UK/Ireland Trip 2025

  On the Road to Galway Jo and I set off early on the road to Galway with a stop along the way to see the Cliffs of Moher.  The ride was a novel one, broken in half more or less by a ferry ride from Tarbert and Killimer across the River Shannon. It was an efficient boat, loading and unloading quickly and smoothly; the trip took about a half hour. There's a lot of build up to the Cliffs of Moher, but the place has become highly commercialized: kitschy shops selling everything from kids' toys to jewelry, and big crowds. The cliffs are a stop for the big tour busses. Well, crowds or not, the cliffs are an impressive sight. Another hour-and-a-half drive and we were in Galway. We strolled around the very busy center city where streets are jammed with walkers and buskers. And we had an excellent dinner here: Then it was time to head home and get some sleep so we can get up early tomorrow for our trip to the Aran Islands.

Caresiveen We planned to stay in Dingle, which is north of here, but a planning snafu led to last-minute changes and here we are. Caresiveen is on the Ring of Kerry--when I heard that name I thought it was a string of castles; however, it's a long tourist trail of sights, sometimes choked with buses. But Caresiveen itself is a friendly town, and its main street is lined with friendly pubs. Our last night here we lucked into one with live "trad" (traditional) music. Here's the view from our apartment. This is where the weather truly meets Europe. In town are a large Neo-gothic church, and the Old Barracks . This was originally home to the Royal Irish Constabulary. Outside of town is the Cahergal Stone Fort, built around 600 AD. In the distance, the ruins of a castle. In the parking lot was this character with a lamb in his van. For tips, he lets tourists take pictures with the animal. When Jo asked to take his picture, he complied but tried to hide his face. We suspec...

  Dublin It was a chilly, drizzly morning as we set out on a long, self-guided walking tour of Dublin. Early on we came upon a  sidewalk plaque marking the spot depicted in Joyce's  Ulysses  where Bloom stands at a corner of Nassau street. The damp got to us so we ducked in to Bewley's, a popular and elegant cafe, for coffee. The place is famous for its stained glass windows. Next was Trinity College. Here's the view coming in to the central quad, where, as with colleges and universities everywhere, undergraduates are available to give you a tour of the campus. We strolled around a while in the rain waiting for the time on our tickets to view the Book of Kells and accompanying exhibit (no photos there). The Long Room--the old library--was undergoing "decant." Every book was being taken off the shelf, cleaned, measured, and tagged digitally, an enormous, painstaking job. The Long Room at Trinity is home to the Brian Boru harp, which was not Boru's. It most like...