Inishmore Redux
Right now I'm about as content as a man could be. I'm sitting in front of our hilltop B&B on Inishmore. There is sunshine, lots of it, no wind and certainly no rain. All things that we have no right to expect on this storm-tossed place. Spread out before me is everything I could want. There is a seaport with ferries, fishing boats, barges and work boats coming and going like ants into an ant hill. A small airstrip sits right across the road into which have flown numerous "bush" airline flights in small, special STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) aircraft, letting off passengers from the mainland and unloading cargo, then disappearing across the wide blue expanse of Galway Bay. The B&B's friendly dogs are nearby. I am happily full from lunch and looking forward to another outstanding dinner at Madigan's Hotel. Life couldn't get much better.
We spent the day being shepherded around the island by Noel who took us to a stone fort built sometime a thousands years ago or better, by someone, no one knows who for sure. Madlynn and I climbed the hill through what could very generously be called a path through fields of various size rocks and successfully summited at the fort. The walls of this fort sit on top of 300 foot sheer cliffs overlooking the North Atlantic, whose swells born in Newfoundland or Maine finish their 3,000 mile journey with a boom on the rocks far below. We also visited a site called the 7 Churches, (which only actually has two churches), built in the 9th century. A vast graveyard surrounds the ruined churches, containing some stones which are fairly recent. But of particular note are the graves of five Roman soldiers from the 9th century, a reminder of the Roman legions who controlled all of Britain and Ireland for hundreds of years. It's also a personal reminder for me and my siblings that we have 1% of our DNA from either Italy or Greece. My money is on a long ago Roman soldier who took a fancy to one of our ancient Celtic ancestors.
At one time I briefly considered taking one of the B&B bicycles for a ride on the nearby roads. But after watching our van driver maneuver his oversized Mercedes vehicle through the incredibly narrow roads with stone walls on either side, horse carts, and pedestrians, I've decided that was a bad idea. Noel didn't even slow down for bicyclists, his mirrors whizzing by them at head height, missing by inches. An unsteady rider, wavering for just a split second, would be like a bug on the windshield. These have to be some of the best drivers in the world. My Irish cap is off to them.
Tomorrow we are back to the mainland and headed to Ashford Castle where we learn to fly falcons under the tutelage of the Ireland School of Falconry. We're keeping our fingers crossed that this amazing weather holds at least for one more day so we can do that in the sunshine. But as Mary, the proprietress of Bay View B&B in Kilkee said to me, you know what to do when it rains; just get out the mac and step outside.
We spent the day being shepherded around the island by Noel who took us to a stone fort built sometime a thousands years ago or better, by someone, no one knows who for sure. Madlynn and I climbed the hill through what could very generously be called a path through fields of various size rocks and successfully summited at the fort. The walls of this fort sit on top of 300 foot sheer cliffs overlooking the North Atlantic, whose swells born in Newfoundland or Maine finish their 3,000 mile journey with a boom on the rocks far below. We also visited a site called the 7 Churches, (which only actually has two churches), built in the 9th century. A vast graveyard surrounds the ruined churches, containing some stones which are fairly recent. But of particular note are the graves of five Roman soldiers from the 9th century, a reminder of the Roman legions who controlled all of Britain and Ireland for hundreds of years. It's also a personal reminder for me and my siblings that we have 1% of our DNA from either Italy or Greece. My money is on a long ago Roman soldier who took a fancy to one of our ancient Celtic ancestors.
At one time I briefly considered taking one of the B&B bicycles for a ride on the nearby roads. But after watching our van driver maneuver his oversized Mercedes vehicle through the incredibly narrow roads with stone walls on either side, horse carts, and pedestrians, I've decided that was a bad idea. Noel didn't even slow down for bicyclists, his mirrors whizzing by them at head height, missing by inches. An unsteady rider, wavering for just a split second, would be like a bug on the windshield. These have to be some of the best drivers in the world. My Irish cap is off to them.
Tomorrow we are back to the mainland and headed to Ashford Castle where we learn to fly falcons under the tutelage of the Ireland School of Falconry. We're keeping our fingers crossed that this amazing weather holds at least for one more day so we can do that in the sunshine. But as Mary, the proprietress of Bay View B&B in Kilkee said to me, you know what to do when it rains; just get out the mac and step outside.