We awoke Sunday to another cloudless morning.  Does it ever rain in Ireland anymore?  We did actually get a shower in mid-afternoon, but it was sunny again by dinner time.

Today we drove north to Clifden for the day.  Along the way Elaine yelled at me to stop, turn around, and go back to take a picture.  Obedient as always, I did.  I must say the view she had seen was certainly picture worthy and may turn out to be the best picture(s) of the trip.

CLICK PICS TO ENLARGE

At Clifden we first drove the Sky Road high above the town before returning to the town center.

On the Sky Road

 

 

All along the picturesque High Street (Main Street), stores had set up offertories to Jesus.  Good religious people like we are, we had no idea why.  Elaine chatted an older gentleman setting up one of the more eleaborate displays to find out what was up.  It was to celebrate the Feast of the Sacred Heart and/or the Feast of Corpus Christi or something to do with that (as those days are usually Thursday or Friday.

“The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is celebrated on the Friday after the octave (eighth day) of the Feast of Corpus Christi. The traditional date of Corpus Christi is the Thursday after Trinity Sunday, which falls one week after Pentecost Sunday. Thus, the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus falls 19 days after Pentecost, which is seven weeks after Easter.”  Huh?  How obtuse is that

Anyway, there is a procession from the church through town and a blessing at one of the displays before a return to the church for the benediction.  We watched the procession.  (Interestingly, the similar procession in Galway itself, we found out later, was held several hours earlier than usual so as not to interfere with a scheduled celebration for Galway’s successful Rugby team victory.  (Rugby first, God second, I guess.)

 

 

 

 

After stopping at a couple of beaches, we headed home through Roundstone, a picturesque town, where we ran into a shower.  We parked and had a beer in a pub and checked out the little Sunday market, but it was diminished by the rain.  Then it back to Galway.

After a rest (and nap, for me) we walked down the Salthill Promenade for dinner at the Black Cat, a tapas restaurants that had good reviews.  It was excellent!  We shared four dishes: gambas (tiger prawns and chorizo in a delicious broth), fried calamari rings, beef cheeks (a first for us), and pork belly.  We also got delicious grilled bread and a nice bottle of Cotes du Rhone.  We both had (no sharing here!) a warm brownie with chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream for dessert.  It was good enough that we booked for tomorrow night as well as there were other tapas choices that we want to try.

Friday was our last full day in Dingle.  We drove out via a back road to the far end of Slea Head with the idea of having lunch at Tigh T P, a pub right on little Ballydavid Harbor, which was supposed to open at noon.  We stopped at picturesque Brandon Creek for a look see at a favorite spot.  It is from here that St. Brendan and other monks supposedly began their voyages in little one-man sailboats, sailing to America, Hawaii, Australia, and other places back in 535 A.D.  Remember, the Irish drink a lot.  Listen to Christy Moore sing of Brendan’s Voyage here.

 

 

 

 

 

Then it was on before noon to Ballydavid to be first in line for lunch.  We met two women from Alberta who also came for lunch.  Noon came and went.  12:15 . . . 12:30.  The pub door was open but the bar stools were on the bar.  We left at 12:35 with no sign of anyone opening for lunch.  We went to Ventry to eat at a little seafood restaurant, but it was packed to the gills.  So we went to the pub of Paddy O’Shea (Páidí Ó Sé in Irish), the late, great Irish footballer.  It had four tour buses in the lot.  Not going in there!  So it was back to Dingle where we had a nice lunch on the end of the new pier.

Dinner was at home and very simple – salad and toasted cheese sandwiches.  We then planned a quick stop at the Dingle Pub for a touch of music and sad goodbyes to Tom and Susie.  We stayed longer than expected, and then we ventured down to O’Flaherty’s where we met the same two women we had met at Ballydavid.  We got talking and drinking with them while listening to Fergus O”Flaherty sing and play his instruments – various fiddles, a flute, an accordion, and the bogdan.  Next thing it was midnight and we were still there, happily chatting and pleasantly over-served.  So much for a quiet night!

