Ireland - July, 2018

The flights home were pretty uneventful (yes!!), and we made it home ok. We flew from Dublin back to Chicago O'Hare, where Emma split with us and went directly to New York for another week at the salt mine. There were no Dr. Peppers to be had in Ireland (the planes did have them), but there were Cokes. When Ruthanne tried one, for the caffeine, she was surprised at how good they tasted, so I also tasted it.  Simply amazing!!  The Coke in Ireland tastes just like Coke used to taste before the "New Coke" debacle in the U.S.  There's a definite, noticeable difference. A couple of times we stopped in Murphy's for some ice cream. It wasn't Blue Bell, but it was a welcomed treat in the hot afternoon. While waiting for the Dublin - Chicago flight, we had some Euros to burn, so........  Gwen picked these up at one of the sites we visited. Home safely, we showered and crashed.  This writing is on Thursday, after our return on Sunda

A quick breakfast this morning, and we're off for Celbridge Manor Hotel, just west of Dublin. On the way, we stopped in Limerick for lunch, see King John's Castle. We parked the car in a free lot, but had to walk a little.  Some of the sights of Limerick were..... colorful..... We headed first for lunch, but were sidetracked by St. Mary's Cathedral, replete with cemetery and old headstones.  The place has a long history, and some of the more recent (1800 and forward) headstones were visible. Inside, some preservation was still taking place, and some restoration had been done.  Services are still held every day.  The timeline goes back to the 1200s.  It has numerous commorative placques and engravings dedicated to select patrons of the cathedral. Time for lunch so they chose a place called The Texas Steakout.  Gwen and Ruthanne had nachos, while Emma and I went for the fish 'n chips.  The nachos were ok, but nothing to rave

Woke up a little later today, after the long day yesterday, and sauntered down to breakfast around 9:15.  Good food again.  Gwen had the "pancakes" that were almost thin enough to be crepes, but they were good, especially with more butter! Today, the choice was visiting the Muckross House  built around the turn of the 19th century, and the remaining farm buildings that supported the families and 25 servants.  You can Google it for the rest of the details. It is pretty impressive, being similar in cultural heritage to the Vanderbilt mansion, etc..., in the U.S.  It was, however, built of stone, rather than wood.  No photography was allowed inside the home. Fire escape below was built for Queen Victoria so she would stay at the house. The East side of the home had a garden with many types of flowers, as did much of the rest of the grounds. Above - fuschia bloom;  below - foxglove Below - the sweetest rose of all To the South of the hous