The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round!
Welcome back my friends to the continued adventures of Amanda and Gail. When we last left off Gail and I had just completed a journey to the Aran Islands. 
On Tuesday we decided to go on a tour of the Burren, which is an area of County Clare that mainly consists of lots of limestone. The views are gorgeous and so unique. 
Our first stop was at the Dunguaire Castle where they hold medieval feasts in the summer. Unfortunately there weren't any when we were there. I don't know if you can see it but there is one swan that was asleep but I was joking that it looked dead. That didn't go over too well with some of the people who heard me because of the bird flu that is 'sweeping' the continent. Relax people! It was just a joke and the thing was still moving!
After the castle we all hoped back on the bus and headed down to Doolin for some lunch. We had originally planned to spend a night or two down in Doolin to hear some music, but it just wasn't in the cards. However lunch at O'Connor's Pub was extremely good and was a great first taste of what the village has to offer. 
When lunch was over we piled back on the bus and made the treck over to the Cliffs of Moher. Apparently the views are spectacular and breathtaking...we wouldn't know though because the fog was so thick you couldn't even see the edge of the cliff! But you can just buy post cards with the magnificent views so it was really something special to have it be foggy! We made friends with a traveling student name Emile so we took a picture with him. So funny!
Once we were warmed up and had bought some stuff in the Cliffs' Gift Shop, it was back on the bus for a quick stop at the Poulnabrone Dolmen, an ancient burial site where 16 bodies were found that were 100s of years old. The top rock weighs about 5 tones, but they can reach up to 20! 
Our last stop on the tour was at the Aillwee Caves. They are caves that run under the Limestone hills of the Burren, and although there are over 400 of them, the Aillwee Caves are the only one you are able to entre. They are really spectacular with lots of calcium deposits
that have grown over millions of years to what they are now! So incredible. Our tour guide here was a fiesty Frenchman who told us all about the formation of the different pieces as well as the history of the caves.
On our way back to Galway from the tour, we dropped Gail off in Clarinbridge to meet Olivia and head down to Cork for the night. She visited the Blarney Castle and kissed the Blarney Stone and then spent some time shopping.
After a few quiet days in Galway, Gail and I headed back south to Ennis for Saturday night. We walked around the town which is really cute, did some shopping, had some lunch in a fabulous old pub, and then went to see 'South Pacific' put on by the local Theatre group. The acting was amazing but the story was really stupid! It just kept going on and on! But there were some funny moments and it was a nice night out.
Sunday morning Gail headed to Shannon to catch her plane, and after a HUGE delay in Chicago, finally made it home 24 hours later.
It was a great week and so nice to have someone from home around for a while!
Life here is going great. Sinead is settling into the house and its so nice to have 3 of us in the house now! I just can't get over how we all get along!
This weekend is St. Paddy's day and I get Friday off because of it! I know! You are all SOOO jealous!!! I am going to head down to Cork again to see Olivia and Alan and go to the Parade and drink some pints! Really looking forward to it!
Have a great weekend everyone!
On Tuesday we decided to go on a tour of the Burren, which is an area of County Clare that mainly consists of lots of limestone. The views are gorgeous and so unique. 
Our first stop was at the Dunguaire Castle where they hold medieval feasts in the summer. Unfortunately there weren't any when we were there. I don't know if you can see it but there is one swan that was asleep but I was joking that it looked dead. That didn't go over too well with some of the people who heard me because of the bird flu that is 'sweeping' the continent. Relax people! It was just a joke and the thing was still moving!
After the castle we all hoped back on the bus and headed down to Doolin for some lunch. We had originally planned to spend a night or two down in Doolin to hear some music, but it just wasn't in the cards. However lunch at O'Connor's Pub was extremely good and was a great first taste of what the village has to offer. 
When lunch was over we piled back on the bus and made the treck over to the Cliffs of Moher. Apparently the views are spectacular and breathtaking...we wouldn't know though because the fog was so thick you couldn't even see the edge of the cliff! But you can just buy post cards with the magnificent views so it was really something special to have it be foggy! We made friends with a traveling student name Emile so we took a picture with him. So funny!
Once we were warmed up and had bought some stuff in the Cliffs' Gift Shop, it was back on the bus for a quick stop at the Poulnabrone Dolmen, an ancient burial site where 16 bodies were found that were 100s of years old. The top rock weighs about 5 tones, but they can reach up to 20! 
Our last stop on the tour was at the Aillwee Caves. They are caves that run under the Limestone hills of the Burren, and although there are over 400 of them, the Aillwee Caves are the only one you are able to entre. They are really spectacular with lots of calcium deposits
that have grown over millions of years to what they are now! So incredible. Our tour guide here was a fiesty Frenchman who told us all about the formation of the different pieces as well as the history of the caves.On our way back to Galway from the tour, we dropped Gail off in Clarinbridge to meet Olivia and head down to Cork for the night. She visited the Blarney Castle and kissed the Blarney Stone and then spent some time shopping.
After a few quiet days in Galway, Gail and I headed back south to Ennis for Saturday night. We walked around the town which is really cute, did some shopping, had some lunch in a fabulous old pub, and then went to see 'South Pacific' put on by the local Theatre group. The acting was amazing but the story was really stupid! It just kept going on and on! But there were some funny moments and it was a nice night out.
Sunday morning Gail headed to Shannon to catch her plane, and after a HUGE delay in Chicago, finally made it home 24 hours later.
It was a great week and so nice to have someone from home around for a while!
Life here is going great. Sinead is settling into the house and its so nice to have 3 of us in the house now! I just can't get over how we all get along!
This weekend is St. Paddy's day and I get Friday off because of it! I know! You are all SOOO jealous!!! I am going to head down to Cork again to see Olivia and Alan and go to the Parade and drink some pints! Really looking forward to it!
Have a great weekend everyone!
posted by Traveling Amanda @ 6:57 AM
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