On Saturday morning we were packed and out the door by 9:00 despite our transgressions of the night before.  It is about a 3.5 hour ride to Galway, just bypassing Limerick via the new tunnel under the Shannon River.  We had time to kill before we could check into our B&B in Galway, so we stopped in Kinvarra, a pleasant little town on Galway Bay, for a look in Dungaire Castle and a nice lunch in the Pier’s End Pub – Elaine had excellent mussels and I had a delicious cold seafood platter.  It was especially fun because lots of locals were in the pub with their kids all dressed up after celebrating their first communion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Galway we checked in at Marless House, our B&B just a few yards away from Galway Bay in the Salthill section of Galway.  Salthill has a long seaside promenade and is filled with restaurants, amusement arcades, a Ferris wheel, and rides like the Twister.  It is very reminiscent of Revere Beach in the 1960’s but without a roller coaster.  We were lucky on a Saturday night to get a table at the Fisherman, a seafood restaurant that was good enough for us to make reservations again for Tuesday night.  Elaine had monkfish and shrimp; I had a very good halibut.  I started with delicious Gigas oysters from Galway Bay while Elaine’s starter was squash soup.  We split a nice chocolate ganache with ice cream for desert.  Then  it was time for bed as we were badly in need of sleep after our late night on Friday.

By the way, the weather continues to astound us, and today was the warmest day yet.  The forecast looks promising for the days ahead although with showers predicted for today, Sunday.

Day 15 was our last day in Dingle.  Info and pictures will be posted in a combined Day 15 & 16 post tomorrow from Galway.

So, it’s Thursday, and the forecast called for rain.  It was certainly cloudy, but the day went by without a drop and we even had some afternoon sun.  We lazed about this morning.  The fresh strawberries I bought yesterday were delicious with my yogurt and granola.  Elaine had her usual morning walkabout and stopped by the Post Office to mail our token post cards to family.

We packed a picnic lunch, and, hoping for the best with the weather, headed out on Slea Head Drive for a picnic.  There are not a lot of spots with picnic tables, but there are two stone ones on the bluff overlooking Coumeenoole Strand (beach).  Scenes in Ryan’s Daughter, David Lean’s 1970 film were shot on this beach in 1968-69.  On a hillside nearby the fictional village of Kirrary was created as the main set of the film.  Nothing remains of the village today.  Oddly, the nearby Tig Slea Head, a combination gift shop, café, and museum of Ryan’s Daughter pictures, seems permanently closed.  We had our chilly picnic on one of the stone picnic tables.  It wasn’t that cold, but the wind made it seem so.

CLICK PICS TO ENLARGE

 

 

 

Next we drove back to Ballyferriter, the filming base for the next Star Wars movie.  You cannot get near the site, but we went for a walk on the long and mostly deserted Smerwick Strand.  The wind wasn’t bad here, and we spent some time looking for interesting rocks and sea glass, without much luck, I’m afraid.  This is the site for the annual Béal Bán horse races on the sand which we attended on our last visit.

 

 

Then a pint with Tom and Susie and back to the house for a nap.  Dinner tonight was a return visit to the Chart House, my personal favorite.  All the seafood except salmon is locally caught.

Elaine: Crabmeat and Shrimp starter; monkfish main; a decadent chocolate ganache dessert.
Joe: Cromane Mussels starter; delicious Hake main; Passion Fruit Crème Brûlée dessert.

 

 

 

After dinner we stopped briefly for music at the Dingle Pub and at O”Flaherty’s before heading home to bed.  Due to threat of rain (it didn’t happen), we drove into town for the first time.

Here’s a video I shot in the Dingle Pub featuring Richie O’Brien singing “Sean South”.  Excuse the bad ending.  The password to access is “dingle”.

 

The weather continues to be very cooperative.  Nice sunny skies with lots of big fluffy white clouds.  No sign of rain.  We planned a quiet day in town with a nice lunch somewhere and dinner at home.

First order was the ten minute drive up to the top of Connor Pass (An Chonair in Gaelic) to snap some pictures.  Then we returned to town to get postcards, stamps, and makings for dinner at home tonight.  And we also picked up our pants that we had dropped yesterday with the washing ladies.  Dinner will be lamb sausages with potatoes and a veg.  Sounds simple, but it is actually a meal I am much looking forward to.  We buy the lamb with rosemary sausages from Kennedy’s Butcher Shop.  Mr. Kennedy was there and I told him I had come back all the way from Arizona to have his sausages again.  He said that since we come so far, the sausages were on him.  Only in Ireland!  We also bought Maharees potatoes from O’Connor’s Fruit and Veg Stand next door.  Maharees potatoes are so creamy and delicious.  I also picked up some local strawberries that were just out.

 

 

 

 

Then we grabbed a good spot on the street to watch the An Post Ras bicyclers leave town at 11 AM on the next stage of the big race.  We actually followed them out of town by a few minutes (in the car, not on bikes!) as we had decided to go to Annascual for lunch.  The first An Post Ras was won 50 odd years ago by a Dingle man who lives on the route out of town.  He was out to watch the racers go by complete with flags and a small band, and he was still there when we went by.

 

 

 

 

Lunch in Annascaul was simple: soup and sandwiches at the South Pole Inn, a pub created and owned for many years by Tom Cream, an Antarctic explorer who traveled on expeditions with famed explorers Ernest Shackleton and Robert Scott.  Crean’s story is compelling.  I switched from my usual Guinness to have Crean lager, a beer named after Tom Crean and brewed in Dingle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After lunch Elaine did a little shopping in Dingle while I had a pint with Tom and Suzie at the Dingle Pub before my afternoon nap.  Cocktails and dinner at home, as described above, was delicious.  After dinner we walked back into town to listen to Richie O’Brien sing again at the Dingle Pub.

 

 

 

All in all, a great day!

Another sunny and bright day.  Go figure.  We did a couple of quick loads of wash in the morning and actually hung it outside to dry.  European washers are notoriously small so we also dropped off jeans and pants in town to be washed.  Elaine cooked me fried eggs for breakfast.  Yum.

Late in the morning I walked into Dingle town to snap some pics.  Elaine met me a bit later by the harbor for a picnic lunch that she had prepared.  Then we walked up to Main Street – me to have a pint at the Dingle Pub, she to do a bit of shopping.  She met me there at 1:45 so we could watch the finish of the An Post Bicycle Race.  The finish line for the cyclists was just 150 meters up the road after a 133 kilometer ride from Charleville in County Cork.  We watched most of the 150 odd riders finish.  Elaine took the pictures of the racers.

Click to enlarge

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elaine switched her drink to Cronin’s Premium Cider.  Elaine chatted up Jerry, a colorful local, in the pub.  And we met two women cousins traveling together in Ireland for the first time.  They were not staying in Dingle for the night, but we convinced them they had to do the Slea Head drive before they left.  Jerry ended up going with them as a guide.  We shall check the newspaper in the morning for possible news about an ax murder.

Then it was back to house for a nap after a trying day.  We have four British TV shows we like to watch during down time:

• “Four in a Bed” about four B&B owners who rate each other’s B&B’s
• “Dinner Date” about a man or woman who has three blind dates cook dinner for them before he chooses one to take out to dinner
• “Come Dine with Me” about four amateur chefs hosting dinner parties for each other and rating themselves
• “The Chase“, a quiz show in which four people try to build up a stake and beat the chaser, an expert who usually dispatches them all with no money won.

Dinner tonight was at James G. Ashe’s Bar & Restaurant which we quite like.  On our first visit to Dingle many years ago, I sat in the bar, and Kate, the owner/bartender, told me of the history of the place and the connection with Gregory Peck. The history of the bar in very interesting.  From their web site:

The first alcoholic beverage was served in Ashes bar in 1849. Like many traditional pubs in Ireland it began as a drapery and general store, which was licensed to sell alcohol, this being secondary to the other business interests.

In 1926 when the bar was passed on to John Kennedy’s eldest daughter, Hannah & her husband James Gregory Ashe, the bar’s name changed to ‘James G. Ashe’, as it remains to this day.

Along with the bar James manufactured soft drinks, and in 1932 became an agent for Guinness. His grandson Thomas continues as the main Guinness agent for the area today.

Thomas & Sinead inherited the bar in 2000, from Thomas’ father who ran the business along with his wife Kate for 40 years.

Over the years Ashes has seen many famous faces pass through its doors. Indeed, Gregory Peck, a cousin whose grandmother was an Ashe from Dingle, visited a number of times, and his family continue to drop in when in Ireland. During the filming of David Leans’ “Ryan’s Daughter” in the early 70s’, Ashes became a hot-spot for both cast and crew, many of whom became quite partial to Kates’ Irish stew. More recently the cast and crew of “Far and Away”, including Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, based themselves here.

Dinner was excellent!  Elaine had Glenbeigh mussels from County Kerry as a starter and roasted local scallops and pork belly as her main.  I had a scrumptious Ballydavid (a small nearby town we often visit) crab trio as my starter and roasted turbot for my main.  We split a lo-cal (heh!) ‘chocolate four ways’ as a dessert.  The wine was a Pinot Noir from Chile.

Then it was on to the Dingle Pub to listen to Richie (from the Irish band Dreams of Freedom).  The pub was a madhouse of fun, filled with officials (but no riders) from the bicycle race who were all having a jolly good time. We sat and chatted with two of them and watched the others party.

And finally bed which felt good.

Monday was a beautiful, mostly sunny, but cool day.  Great day for a spin around Slea Head Drive and see the sights that make the Dingle Peninsula the most beautiful place on earth (imho).  Pictures tell it all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two things are happening hereabouts this week:

1) On Tuesday there will be substantial road closings in and about Dingle for the finish of stage three (of eight) of the An Post Rás, Ireland’s most prestigious bicycle race.  We will probably plan on being in town for the finish.

2) Ballyferriter, a small town outside Dingle, is the filming base for the next Star Wars movie.  Dingle is bustling because of it as a film crew is a lot of people.

Anyway, on our drive around Slea Head, we stopped in Ballyferiter for lunch in the small hotel.  We got in just before a busload of French tourists made their scheduled stop.  We sat at the bar – Elaine had soup and bread while I enjoyed a hearty beef stew.  There was turmoil as the tourists flowed it, but we enjoyed our lunch and enjoyed the show.

After lunch we went into Dingle where Elaine was on a mission to buy a Mac in a Sac. to replace the one she bought here a few years back that is fast wearing out.  McKenna’s, a favorite store, had them and she bought two, one fleece lined.  I waited patiently (and happily) at the Dingle Pub where Tom’s daughter, Suzie, was bartending.  We had a nice chat.  Tom’s son, David, an award winning Irish dancer, is away in Vienna.  We met and saw David dance on our last visit.

Dinner was at home.  We had purchased seafood chowder the local fish shop first thing in the morning.  Elaine got salad ingredients and bread, and that was dinner.  Delicious with a New Zealand Pinot Noir (Oyster Bay).  After dinner we walked back into town for some music.  First stop was the Dingle Pub for one pint for me and a Jameson’s for Elaine.  Then we wandered down to O’Flaherty’s where Mr. Fergus O’Flaherty, the owner, was performing a one man music show.  He plays a LOT of different instruments and sings extremely well.  He is Elaine’s favorite.  Then home again to bed.

This posting will be brief.   No links provided; Google on your own.  Remember, click to enlarge.

Saturday was our worst weather day so far.  We had a 3.5 hour drive from Chipping Campden to Pembroke Dock in Wales to catch a 2:45 PM ferry.  It rained almost the entire way.  But the drive was easy – mostly all Motorway and no traffic.  We had breakfast at McDonald’s (how American of us) at a rest stop.  In Pembroke Dock we were way early for the ferry, so we searched out the house we rented a few years back and then had lunch at the Ferry Inn near there before driving aboard the ferry.

 

The ferry. the Isle of Inishmere, was a four-hour crossing, a little rough for a bit (we love that!) and arrived in Rosslare in southeast Ireland on time.  A ten minute drive took us to Archways, an old fave B&B, where we had a delicious dinner with the other delightful guests before tucking in.  By the way, it was bright and sunny in Ireland.

