Ireland
Limerick Harbour

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    • Day 74

      CÚIG GHRIANGHRAF-Ireland Day 9

      June 26, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

      Seven years ago today the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage. While Jim C and I had already been granted that right by a vote of the people on Washington state nearly three years earlier, it was a momentous day for those who lived in the "have-not" states as well as other federal rights granted to us by the narrow ruling. It's not lost on us that too many women, particularly those without resources will likely suffer in the "have not" states.

      My reflection of Limerick today as we walked around the city is that there were several examples of the labor movement to help give rights and voice to the people, and in this case to the fight for Ireland's independence. It was a good reminder that it's not enough to just be angry, but to channel that anger into action for the common good, and to hold our governmental institutions accountable when they fail to remember that it's their purpose as well. Seeking support in polite ways does not persuade oppressors.

      I wanted to visit Limerick because it is the city where my maternal grandfather's family came from. His parents were married here and his oldest brother was born here before the family moved to rural New York. I'm named for him. I have not approached my genealogical research about his family with the same zeal in finding my grandmother's roots because my grandfather was a horrible human being. I've been curious about his lineage, and I have many questions about the family who created such an abysmal soul. I suspect those questions will remain unanswered, and I choose to emulate the light of his wife, my grandmother instead.

      Limerick is a gritty city. You can sense its industrial past and its effort to recast itself. One can see more evidence of poverty and struggle, and I admire the city for its past and aspirations for a better future.

      We began our day with a massive Irish breakfast while we watched the weather change about every five minutes from drizzle to sun to downpours. Next to us a young family was introducing their toddler son to the joys of Nutella, and while we watched him wear more that he managed to eat, we smiled as we recalled recent photos of Olive's wearing much of a recent Nutella treat as well.

      We walked by the now closed Frank McCourt museum, the author of "Angela's Ashes" a very tough autobiography of a difficult life. The museum was in sn old schoolhouse created by bequeathed funds from a wealthy man who wanted to help the poor. It's a poweful story of a wealthy person helping those less fortunate.

      We decided to take advantage of a break in the weather and we wandered to People's Park. The park was opened in the late 1800's by a wealthy businessman who wanted to create a planned space for the populace. I was moved by a monument dedicated to parents who had lost young children. I loved the efforts of artists to create beautiful wood sculptures of trees uprooted by a severe windstorm. And I loved children's chalk drawings by of a rainbow heart on a park bench, a love offering by the innocents.

      Like many Americans, I'm angry about living in a country that has lost its soul. Limerick's lesson for me today reminded me of the power of love, the power of the labor movement and organizing, the power of creation, and the beauty of youth. I'm grateful for the reminder.
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    • Day 76

      CÚIG GHRIANGHRAF-Ireland Day 11

      June 28, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

      We woke up to very welcome glimpses of sunny skies and a rainbow overlooking the multi-hued bay from our room in Castlegregory. After a hearty breakfast, and an amiable conversation about unions and politics back home with our gracious hosts, we hit the road.

      I had discovered an app outlining many points of interest along the Wild Atlantic Way. We decided to select some spots before heading back to our Limerick Hotel.

      We drove by the 1800 Blennerville Windmill, just outside of the town of Tralee, which reminded us of sites in Holland. Although the visitor center was closed, we did get a look at the windmill that still grinds grain today.

      We stopped next at the Ardfert Cathedral ruins dating back from the 12th century. Like many of our visits to church ruins, I find the adjacent cemeteries to be fascinating due to evidence of ancient gravesites mixed with markers of those who have passed in more recent times.

      For our next stop, we decided to check out the Bromore Cliff outside the village of Ballybunion.
      The site is now privately owned and required an honor system donation of 5€. The walk along the freshly mown grass path divided by a wire fence revealed spectacular 60 meter cliffs and waterfalls. The wind was quite strong giving Wyoming's wind a "Hold my beer" competition. At times, I could barely maintain my footing or hold onto my phone to take photos. There were several informational signs along the way. One pointed out that the waterfalls had nearly a reverse flow on windy days. Sure enough, I was able to catch photos and videos of the spray of the waterfall being blown back up the cliff. In the center of the walk was a small structure identified as a WWII lookout space. I imagined how lonely that task might be.

      As we made our way back to the car, a truck drove up, and it became apparent that this elderly farmer checked to see if we had paid admission. After ostensibly seeing that we did, he asked if we wanted a receipt and he offered a nearly toothless grin and he wanted to make sure that we had enjoyed our visit.

      Given that the sunny weather seemed to be holding steady and exceeding expectations of the forecast we decided to alter our destination and head toward the famed Cliffs of Moher. To get there, we opted to take the Tarbert-Kilrush Ferry across the Shannon River. It was a fun experience, and it reminded me of the small ferry that my parents would take us on across the Connecticut River when I was quite young. The wind remained quite blustery and the waves of the river crashed over the ferry platform several times.

