Ireland 2007

And off we go to Ireland! Actually, we flew on Aer Lingus but the active runaway in Boston was just outside the picture windows of the international terminal . . . looked as if you could to ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:13:19 -0700

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And off we go to Ireland! Actually, we flew on Aer Lingus but the active runaway in Boston was just outside the picture windows of the international terminal . . . looked as if you could to ...

The view to the "car park" from our balcony at the manor house hotel we stayed in our first two nights in Killarney. Killarney is "tourist central" and therefore very crowded . . . but stil ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:14:13 -0700

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The view to the "car park" from our balcony at the manor house hotel we stayed in our first two nights in Killarney. Killarney is "tourist central" and therefore very crowded . . . but stil ...

On the way to do the "Ring of Kerry" with the Gap of Dunloe and the Meeting of the Waters in Macgillycuddy's Reeks in the background.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:33:25 -0700

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On the way to do the "Ring of Kerry" with the Gap of Dunloe and the Meeting of the Waters in Macgillycuddy's Reeks in the background.

A random seaview on the Ring of Kerry. Note the cars parked on the beach.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:33:37 -0700

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A random seaview on the Ring of Kerry. Note the cars parked on the beach.

A seaview on the Ring of Kerry as the road rises. Note the farms below. There were many folks going about the business of life . . . must be wonderful to live in a theme park!

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:34:37 -0700

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A seaview on the Ring of Kerry as the road rises. Note the farms below. There were many folks going about the business of life . . . must be wonderful to live in a theme park!

For lunch we had fresh baked bread, cheeses and butter on the side of the road while driving the Ring of Kerry. The water is Dingle Bay and the land mass in the distance is the Dingle Penin ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:34:57 -0700

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For lunch we had fresh baked bread, cheeses and butter on the side of the road while driving the Ring of Kerry. The water is Dingle Bay and the land mass in the distance is the Dingle Penin ...

My wife, Cathy.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:35:15 -0700

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My wife, Cathy.

The field at the entrance to the Cahernane House hotel in Killarney was full of new born lambs and mothers.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:35:46 -0700

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The field at the entrance to the Cahernane House hotel in Killarney was full of new born lambs and mothers.

One of the reasons Killarney is "tourist central". This is Lough Leane just outside town as viewed from the Lake Hotel grounds (a wonderful place to have an early afternoon pint in the warm ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:35:47 -0700

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One of the reasons Killarney is "tourist central". This is Lough Leane just outside town as viewed from the Lake Hotel grounds (a wonderful place to have an early afternoon pint in the warm ...

The view from the front of our B&B in Kinsale. This is the Bandon River just before it empties into Kinsale harbor. The town of Bandon is just inland of Kinsale. In the largely Roman Cath ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:36:03 -0700

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The view from the front of our B&B in Kinsale. This is the Bandon River just before it empties into Kinsale harbor. The town of Bandon is just inland of Kinsale. In the largely Roman Cath ...

Charles Fort overlooking the entrance to Kinsale harbor. Fortifications on this site date from 1667 with the present "Star Fort" constructed about 1681. It was an imposing structure from t ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:38:08 -0700

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Charles Fort overlooking the entrance to Kinsale harbor. Fortifications on this site date from 1667 with the present "Star Fort" constructed about 1681. It was an imposing structure from t ...

The ferry from the mainland at Passage West to Great Island in Cork Harbour on which Cobh is situated. Over 2 million Irish emigrated from Cobh (Queenstown from Queen Victoria's 1849 visit ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:38:58 -0700

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The ferry from the mainland at Passage West to Great Island in Cork Harbour on which Cobh is situated. Over 2 million Irish emigrated from Cobh (Queenstown from Queen Victoria's 1849 visit ...

Part of the original stonework fortification at Charles Fort, dating from 1681.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:39:19 -0700

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Part of the original stonework fortification at Charles Fort, dating from 1681.

St. Coleman's cathedral in Cobh. The Bishop of the diocese of Cloyne is resident here. The building was begun in 1868 and the spire was finally completed in 1915, although the first servic ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:39:28 -0700

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St. Coleman's cathedral in Cobh. The Bishop of the diocese of Cloyne is resident here. The building was begun in 1868 and the spire was finally completed in 1915, although the first servic ...

The wonderful hosts of our B&B in Cobh, Thelma and Michael O'Sullivan. He is a Cobh native although she is (of all things) British. There is a large portrait of Queen Elizabeth II in the g ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:39:45 -0700

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The wonderful hosts of our B&B in Cobh, Thelma and Michael O'Sullivan. He is a Cobh native although she is (of all things) British. There is a large portrait of Queen Elizabeth II in the g ...

