To Ireland and Back

Our trip to Ireland was all that we expected and more. We were able to see and do a lot of things. Our traveling companions, Don and Katrina Hines, were so much fun to be with. They made our trip that much more enjoyable. Thanks guys for going with us! Ireland was beautiful! It's so different than the states. It was so green. The countryside consisted of rolling hills, rock fences dividing properties, lots of quaint little villages, and lots of sheep. We also saw parts of Ireland that were rugged and mountainous with crazy narrow, winding roads. The weather was cold and rainy, but we did have a few sunny days. The light rain was never enough to hinder us from doing anything. Our accommodations were great. The townhouses were on a beautiful piece of property with a lot of cool stone structures and walls. The resort also had an old castle and a beautiful old manor house where people could also eat and sleep. There was also a golf course on the resort where this year's Irish Open will be held. Well, I could go on and on about our trip. But instead I'll post some pictures for you all to enjoy. (Caution: There's a lot of them) .

Day One: Traveling. Notice our green Ireland getup.

Day Two: We spent touring the grounds of our resort, relaxing, and playing games in the manor's library while drinking Irish coffee and hot chocolate

Day Three: We saw the Blarney Castle, kissed the Blarney stone, drove through the city of Cork, toured the small fishing city of Kinsale, and saw the south eastern coast of Ireland called Old Head.





































Day Four: We drove through the city of Killarney and saw a beautiful cathedral. We went on a carriage ride through the state park. On the grounds of the state park was a beautiful old manor house and chapel. The scenery at the park was beautiful. We saw lakes and mountains and waterfalls. Later that day we drove through part of what's known as the Ring of Keary where TJ drove through the mountains on some very winding, narrow roads. We were able to see the more rugged, mountainous countryside of Ireland.






Day Five: We drove to the western coast of Ireland to see the famous cliffs of Moher. After seeing the cliffs we spent the rest of the day driving around seeing more of the countryside. We found another castle to tour, saw lots of sheep, and saw some mountains covered with limestone.
















Day Six: We spent all day in Dublin. Dublin was a very unique city. There was a lot of history to see. We went to the famous post office where the Irish revolution began. We walked around Trinity College. Don and TJ were looking forward to touring Trinity's famous library. There was a cost to tour it and they couldn't take pictures, so they decided not to. We saw the Dublin castle. We tried to go into the old city prison, but we got there after it closed (much to Don's dismay). We walked into a pub where they were playing traditional Irish music. But, when we found out they didn't serve food, only drinks, we had to go upstairs to find some dinner. We ended our evening in Dublin doing some souvenir shopping.

Post Office .............................................................................................................Trinity College



























We got around the city in the tram. It would have been to crazy to try to drive.














Day Seven: After a very busy week. We all decided to spend our last day relaxing around the townhouse and manor. The guys did some swimming while Katrina and I sat by the poolside reading our pregnancy magazines. We took some more pictures of the grounds and went into town to eat some pizza. We spent the rest of the evening playing games.

Time to go home: Our day began around 3:30 in the morning. After a long day of car travel and air travel and sitting in airports we got home around 10:00pm Virginia time. Which was actually 3:00am Ireland time. So yes, we were up for about 24 hours with a few hours of sleep here and there on the plane or in the airport. Needless to say, we were so glad to make it home and sleep in our own beds.
We praise the Lord for a great trip full of memories. We also thank the Lord for the safety He gave to all six of us (including little Ariana and Kate).

Here are a few more pictures of what you might see along Ireland's countryside: