Tour of Ireland: Galway, Innisheer and Athenry

Traveling by train in Ireland was a little crazy in that to get to Galway from Cork by train we had to go back to Dublin. If I'd thought about it a little more, we probably could have taken a more direct route via a city to city bus. 

It was a gorgeous train ride just the same. On the way back from Cork to Dublin, we passed by this castle. It's Loughmoe Castle built in the 15th century for the Purcell's. Boy would I have loved to tour that place!

Then on the way to Galway from Dublin, we passed through Athlone. I would love to have gotten off here too. 

In Galway we stayed at the House Hotel and after the tiny room we had in Cork, we were a little nervous as we opened the door. This place was huge! We were pleasantly surprised at how much room we had. This place was also perfectly located. While not on the water, it was within walking distance to most places, including the River Corrib.

The first place we went was The King's Head. In 1654, this place was the home of Thomas Lynch, Mayor of Galway. During the Cromwellian War, Lynch lost his home and his mayorship to a guy named Peter Stubbers. Turns out, Stubbers was the guy who actually beheaded King Charles I of England. We had some Irish Stew and Guinness and it was delish!

Around the corner from our hotel is this street. It's called the Long Walk. It's a bit mislabeled as it's not really that long and there's no sidewalk but it's lovely to walk by the water. A little chilly too!

It's me and the Galway Girl. She represents the city's lively spirit, warmth and Irish Cultural heritage. She sits outside one of the local bars on a bench on High Street.

Lynch's Castle is a16 century fortified town house that is now a bank. You can go in during banking hours but you can't tour the whole building.

The Spanish Arch was built in 1584 as part of the wall the guarded the city of Galway. It's right outside the Galway City Museum.

The River Corrib is very fast moving, almost like rapids. The building is the Persse Distillery which is located on Nun's Island. By the end of the 1800s, it was supplying whiskey to fine establishments all over the world, including to King Edward and Queen Alexandra. It closed in 1911.

Galway Cathedral looks like it was built back in the 1800s. Nope. 1965. We went to Mass there and it was pretty cool to attend Mass not only at a different church but in a different country...with an Irish priest!

This area is Nimmo's pier which is a great place to walk along the Galway Harbor. This is the Mutton Island Lighthouse which was built in 1817 and decommissioned in 1977. That would have been cool to walk out there and check it out up close and personal. That would have been too far to walk though I'd have given it my best shot.

We took a tour to the Aran Islands and the Cliffs of Moher as it was the only way to really see those places. So we got on a big bus and drove out to Doolin. On the way we saw some cool stuff. This is Dunguaire Castle which was built in 1520 by the O'Hynes clan. Not that it was part of the tour but the castle was closed to tourists.

We were in Galway in April so we saw lots of baby animals like this little lamb. I call him Lambsy-Divey. These were sheep that were in people's yards as we drove through some of the towns on the way to Doolin. Others had cows. Right in their yards. By their houses. Too close.

This is the Muckinish West Tower House. There are tons of these castle like towers and structures all over Ireland. This one was built around 1450 and was a fortified residence of the O'Loughlin family.

From Doolin, we took the ferry to Inis Oirr (pronounced Innisheer). It's the smallest of the Aran Islands that relies on fishing and farming. There are only about 300 people that live on the island. Our tour guide was telling us that in the older days, the men would go to the "mainland" to find wives and bring them back to the island. Nowadays, they use Tinder.

Your options for touring the island were a horse and carriage tour, small bus tour, bikes or e-bikes or your feet. We chose our feet so we missed a few things. We walked around the island but didn't go up to the ruins. On the left is the O'Brien castle which was built in the 15th century. In the center is the watch tower and to the right of that is an old church, St. Caomhan's.

This looks like it's been here for a hundred years but no. It's the MV Plessy, an Irish merchant ship that was used to haul cargo in the 1950s. In 1960, the ship was thrown onto the rocks by the rough Atlantic waves. Luckily someone saw it and the crew was rescued.

If you want to live the quiet life, this would be the place. It's beautiful! But then you have the tour groups tromping all over the place, riding their e-bikes and invading your privacy.

As we were walking back to the dock, I saw this and thought it looked cool. I liked the island. I would loved to have gone into a house to check it out. We were only there for a couple of hours but we did have time to buy some Aran Island fudge. It was delicious!

After that, it was a boat tour around the Cliffs of Moher. You may recognize them as the Cliffs of Insanity and you'd be correct.

They rise out of the Atlantic Ocean about 390 feet. It was amazing! It was also very difficult to photograph as there were so many people on the boat, I was surprised we didn't list as EVERYONE came to one side.

After a quick lunch at a pub in Doolin (you guessed it, Irish Stew and fish & chips), we went back to the Cliffs of Moher for a view from the top! It was a completely different perspective and quite lovely.

This is another O'Brien's castle. It was specifically built as a platform for sightseers back in 1835. 

I think this was one of my favorite views. We got super lucky with the weather. No rain or fog. It was a beautifully clear day and we could see everything.

On our last day, we took a train ride to Athenry (pronounced Atten-RYE). It started as a Stronghold for the O'Mannin kings in the 1230s. This is the north gate or "The Arch" which is the only surviving gate of the original five. The original gate was built in the 1300s but it was rebuilt in the late 16th century.

One of the cool things about being there is they let you try on some stuff. That helmet was so heavy!

This is the actual castle. It's more like a fortress but people lived here. There was a wall around the city and then another wall around the castle itself. It was built in the 1200s. The door on the ground floor was added in the 15th century. The original door is that one on the second floor. I would imagine there was a ladder that could be pulled up to prevent entry in the event of an attack.

This was one of the defensive towers inside the castle walls.

Not far from the castle (but outside the castle walls) is the Priory Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. It was founded in 1240 by Meyler de Bermingham (who also built the castle). He is supposedly buried inside the priory.

Unfortunately, in 1423 there was a fire that destroyed the church and the priory. It was restored over the next twenty years. Then in 16th century, Queen Elizabeth dissolved all the monasteries. People are still buried here, like recent burials in the 20th century. The ruins are maintained today as a national monument. It would have been cool if we'd been able to go inside.

This is St. Mary's Collegiate Church in Athenry...or it was. Lord Bermingham built this church in 1240. Then it was destroyed by the Clanricarde family in the 16th century with only the chancel intact. It was rebuilt as a church again in 1828. The church held it's final services in 1968 after the death of its rector, Canon North Bomford. It has since been repurposed as the Athenry Arts and Heritage center. So we went in and there were all these costumes and things around. It's billed as an interactive museum but, it didn't appear you could just tour the church, so we left.

I think of all the places we visited, I liked Galway the best. I liked the vibe of the city. I would like to have gotten out of the touristy area so that we could find out where the locals eat but maybe next time. 

Once we got to Galway, the weather was wonderful. It was chilly walking along the river but it didn't rain anymore. The food was the same as in the other cities, but I think that was because we were in the touristy area. I would like to have followed the river a little farther up past the Galway Cathedral. There were castles that we could have seen had they been open. 

Definitely next time...because we WILL be back! 

Tour of Ireland: Cork & Blarney

Traveling by train in Europe is awesome. It's a great way to see the country.

You would never see this if you were on a plane!

Or this for that matter. Look at those clouds. Our train ride to Cork from Dublin was so cool. We passed through several small towns that all had some kind of old castle or cathedral that you could see from the train. 

We stayed at the Moxy which was right on the River Lee. This was the smallest room we had on the trip. There was enough room for John to walk around the bed and that was it. But, it was cheap and right on the river. And, the location in terms of walking around the city was perfect.

On our first outing in Cork, we walked around the city. The River Lee runs through the city so there are tons of cool bridges throughout.

This is at the top of St. Patrick's Hill. It was very steep but well worth the climb. From the top of the hill you can see all the way out past the city and into the mountains. The photo doesn't do it justice!

We wanted to go to Blarney Castle but we weren't interested in a structured tour. So, we figured out how to take the city bus! And we did.

Blarney is a village that's about a 20 minute bus ride from Cork. It's very cool and very old. The entrance fee includes walking around the gardens and into the castle. If you want to climb up to kiss the stone, you can do that as well but it's recommended that you tip the guy who holds your feet while you do it. We skipped the stone.

The original stone castle was built in 1210 but was destroyed. This castle was rebuilt in 1446 by Cormac MacCarthy. The castle was under siege during the Cromwellian War and eventually confiscated. In the 18th century, it was purchased by Sir James Jeffreys who was governor of Cork.

This is Blarney House built in 1874 by the Jeffreys family. I guess living in that castle wasn't very comfortable. While the house is on the grounds and you can walk by, you can't go in as it is privately owned.

The grounds were pretty cool. As we meandered around the grounds, we came across this little house. It had just started to rain (again) so we ducked inside and waited it out. It was a neat little place to relax and soak up the ambiance.