This is the view of St. Coleman's in Cobh from the quay from which most of the emigres departed Ireland. As you see, it quite dominates the town and the harbor.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:39:46 -0700

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This is the view of St. Coleman's in Cobh from the quay from which most of the emigres departed Ireland. As you see, it quite dominates the town and the harbor.

The cathedral and round tower at Cashel, known as the "Rock of Cashel". This large stone outcropping was the home of the kings of Munster (south Ireland) until given to the church in 1101. ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:41:26 -0700

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The cathedral and round tower at Cashel, known as the "Rock of Cashel". This large stone outcropping was the home of the kings of Munster (south Ireland) until given to the church in 1101. ...

The "Rock of Cashel" from the approach. This stone outcrop soars 200 feet above the green plain of the Tipperary countryside. One can easily see why it was a defensive fortress of kings fo ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:42:59 -0700

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The "Rock of Cashel" from the approach. This stone outcrop soars 200 feet above the green plain of the Tipperary countryside. One can easily see why it was a defensive fortress of kings fo ...

The view from atop the "Rock of Cashel" to the Tipperary countryside below. After Killarney, this may be the most tourist visited spot in Ireland.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:43:06 -0700

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The view from atop the "Rock of Cashel" to the Tipperary countryside below. After Killarney, this may be the most tourist visited spot in Ireland.

The castle at Cahir, seat of the once powerful Butler family and scene of a decisive battle with the British forces of the Earl of Essex in 1599. This is said to be one of the largest and ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:43:12 -0700

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The castle at Cahir, seat of the once powerful Butler family and scene of a decisive battle with the British forces of the Earl of Essex in 1599. This is said to be one of the largest and ...

This was an interesting find. Known as Portumna Castle it is not really a castle but a semi-fortified house. Built in 1618 by Richard Burke (de Burgo), the 4th Earl of Clanricarde, it was ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:45:52 -0700

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This was an interesting find. Known as Portumna Castle it is not really a castle but a semi-fortified house. Built in 1618 by Richard Burke (de Burgo), the 4th Earl of Clanricarde, it was ...

Cathy on the grounds of Portumna Castle. As you see, spring had not yet fully sprung in County Galway.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:47:48 -0700

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Cathy on the grounds of Portumna Castle. As you see, spring had not yet fully sprung in County Galway.

One of the more than 2 million Irish who departed from Queenstown (Cobh) was 14 year old Annie Moore and her two brothers. Annie became the first immigrant processed through the new facilit ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:53:41 -0700

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One of the more than 2 million Irish who departed from Queenstown (Cobh) was 14 year old Annie Moore and her two brothers. Annie became the first immigrant processed through the new facilit ...

Hore Abbey as viewed from atop the Rock of Cashel. This abbey was in a field just behind our B&B.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:54:29 -0700

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Hore Abbey as viewed from atop the Rock of Cashel. This abbey was in a field just behind our B&B.

Okay, the roads in Ireland can be a challenge. First, you drive on the left. In addition, the roads can be very narrow, to the point of absurd at times. So how do you move a house there? ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:55:18 -0700

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Okay, the roads in Ireland can be a challenge. First, you drive on the left. In addition, the roads can be very narrow, to the point of absurd at times. So how do you move a house there? ...

This was actually Easter Sunday in Ennis. We had this "sanctuary" to ourselves, delightful candle light and a warming peat fire. It was the first (and only) cold, dreary day of our trip an ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:57:05 -0700

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This was actually Easter Sunday in Ennis. We had this "sanctuary" to ourselves, delightful candle light and a warming peat fire. It was the first (and only) cold, dreary day of our trip an ...

The Ennis Friary dates from about 1284 although the religious order that established it was probably there decades earlier. So much of Irish history is defined by conquest, subjugation and ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:57:12 -0700

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The Ennis Friary dates from about 1284 although the religious order that established it was probably there decades earlier. So much of Irish history is defined by conquest, subjugation and ...

On the grounds of the Lake Hotel in Killarney, Sunday, April 1, 2007. I'm talking to Erin in Boston where she and Mike had gone to visit Harvard and BU Law. Mike will be attending Harvard ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:57:24 -0700

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On the grounds of the Lake Hotel in Killarney, Sunday, April 1, 2007. I'm talking to Erin in Boston where she and Mike had gone to visit Harvard and BU Law. Mike will be attending Harvard ...

