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Enniskillen and Derry 21st and 22nd May

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 Hi all We have had a great stay at Innishmore Hall (the Carriage House) and will be leaving for a trip around the coast to Belfast tomorrow. The countryside around the property is lovely and very quiet, we have enjoyed the local food, including at the lodge beside Lough Erne on our first night. We had a good explore of Enniskillen town on Thursday, including the old Castle and Castle Coole nearby.  Castle Coole Today we took a drive north to Derry, the 2nd largest city in Northern Ireland, and probably the city to have been most impacted by the troubles, including the Sunday Bloody Sunday massacre. After a walk across the Peace Bridge, then back again because Norm got the wrong side of the Foyle River, we entered the lovely old walled city.  We passed the magnificent Guild Hall on the way to the city gate then climbed up on the wall to walk around the town Of course our day wouldn’t be complete without a Cathedral visit! This was followed by a nice lunch at a local cockt...

Galway to Enniskillen - 20th May

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 Hi all We said goodbye to Galway today and travelled through County Mayo then along the west coast to Donegal Town.  First stop - a lovely pub right in the centre of town. McCafferties. G Seafood Chowder of course for Holly and Norm! Then we explored the town and its small but well preserved medieval castle. Then it was time to journey across the border to Northern Ireland for our stay for the next three nights at the Carriage House at Innishmore Hall, just outside Enniskillen. We arrived to find a perfect cottage in the grounds of the Hall - in some beautiful countryside. We are heading back towards Enniskillen, beside Lough Erne for dinner. More reports on County Fermanagh tomorrow. All our love from the travellers ❤️🍷🧳

Galway, Ashford Castle, Connemara and Moher - 18th and 19th May

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 Hi all We have had a busy few days in and around the beautiful West Ireland city of Galway - the best of Ireland for us so far. Yesterday we had a couple of hours to walk around the town before lunch, with a cathedral and monastery just a few minutes from our apartment. The town is very quaint with many interesting nooks and crannies, with some buildings going back to the Spanish days of 14th After a stop for coffee we headed off north of Galway for our special treat, a lunch in the Drawing Room of the Ashford Castle. A very memorable occasion, and Norm didn’t even complain when the bubbles were 36 Euro a glass! After lunch we took the long road back around the Connemara loop road, part of the wild Atlantic way, through the lovely village of Clifden, amongst others. Today we ventured south of Galway towards the famous Cliffs of Moher, again using the Wild Atlantic Way. The weather did us no favours as it was pelting down most of the day, anyway we preserved. Great castle shot out ...

Ring of Kerry, and the castle(s) road to Galway 16th and 17th May

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 Hi all Yesterday we took the long drive along the Wild Atlantic Way around the Ring of Kerry. Even though the weather was a bit mixed, overcast with the odd sunny spot, the rain mainly stayed away. The trip is definitely worth the effort with some stunning cliff top and coastline views. We had a welcome stop for lunch, of course, along the way. Holly may well be becoming a seafood chowder addict! After the long trip back we put our feet up and took the chance on fish and chips for tea from the local food truck down the road from the cottage. No disappointment there - excellent locally caught fish. Today we said farewell to Kinsale and headed North West towards Galway - with a few Castle stops along the way. Morning tea was taken at the old town of Cahir, castle included. Then we proceeded to The Rock of Cashel - one of the oldest castle (and former cathedral) complexes in Ireland. It was windy and grim which really set the scene for the visit - magnificent. The cathedral would hav...

Kilkenny, Waterford, Kinsale, Cobh - 14th and 15th May

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 Hi all, We set off south from Dublin yesterday, with a coffee stop and castle visit at the medieval town of Kilkenny. The 11th/12th century Castle was very well preserved and well worth a visit.   Then we were off to Waterford for great lunch at the Tower Hotel and a long awaited catchup with Norm’s Auntie Caith, cousins Theresa, Siobhan, Stephen and Second cousin Vicki (now 37 a bit older than the last time Norm met her at age seven). They gave us a great Waterford welcome, and a great send off towards our final destination of Kinsale. We were very happy to find our lovely Lobster Cottage (with the blue door) - home for the next three nights. Nice view just across the road: This morning we took a short one hour trip to the port of Cobh (“cove”), which was the last place the Titanic left from in 1912, plus the port that many Irish embarked from in the mass migrations of the 19th century. The town is well past its heyday, very quiet now, but boosting a magnificent Cathedral as...