Our first stop out of Galway was Athenry – principally to see the fields of Athenry – I am a big fan of the Dropkick Murphys version of this traditional Irish tune about a young man who stole corn to feed his family and was sent to Botany Bay, Australia. As it turned out, Athenry itself was pretty interesting. We walked around the cathedral ruins, the city walls and castle. It is amazing that city walls that are hundreds of years old just exist as a part of the typography of the town. The fields of Athenry, however, had all but disappeared in this expanding town, with a cookie-cutter housing development going up between the freeway and the village. 

From Athenry we started heading towards the Cliffs of Moher, stopping off to look at yet another castle – the Dunguaire Castle. We pulled over on the side of the road and walked back for some pics. The theme of tractors continued. They were everywhere – mostly just driving a short distance, sometimes with a bale of hay and probably between different plots of their own land where the tourist roads are the only access. You see beware of tractors signs everywhere in Ireland so after a while it just becomes part of every drive (except on the freeways). Not long after we headed upward on a steep and winding road that would have been heaps of fun in the mini. And the scenery was even more picturesque than the previous day. I do recommend going north to south in Ireland as the scenery just gets more stunning each day. As you get to the top of the plateau the trees disappear – It looks drier up here because it is slightly less green but as it turns out that has much more to do with the fact that there are peat bogs up here where the water sits. You are so high up here that the mist is settling below you. You start to head down a bit as you approach the coastline and the spectacular Cliffs of Moher. 

Like so many of the tourist attractions in Ireland, the cliffs are well set up for visitors – the carpark is on the other side of the highway and you walk across to the tourist complex that is nestled into the hill. It was cold and windy so ended up being the first outing for my beanie/scarf/glove combo on this trip. When you reach the cliffs themselves there are wide paths with stairs up each side so you can see the cliffs from both sides as they form a small cove with a single rock formation surrounded by water just out from the main cove – a little bit like the (remaining) apostles on Australia’s Great of Ocean Road –  and very strong solid barriers. In the visitor centre you can see photos from the 1920s of people picnicking on the edge of the cliffs. Not something you could do today. There is also a very strong culture of music here dating back to the turn of the century and once  you are standing near the cliffs, you can imagine the ethereal sounds of celtic music would add another dimension to the experience. The cliffs themselves are spectacular. And while there are other possibly more grand and impressive coastal rock structures in the world, the rolling green hills of Ireland and the deep blue of the wild Atlantic ocean make this perfect. On one side there is what looks like a cross between a lighthouse and a castle tower – another folly – built as a gentleman’s club (read mancave rather than burlesque establishment) according to the local oracle. Like all Irish people we spoke to he had a relative in Australia. And apparently, they all live in Melbourne. He was impressed with my historical knowledge when I told him the story of my (catholic of Irish extraction) Dad’s disappointment that he wasn’t given a saint’s name and my grandfather’s response that “Brian Boru was the king of Ireland and that is just as good.” After walking up both sides of the cliffs, we headed to the gift shop and purchased some suitable tourist tat and some locally produced smoked cheese.

When we do road trips, we do two things – sample the local snacks (except in Australia where they are the same countrywide) and collect local produce to have a picnic (which sometimes ends up being in our hotel room. On the snack front, in Ireland and the UK so far our faves have been the oven roasted peanuts, particularly the Scottish and Northern Irish co-op brand which are so much better roasted than in Australia, and M&S foods cheese and pumpkin seed crispbread. Along with Pret a Manger, better Guinness and roasted peanuts, the other UK chain we could benefit from having is M&S foods. They do a great range of pee or semi prepared foods as well as good snacks. [I don’t like Mondays – The Boomtown Rats – The only well known song from the Irish band whose singer is probably better known as the force behind Band Aid and Live Aid, hanging out with Ireland’s other favourite musical son, giving his daughters ridiculous names and raising his ex-wife’s child with Michael Hutchence after their untimely demise. This song about the senselessness of a school shooting is a solid tune that resonates. The Boomtown Rats were a pretty solid band, There was just a lot else going on in the early 80s.]

From the cliffs we headed toward Limerick with more stunning views and emerald green countryside unfurling before us. I had picked Limerick primarily because of its name and proximity. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one. When we arrived at our lodging for the night, Absolute Hotel, we had a delayed check in because a tour bus group was in front of us.

Unlike the tour group, we decided against dinner in the hotel restaurant and headed out in search of more local sustenance. Granted it was Monday evening at the end of winter but in contrast to Galway the streets here were deserted. We wandered up a cobblestone path with single story row houses that looked like they could have once had thatched roofs on one side, and the ruins of a cathedral on the other. Our dinner destination was Katy Daley’s, which looked a bit like a tourist trap with an outdoor beer garden with bunting. Inside though it was like a local with the bartender obviously knowing many of the patrons and the food was good home cooking. Dan had the steak and Guinness pie – I think he is on a quest to find the world’s best. And I had the stuff of childhood comfort food – freshly baked glazed ham with cabbage, an assortment of other (root) vege and parsley (white) sauce. And of course a big pile of mash. Our family had corned beef instead of ham but the accompaniments were all the same. We tried the sticky toffee pudding for dessert, which came layered with cream in a parfait. The date version doesn’t seem to be a thing here.

The next morning, we decided to stay in Limerick to tour the castle which opened at 10 so we took a leisurely stroll into town to have breakfast at Hook and Ladder, inside a home decor store. I decided I needed a break from eggs and potatoes so had the (semi-healthy) oatmeal which came with blueberries, apple compote and cinnamon sugar. Dan opted for the Benedict – he is searching for the best of these too and a scone with jam and cream (ditto). After breakfast we wandered around the town, which despite the castle lacked the tourist tat of other Irish towns. One of the things you see a lot of here are what, at first glance, look like over the top bridal stores but on closer inspection the white dresses in the window are actually communion dresses. Now I have watched a bunch of observational docos on Irish travellers (like the Amish this small, introspective but omnipresent culture fascinates me. Travellers go over the top for these occasions (and for teenage weddings) but given they make up 0.6% of the population, and the plethora of these stores, this is clearly more mainstream than I realised. They also advertise Irish dancing costumes.  Perhaps it is the time of year throughout lent in the lead-up to Easter, but it was only the white dresses on display.

From here we headed back across the river to the castle. St. John’s castle is a good one to visit as you get to see some of how the structure was put into action in battle. After a stroll through a museum detailing a particularly big battle at the castle, you get to do a subterranean tour through the castle’s foundations describing what was happening during the battle. You eventually resurface in the main square inside the castle wall, which has various entertainments for young ones like stocks you can put your head through. The day we visited they were filming a school play or concert or something in the square. You could also climb up into the main battlement towers – which was worth it for the views alone. You could see out over the city and the countryside beyond. From the castle we headed down the hill to check out the (relocated) treaty stone before bidding Limerick farewell and heading for the ring of Kerry.

Fridge Magnets – 5     Postcards – 8     T-shirts – 2   Christmas decorations – 3   Countries – 4