 

Sunday was fine weather-wise, typically Irish, with sun, clouds, and the occasional sprinkle.  The drive to Dingle was traffic free but motorway free as well, so it was a taxing 4.5 hours, but we arrived in due time in one piece.  First stop: pints at the Dingle Pub to renew acquaintances with publican and friend, Tom Geaney.  Then we went to Greenmount House to get the key for our beautiful home (where we stayed briefly on our last stop here).  This house is beautiful!  Perfect for a four year home stay should the Donald get elected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dinner was at another old favorite, the Chart House (no connection whatever with the American chain).  We were greeted like the old friends we are  and enjoyed complimentary kir royales before a great meal.  We will be back there on Thursday night, so more menu details then.  Finally, it was back to Dingle Pub for a music session before crashing for the night.

Day eight, our last full day in Chipping Campden, turned out to be cloudy but dry.  We decided on a light day of activities, so we could pack up later and enjoy a quiet evening at home.  In the morning we visited the French bakery in town and bought the ingredients for the evening meal.  More about that later.

In late morning we headed for Evesham, which I mistakenly thought was a quiet little town with a church and a museum and not much else.  Well, got that wrong.  It’s a bustling and busy place teaming with traffic.  No worries, we found a car park and set out on foot to find our first (and only) destination.

The Almonry Heritage Center is an eclectic museum located adjacent to the local tourist office.  Unlike the town, the museum was quiet – we were basically the only visitors.  Remember Charles Wade, the owner at Snowshill who liked to collect “stuff?  Well, he would have loved the Almonry which is chockablock full of “stuff” from the history of Evesham.  Tools, typewriters, and what all.  The twelve rooms of stuff were strangely compelling.  It’s all in an impressive looking old timbered building right next to Evesham Abbey.

 

 

 

 

 

After a tour at the museum, we headed to Bretforton just five miles down the road where I had reserved a table at noon for lunch at the Fleece Inn Pub.  Bretforton is the quiet village that I expected.  We popped in at the village church, St. Leonard’s, after lunch.

Built in the time of Chaucer, the Fleece Inn has many stories to tell. It houses one of England’s oldest collections of Pewter amongst many other traditional features such as the open fire places and a medieval thatched barn where weddings and functions are often held. The Inn was originally a medieval farm house, with farm animals occupying one end of the building and the yeoman family living at the other. It became a village inn in 1848, a role it still fulfills.

Bequeathed to the National Trust by Lola Taplin in 1977, the last of the Byrd family who originally built the house centuries ago, the Fleece was almost lost in a tragic fire in 2004. A massive renovation of the building followed and the Fleece was restored to retain its integrity and traditional features.

 

 

 

Since Evesham is famous for asparagus (there’s a festival), we both had the soup of the day – asparagus, of course.  It was delicious.  I had a chicken, pork, and leek pie with chips.  Elaine opted for more asparagus with hollandaise sauce.  She had a lager beer; I had Pig’s Ear, a strong English ale brewed in the Cotswolds, a local specialty.

Then it was back to Campden Mews for naps, TV, packing, and, later on, drinks and dinner.  Wine for Elaine; Absolut and cranberry for me.  Dinner consisted of a French wheat sourdough baguette, duck and pepper pate, Brie cheese, an apple and a nice bottle of French wine – Beaujolais Villages.  Tarte au framboises (raspberry tart) for desert.

Tomorrow is essentially a travel day – we have a 3-1/2 hour drive down to Bristol and then across Wales skirting Cardiff and Swansea on the way to the Irish Ferry terminal at Pembroke Dock.  Our ferry sails at 2:45 PM.  We’ll leave here early to allow for traffic issues and for a lunch near the ferry terminal.

NO POSTING TOMORROW – BE BACK AGAIN ON SUNDAY FROM DINGLE!

Thursday started as a cloudy day and pretty much stayed that way all day.  But aside from a couple of brief sprinkles, it remained dry, so no complaints.  In all the times I have been to England going back to 1961, I had surprisingly never made it to Stratford-upon-Avon.  That streak ended today.  We set off at 8:30 AM for Stratford for a full day of William Shakespeare related activities.

