If You Ever go Across the Sea,,,,,tponetom
It has been a really bad day, so,
Tucson, AZ. June 24, 2:00 p.m.
104 degrees. The ‘Miseries’ are taking over so I have to revisit ????
If You Ever Cross the Sea to,,,,,where else?Irelandof course!
Ireland, Day 19.
Saturday, Sept. 27, 1997. Moving Day. From Ennis to Bunratty. Only about 20 miles and it put us about eight miles from the airport. We had resolved to just take it easy and relax these last few days.
We were looking forward to our stay at Ashford House. As we pulled into the parking lot, we were greeted by a little girl. She said her name was Liv. Short for Olivia.
She said her mother would be back shortly and that she, Liv, would show us to our room and that she would be glad to help us with our luggage. She was very insistent that she would help us carry something so I let her take the small cosmetic bag. She opened the door to our room and gave us the key, and then she wanted to know if we wanted the drapes open or closed, and she showed us the door to the bathroom and the clothes closet where we could hang our clothes and how to operate the TV. Then she asked us if we would like some afternoon tea and that she would serve it in the dining room. We said we would let her know when we were ready for tea. She left and we stowed our belongings.
Then we were ready for tea. We went into the dining room and a moment later Olivia appeared with a tray of tea and cookies. The prime table by the bay window had been reserved for us. Olivia then asked us to fill out our breakfast menu for the following morning.
At that moment, Mrs. Mullane made her appearance, all but frantic in her profuse apologies for not being home when we arrived. We assured her that Olivia had taken good care of us. She told us that Olivia was nine years old and in the fourth grade. We have met precocious children before but never a one like Olivia. Polite, very well spoken, perceptive, smart as a whip and so much natural charm that you knew there was no guile behind it.
It was early afternoon and one of the better days, weather wise, so we decided to visit the Bunratty Castle/Folk Park complex. Our plan was to do all of our ‘walking around’ tours, today, and then we could take it easy the next two days. We paid the senior citizen price of 3 pounds each to get into the park. The lady cashier was quite friendly and helpful with suggestions of what and how to see. It was much larger than I had anticipated. It was also about ten times more interesting and entertaining then we could imagine.
The following description comes from our Tour Guide Book:
BUNRATTY CASTLE AND FOLK PARK, Bunratty, Co. Clare.
Old Ireland-plain and fancy, medieval and l9th century lives on at this attractive complex. The castle, built in 1425, is decked with tapestries and other period furnishings. Offering a glimpse of the high life in very olden times, the castle also is the setting for well-known medieval banquets. In the adjacent FOLK PARK, visitors watch men and women ply bygone crafts and household chores in the farmhouses, blacksmith shops, and watermill. Town life is vividly re-created in a village street, complete with printing shop, doctor’s office, drapery shop, school and pub. The complex is lively night and day. Besides the banquets in the castle, "Traditional Irish Nights" are held in the Folk Park, with singing, dancing, and simple country fare.
We traipsed to the top of the castle, which was no small feat for our feet, and enjoyed a panoramic view of the country side. We separated because my legs were quite sore and so I sat for awhile and Peg went tripping off by herself. I left the park to go to the car and get my windbreaker. On the way out, and then again on the way back in, I stopped and talked to the lady cashier. After two hours of sightseeing, we made reservations for the castle banquet for the following night.
The Ross Castle that we had toured in Killarney was depicted as a "fighting castle." Bunratty is displayed as a more cultural icon.
It was dinner time and we tried to get in Dirty Nellie’s [[world famous pub and grill) which was adjacent to the castle but it was packed and very smoky to boot. Next door to it was an obscure little cafeteria and their bill of fare fit us to a "T" and "P". We had a platter consisting of a variety of salads. You would have to understand that we are "salad" people. At home, our dinner will often consist of nothing but salad.
We returned to Ashford House and there was still enough daylight left for us to sit on the patio chairs, located on the side of the house, affording us a view of front and back yards and their wealth of flowers and other flora. Olivia came out to visit and continued to amaze us with her maturity.
Ireland, Day 20.
Sept. 28, Sunday. Today was Castle Banquet Day. We slept in a bit and then had a late breakfast. By now we were completely dedicated to the Bed and Breakfast Route. We have grown to hate motels when traveling in America for a variety of reasons and one of the big ones is the hassle of eating breakfast on the run. The luxury of ordering breakfast the night before and then not having to hurry or vacate the room to have breakfast is very comfortable.
Knowing that we would be out ‘late’ that night we decided to explore some of the little villages in the area. We ran into a traffic jam at the first little village we were looking for. There was a funeral procession taking place. Parked cars blocked the street and the pedestrians were walking solemnly to the church. But the church was about 5 blocks away. Perhaps it was some sort of Irish Catholic ritual. Nothing untoward developed and a few other villages that we seen were of a similar ilk. An Irish village is an Irish village is an Irish village. Amen.
The Castle Banquet began at 6 o’clock. Admission to the Folk Park was free after 5 PM. This was to encourage participation in the "Traditional Irish Nights" when food and drink are sold. So we arrived at 5 in order to see other parts of the park that we had missed yesterday. Again, we chatted with the same lady cashier we had met yesterday. We were chagrined that we had missed fully half of the park yesterday.
Soon, 6 PM rolled around and we joined the queue of 100 persons forming on the castle’s steps. We had paid 31 pounds per person and did not know what to expect.
We had toured the castle yesterday by ourselves so we were a little familiar with everything. Still the ornateness of the furniture and decorations was very impressive. Our group was ushered up the winding stone staircase to the main living room where their was a display of massive furniture. One table alone was 40 feet long. Huge chests of drawers all beautifully hand carved and crafted. The question occurred to me, "How in the hell did they get this furniture up that tiny little stairwell." [[Remember that the windows are nothing more than slits 3 or 4 inches wide.) Our leprechaun must have relayed my thoughts to our tour guide/master of ceremonies because in his next breath he described to us how all of the furniture was built in small pieces, delivered, and then assembled with wooden pegs.
[[To be continued)