      Kilrush is home to the Victorian Vandeleur walled gardens. We decided to explore the gardens and get a light lunch. We enjoyed the walk in the garden and getting a bit lost in the shrubbery maze. I immediately started singing "English Country Garden" that I pulled from some long lost brain cell of my youth. Jim C had never heard of it, and I played a clip of it for him.
      We enjoyed our lunch and watched children's shrieks of excitement at the ice cream stand.

      Our last stop of the day was the Cliffs of Moher. I had often seen photos of this site, and I do have to admit that it was one of my favorite vistas of the whole trip. The views really are breathtaking, and we were pleasantly surprised that the wind wasn't bad and the sun remained.

      It took us about an hour to return to Limerick. We enjoyed a great meal at a local Asian fusion restaurant, and we joined a local online acquaintance for several pints of Guinness at Gleeson's White House, the oldest pub in Limerick. We had a great conversation with him, sharing favorite music artists and life stories. As the locals say, it was a "grand" way to cap an eventful day.
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    • Day 73

      CÚIG GHRIANGHRAF-Ireland Day 8

      June 25, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ 🌧 11 °C

      This was a rainy travel day as we made our way up to Limerick by way of Kenmare and Killarney.
      I have to admit that when I hear the town name Killarney it immediately triggers an earworm of Bing Crosby crooning "Christmas in Killarney".
      Perhaps that's fitting as Bing Crosby was absolutely my maternal grandmother's favorite singer.

      Today felt like it could be Christmas time as it was cold and blustery for most of our travels. We enjoyed the change in terrain as the area became more mountainous with constant of green peppered with limestone rocks and lakes. Our drive was along the eastern section of the famous Ring of Kerry which is considered to be one of the most spectacular loops in Ireland.

      We pulled off the road periodically to take photos although the 14°C chilly temps and rain caused us to retreat rather quickly to our car.

      We stopped for a light lunch in Kenmare and we enjoyed a brief walk there.

      We traveled in part of Killarney National Park, but we think we mostly remained on the perimeter. We enjoyed an easy walk up to Torc Falls which reminded us of waterfall walks in Maine and the Pacific NW. Throughout our trip, we have played the game "What state does it feel like we're in now?" Today's answer: The Front Range outside of Fort Collins, Colorado.

      We didn't stop in Killarney. It did seem to be packed with tourists, and we were happy to miss the fray.

      About an hour outside of Limerick, we noticed the land flattened out again.

      We arrived around 4 pm in our Limerick hotel. We have a view of the River Shannon out of our window, and we noticed athletes training for the swimming portion of triathlon training. We haven't explored much of the city yet. This is the land of my maternal grandfather's family, and I'm looking forward to exploring the area.

      We concluded the evening with pizza and beer at a local pub while watching Gaelic football a hybrid of soccer and rugby. It was interesting trying to make sense of the play and scoring.

      Today marks three weeks left until we return home. We're excited to absorb more of Ireland, but we're also feeling the "tug" of home calling to us. It sounds like Portland is finally getting long overdue sun and hot temperatures.

      Sweet dreams from Limerick.
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    • Day 26

      Limerick

      May 28, 2023 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

      The terrific weather continued and Limerick was abuzz when we arrived, as the local team were playing Cork in hurling, with Limerick needing to win to make the Championship Final, which they did. We saw the crowds making their way to the stadium, then we watched a fair bit of the game at the hotel when we arrived. Hurling is a great game to watch.

      King Johns Castle on the River Shannon is at the centre of Limerick. It was designed as a defensive castle, not one to be lived in and was built on the site of an old Viking fortress.

      The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland and it flows through 11 counties.

      Dinner was at the hotel. The Irish and British sure know how to do pub fish and chips and also pub pies and chips. And we haven't had a bad beer yet.
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    • Day 15

      Killarney to Dingle to Limerick

      August 10, 2023 in Ireland ⋅ 🌧 21 °C

      We left Killarney this morning at 8am and headed for Dingle.

      On the way we went through a little town called Milltown and then on to Castlemaine. Castlemaine is where Jack Doolan, known as The Wild Colonial Boy comes from. His real name is Jack Duggan.

      We then travelled along the Dingle Peninsula to get to the Blasket Islands Centre. The road there was hairy, sometimes only wide enough for the bus along with fog and misty rain. At one point we met a car coming the opposite way and with a couple of hundred foot drop on our side and a rock wall on the other there was no room to move. The car had to reverse back quite a way just to get a small section to get off so the bus could get through. I was ever so glad to get to the end. I posted a photo below of how close the rock wall was to the bus window.

      On arrival at the Blasket Island Centre we had an audio visual presentation all about the Blasket Islands.