Most of the Shakespeare attractions in Stratford, are run by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.  Ah, it would be costing us money as our National Trust passes do no good here.  We bought multi-site tickets for £24.50 each (including senior discount) plus  £4.50 for a guidebook.  Got to support that Shakespeare Trust!  All the sites are very well done.

First stop was Anne Hathaway’s Cottage on Shottery Brook, located about three miles from downtown Stratford in a nice residential neighborhood.  It is a beautiful cottage with a lovely garden.  Anne was 26 when she married William when he was just 18.  She was pregnant with Susanna, so that explains it a bit.

Was Sonnet CXLV written about Anne?  ‘Hate away” = ‘Hathaway’?

Those lips that Love’s own hand did make,
Breathed forth the sound that said ‘I hate’,
To me that languished for her sake:
But when she saw my woeful state,
Straight in her heart did mercy come,
Chiding that tongue that ever sweet
Was used in giving gentle doom;
And taught it thus anew to greet;
‘I hate’ she altered with an end,
That followed it as gentle day,
Doth follow night, who like a fiend
From heaven to hell is flown away.
     ‘I hate’, from hate away she threw,
     And saved my life, saying ‘not you’.

Need I remind you to click photos to enlarge?

 

 

Next it was on to Mary Arden’s Farm, about two miles further outside town.  Mary was William’s mother.  The farm came from her family, well-to-do farmers.  She married John Shakespeare in 1557, and William eventually came into the world.  The farm is maintained as a working farm with people in period costume doing things they would have done then.  They were starting to prepare the evening’s meal in the kitchen.  A girl was grooming Ellie the horse in the stable.  A blacksmith was forging in the yard.  Chickens ran about.  Pigs were active in their pen.  There is a falconry.  Great site for kids, and even us oldies enjoyed it.

 

 

 

 

 

Back to downtown to park the car near the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and do some more exploring.  After enjoying our picnic sandwiches on the banks of the Avon, first stop was Harvard House, the home of Thomas Rogers whose daughter Katherine married Robert Harvard of London.  Their son John Harvard and his wife moved to Massachusetts and eventually his money was instrumental in the founding of Harvard University.  After restoration in 1909 Harvard House was presented to Harvard University, still owners of the site.  It is maintained as a historical site and museum by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.  Anyway, the Rogers family and the Shakespeares almost certainly knew each other back in the day.

 

 

 

 

Finally we visited Halls Croft, home and office of John Hall, Shakespeare’s son-in-law doctor.  He was a well known and well off physician, and he and Susanna lived quite comfortably here.

 

 

 

We did not visit Shakespeare’s birthplace or Trinity Church grave as time didn’t allow.  New House, where he lived for a substantial portion of his life, is closed for renovation.  All in all, Stratford is a very attractive, bustling town, and Elaine and I agreed it would also be a good place to make a home base for some exploring.  Maybe next time.  (The narrow canal boats on the Avon brought back memories of our narrow boat adventure a few years back in Wales.)

So next it was on to the Royal Shakespeare Company Theater for a matinee performance of Cymbeline, a rarely produced, quite extraordinary play by Shakespeare that includes both tragedy, sometimes grotesque, and comedy.  The production is wonderful and includes special effects.  The theatre is a masterpiece – modern to the extreme but designed like a theatre would have been back then.  We enjoyed the performances although the plot is so convoluted as to be a challenge to keep things straight.

From the program:

Britain is in crisis. Alienated, insular and on the brink of disaster. Can it be saved?

Cymbeline is Shakespeare’s coming of age tragicomic romance. A story of power, sexuality and identity – stunningly retold for the 21st century.  

An ineffectual Queen Cymbeline rules over a divided dystopian Britain. Consumed with grief at the death of two of her children, Cymbeline’s judgement is clouded. When Innogen, the only living heir, marries her sweetheart Posthumus in secret, an enraged Cymbeline banishes him.

 

The play ran over three hours, after which we headed back to Campden for a repeat dinner at the Eight Bells Pub.