I just got back from the magical part of Ireland now! Dublin is very pretty and fun but the highlights of Dublin were definitely Frances and Laura. This week I headed South to find cute villages, rolling hills and rainbows everywhere, you know that image you have in your head of what Ireland looks like? That's pretty much accurate.
So Wednesday we headed into Dublin centre early, though not as early as we had intended, for breakfast at Bewleys, a place James Joyce frequented back in the day. Lovely breakfast where I got to try black and white pudding. Black was okay, full of flavour and spices. White was one of the grossest things I've ever eaten to the point that I almost spat it out (harkening back to the first time I tried avocado when I was 9 so it might yet end well for white pudding and I since of now a big avocado fan, but proportianally that won't happen until I'm 44.) Laura went to work while Frances and I walked to the bus station to get me a ticket to Limerick and kill half an hour walking along the dock (past some 'knackers') and back. Bus ride was uneventful and I met Mike at the other end. It was great to catch up after so long! He lives in a little community called Doora which has a pub and a church (Irish priorities are clear) and is a ten minute drive outside Ennis for all the necessities. I got a proper Irish welcome from Mike's parents who said I could stay as long as I wanted (unfortunately I couldn't really take advantage of them since a) I was well raised and b) I had plans for Sunday.)
That night his father Mick was performing in a one act play for the Ennis Players. There were three plays on and his was definitely the best, in fact they won a place in the All Ireland competition and hope to be able to travel with it as well. Thursday morning I ate three kinds of cereal for breakfast (the joy of staying with a family instead of in a hostel) and then we went out to the Cliffs of Mohar, very beautiful and rugged. The weather was clear but cold when we left and by the time we got to the cliffs it was raining and freezing so it was more like the one minute tour of the cliffs with an hour and a half driving through pretty countryside one either side. A good trip out anyway and then home to thaw out. The area is really beautiful and I must have seen half a dozen rainbows on the drive.
Friday was a trip into Limerick to find out that King John's Castle was closed, it looked good from the outside anyway. We drove past the area where people get shot and the university and stopped in Shannon for tea and cake. Also hit the two euro store where you can buy 5 chocolate bars for €2! I was excited about that. Probably a little too excited. It was Mike's friend Gary's birthday so we went out for a few drinks with him to celebrate. Not a true Irish pub experience since no one drank Guinness but it was fun all the same.
Saturday I got a bus back to Dublin to hang out once more with Laura and Frances who were playing tag team because they were working different shifts and only overlapped by half an hour! Laura and I went to the art gallery and spent a long while in the gift shop - so full of pretty things. Frances and I went shopping for NZ wine to take to Enniscorthy and for dinner supplies. We thought we might go out on the town but it was so bitterly cold that we ended up not bothering and watched X Factor instead which I've heard a lot about but never seen. It was fun, different kind of fun to going out, but infinitely warmer.
Sunday my bus left at midday so we had a nice breakfast again before Laura went to work again and Frances and I headed to the station... again. It was very much like the Wednesday before! I arrived in Enniscorthy to be met by my cousin Bridget. Want a family tree? I know I needed one! My great-grandfather Patrick Fitzgerald and his brother Francis moved to Canada, his sister Mary Fitzgerald stayed in Ireland and married somebody Dempsey and she is Bridget's grandmother. Cool? Anyway, she was great, kept saying I had 'come home.' We went out to the pub for a true Irish experience, it was loud and crowded and a woman gave me a picture of Jesus to look after me and someone got a drink poured over his head. I met a bunch of Bridget's friends and got stories about all of them, she seems to know everyone and be "practically related" to most of them! Monday we went out to Blackwater, where Patrick and Francis grew up. Got quite the tour of the area and went to a sawdust pub and a tavern for lunch before heading back to Enniscorthy and going to Carmel's for dinner, Bridget's sister. On the way I met their brother Peter's kids (Eamonn, Elizabeth, Elaine and Stephen) but Peter was working so wasn't in. Carmel has a ten year old daughter Niamh who's a firecracker. I got lots of hugs so felt quite welcomed. Their brother Tony stopped by for a drink too and I got to go out and see his house and meet his wife Eleanor - it was quite the family meeting day!
So today I got a midday bus to Dublin, where I am now taking advantage of Frances' internet account to update you all. I fly out to London in three hours so I'm about to get some supplies and head out to the airport. See you in England!
No comments:
Post a Comment