night we attended the concert, we heard live music each time we passed a pub, and there were a lot of them !

 

Until our next adventure trip - CHEERS !