Also in Cork is Nano Nagle Place. I learned some things here. I had no idea who she was or what this place was, I just saw that it was a museum and decided to check it out. In the 18th century, Catholics were not allowed an education (who knew?). Nano's family was wealthy and sent her to France. She came back when her father died and decided to help the poor children by secretly educating them. And that's what she did. She dedicated her life and her fortune to helping teach and take care of the poor.

She also started a religious order called the Presentation Sisters. Their mission is to educate and care for the poor. There are several orders around the world today. Nano is buried on the site. It was super interesting. I love learning new stuff. Education is something you take for granted. I had no idea that it was forbidden to Catholics back in the day. 

I think this was one of my favorite museums in Cork. It's the Cork City Gaol (pronounced Jail). It opened in 1824 and replace another 100 year old jail that was part of the north gate of the city. It originally housed both men and women but in 1878 became a women's only prison. This is the gate into the prison.

This is the prison itself. Apparently the governor of the prison lived in the center section and then the cells went along both side. The museum is through the center and then to the left. The cool thing about this place is that in various cells, it gives you a history of some of the people that were kept here. I googled those people to see if they were real and they were!

One of the cells is set up for you to get a feel of what it would be like to be there. I put John in jail and closed the door. He did not like it at all. It was kind of creepy. There were no cots. You slept on a straw mat on the floor. People were put in jail for a myriad of crimes like stealing food or cloth. Most sentences were a few months up to a few years. If your sentence was more than seven years, you were sentenced to "transportation" which meant you were put on a ship to Australia.

This wing of the jail had been renovated in 1870 before it went to all women. It's bright and airy but still jail. Most of the outbuildings are still in ruins, which is too bad. I'm just glad they were able to save the jail itself and make it a museum.

Our next destination was the Cork Public Museum. That took us across the River Lee on a cool bridge called the Shakey Bridge and into this park. It was gorgeous! Fitzgerald Park is right on the river and had lots of paths to walk but watch out for the poop!

The Cork Public Museum started out as an International Exhibit in 1902 & 1903. It opened as a museum in 1910. Then in 1916, there was the Easter Uprising. Ireland has been fighting for its independence from Britain for a long time. Unfortunately, this time wasn't the one. There was a treaty with Britain but it didn't satisfy everyone who was fighting. This caused a Civil War which lasted until 1923. Due to all the military and political turmoil, the museum closed in 1924. They officially reopened in 1945 and have been open ever since. It's free and it's cool. There's a whole section on Irish Independence.

The Church of St. Anne is in the Shandon section of Cork and you can see the tower from all over the city. It was built in 1726. It is the oldest church in Cork in continuous use.

We walked over to the University College of Cork to see a museum that ended up being closed. The College was established in 1845 by Queen Victoria and is on 42 acres of land.

The campus was beautiful, though. Shortly after this it started to rain...again.

We hiked up that hill to check out Elizabeth Fort. The staircase was hidden on the main street. It just looked like an alley. If you weren't looking for it, you'd have missed it.

The fort doesn't look like much from the outside. It was built in 1601 to guard the city and was named for Queen Elizabeth I. In 1603, after Queen Elizabeth died, the people rioted and destroyed the fort in protest of British rule. It was later rebuilt as a "star fort", which was stronger than the original.

When you've been bad, you are publicly humiliated in the Pillory. I put John in here and he couldn't even look up. His head was forced to look down. In the 18th century, the fort was used as a staging area for women convicted of crimes and sentenced to "transportation", which meant being shipped off to Australia.

From the ramparts you get a great view of Cork.

Right next to the Fort (or close enough) is St. Fin Barre's Church. It's beautiful! It was built in 1870. It's famous for it's three spires that you can see from almost anywhere in the city.

As you walk the path around to the left this statue is in a corner. It's Jesus as a beggar. On the palm of his hand where the yellow flower is, you can see the marks from the nails. It's really cool.

I liked Cork quite a bit. The food was interesting. I tried something called "Collar of Bacon", which was a bacon-y section of the pig that was quite tasty. We had fish and chips, of course, and some really good Italian food as well as Thai food. 

The weather was cooler and rainier than Dublin but our hotel was in a perfect location. We were able to walk to everything except Blarney village. We were only here for four nights and then we moved on. I think I could have stayed one more night. There were a few things in retrospect that we could have done that we didn't.

Next time. Bye Cork! We had a great time!