      The Blasket Islands were inhabited until 1954 by a completely Irish-speaking population and today are part of the Gaeltacht. At its peak, the islands had 175 residents. The population declined to 22 by 1953. The government evacuated most of the remaining residents to the mainland on 17 November 1953 because of increasingly extreme winter weather that left the island's ageing population cut off from emergency services. The evacuation was seen as necessary by both the Islanders and the government.

      I included some photos of how these people lived.

      Leaving there we headed for Dingle on the other end of the hairy road - this road was a bit better but not much. We lunched in Dingle beside the Harbour. It was very nice.

      After lunch we travelled to Adare. It’s a little village with a lot of thatched roof houses. A 20 minute stop there and then onto Limerick for the night.

      Lots of photos from today.
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    • Day 26

      Limerick City Hotel

      August 31, 2023 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

      Limerick is a major city in the Republic of Ireland, set in Munster province in the south of the country. Its compact old town is known for the medieval-era St. Mary’s Cathedral and St. John’s square, which is lined with Georgian townhouses. Standing along the River Shannon, the 13th-century King John’s Castle is one of the city’s most recognisable sites.Read more

    • Day 6

      Limerick

      August 11, 2023 in Ireland ⋅ 🌬 20 °C

      Auch in Limerick regnet es. Was soll’s: wir haben das King John’s Castle (the worst king ever) besucht und die Whiskey Experience Tour mitgemacht, geführt von einem local student und organisiert von Mother Macs Public House. Sehr empfehlenswert. Geparkt haben wir im alten potato market. Übernachten werden wir heute im student dorm auf dem Gelände der University of Limerick. Essen wurde uns im Gullagower ans Herz gelegt. Morgen gehts weiter über Doolin nach Galway.Read more

    • Day 3

      Von Dingle nach Limerick

      August 1, 2019 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

      Von der äußersten Spitze der Dingle Halbinsel ging es heute wieder Land einwärts nach Limerick, dort, wo der Shannon zu einem breiten See wird und dann ins Meer fließt. Wir haben so ziemlich alle Ruinen auf dem Weg besucht. Es ist wenig los und die das Museumspersonal hat viel Zeit für uns und gibt Tipps. Die Sonne macht heute Überstunden und wir konnten sogar in kurzen Hosen und T-Shirt an den Strand. Je weiter man ins Landesinnere kommt, desto wärmer wird es. Allerdings ist es in Limerick mit der Ruhe vorbei. Wuselige Einkaufsstraßen wechseln mit breiten Verkehrsadern ab Zur Abwechslung waren wir heute beim Asiaten zum Essen - oder was man sich hier darunter vorstellt...Read more

    • Day 4

      In Limerick

      August 2, 2019 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

      Heute waren wir den halben Tag in der Burg von King John. Das war der Bruder von Richard Löwenherz und der Bösewicht in der Geschichte von Robin Hood. Er hat sie bauen lassen, aber nie besucht. Im dem angeschlossenen Museum konnte man viel über die Geschichte von Limerick und Irland lernen. Die Kathedrale daneben ist von außen gesehen unbedeutend, aber innen sehr interessant. Leider war der Weg zum Rugbee Museum umsonst. Laut Homepage sollte offen sein, wir standen aber vor verschlossenen Türen. Wir sind dann durch verschiedene Viertel gegangen und haben die unterschiedlichsten Häuser gesehen. Zum Essen gab es Burger (Paul) und falafel mit Humus und Salat.Read more

    • Day 6

      Go where the wind takes you...

      September 19, 2018 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

      the wind was blowing fiercely throughout the night, and sure enough we were told that unless you absolutely had to travel to stay indoors. We got in our car and drove over tons of leaves and limbs and saw lots of downed trees, some very large, on our journey to our next stop, which was Limerick, but on the way a tourism lady had recommended a couple of towns we should drive thru, so we detoured a bit for them. They ended up not being anything special, but we did realize they put us within 30 miles of the Cliffs of Moher, something we had said we didn't think we would do. But, it seemed a shame to be that close, so drive on we did, and we're glad we did. The radio announcer informed us that "Storm Ali" had been one of the worst storms in their history, with winds up to 130km/hr, even sweeping one woman over a cliff in the same county we had just come thru!
      We arrived to the Cliffs of Moher just as they opened up, as they had been closed all morning due to the storm, but we did not know that and arrived in perfect time, another act of Providence. The winds were still fierce (and cold), making it very hard (comical) to walk. And, due to this, I'm sure our experience was quite different than most, but we found the cliffs to be beautiful in all their windswept fury.
      From there we drove to Adare with its thatched roof cottages and did a little shopping.
      Hotel in Limerick is lovely, and Limerick is an impressive city, as well, reminiscent of Bayeaux in France or even a little like NYC. Large, but quaint and walkable, with pretty buildings.
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    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Limerick Harbour

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