Talking to Erin in Boston from the grounds of the Lake Hotel in Killarney, Ireland, Sunday, April 1, 2007.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:57:45 -0700

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Talking to Erin in Boston from the grounds of the Lake Hotel in Killarney, Ireland, Sunday, April 1, 2007.

The Cahernane House Hotel in Killarney, Ireland. We stayed here our first two nights in Ireland, March 31 and April 1, 2007. This house was built in 1877 by one of the Herberts, Earl of Pe ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 23:57:59 -0700

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The Cahernane House Hotel in Killarney, Ireland. We stayed here our first two nights in Ireland, March 31 and April 1, 2007. This house was built in 1877 by one of the Herberts, Earl of Pe ...

This large outcropping was at the rear of the Cahernane House Hotel, near the carriage house. Can you find Cathy in the picture?

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:00:40 -0700

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This large outcropping was at the rear of the Cahernane House Hotel, near the carriage house. Can you find Cathy in the picture?

Cathy in the music room of the Cahernane House Hotel. You little harpie you.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:04:22 -0700

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Cathy in the music room of the Cahernane House Hotel. You little harpie you.

In Kinsale we had no B&B reservation so I thought, why not ask a local? We stopped in John Coholan's butcher shop and he suggested the B&B of his friends PJ and Phyllis Crowe. We had a del ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:04:54 -0700

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In Kinsale we had no B&B reservation so I thought, why not ask a local? We stopped in John Coholan's butcher shop and he suggested the B&B of his friends PJ and Phyllis Crowe. We had a del ...

A hearty meal of pub food was had at the Bosun in Passage West, just before heading over to Cobh. I had just talked to my mother and learned that the Gators had defeated Ohio State for the ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:05:44 -0700

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A hearty meal of pub food was had at the Bosun in Passage West, just before heading over to Cobh. I had just talked to my mother and learned that the Gators had defeated Ohio State for the ...

This can't possibly convey the experience of driving in Ireland but it's a start. That is a solid granite wall thirty feet high to the left, literally inches from the yellow line. That is ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:05:59 -0700

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This can't possibly convey the experience of driving in Ireland but it's a start. That is a solid granite wall thirty feet high to the left, literally inches from the yellow line. That is ...

Kinda schlocky/touristy but Cathy insisted.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:06:32 -0700

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Kinda schlocky/touristy but Cathy insisted.

Kelly's Bar in Cobh and I have the tee shirt to prove it. Actually, three polo shirts in a gaudy black and yellow advertising Bulmer's Cider (which I never tasted) at 20 Euros each. Okay, ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:06:49 -0700

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Kelly's Bar in Cobh and I have the tee shirt to prove it. Actually, three polo shirts in a gaudy black and yellow advertising Bulmer's Cider (which I never tasted) at 20 Euros each. Okay, ...

The rear of the Cahernane House Hotel with the newer rooms to the right. We tried staying in the old house (I did request that) but asked to move when the door wouldn't lock and the floors ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:07:02 -0700

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The rear of the Cahernane House Hotel with the newer rooms to the right. We tried staying in the old house (I did request that) but asked to move when the door wouldn't lock and the floors ...

I think this was Cashel, don't remember. Do remember it had a "pub/provisions/beer garden" sign in the window. The pub was full of regulars, was about eight feet wide at most, had some ran ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:07:55 -0700

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I think this was Cashel, don't remember. Do remember it had a "pub/provisions/beer garden" sign in the window. The pub was full of regulars, was about eight feet wide at most, had some ran ...

So Cathy is the principal at Anchor School, right? Just had to have this picture! This was in the town of Waterside on the Ring of Kerry. We had just stopped to pick up beverages for our ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:08:55 -0700

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So Cathy is the principal at Anchor School, right? Just had to have this picture! This was in the town of Waterside on the Ring of Kerry. We had just stopped to pick up beverages for our ...

Bob's Easter service in Ennis, Ireland, Easter Sunday, 2007. No kidding, the pub is called the Sanctuary. It's right next door to the Ennis Friary.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:12:53 -0700

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Bob's Easter service in Ennis, Ireland, Easter Sunday, 2007. No kidding, the pub is called the Sanctuary. It's right next door to the Ennis Friary.

Mid trip we spurged on another hotel . . . generally considerably more costly than B&B's. We made this choice after checking out a "guest house" (usually a B&B but in town and/or not really ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:13:04 -0700

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Mid trip we spurged on another hotel . . . generally considerably more costly than B&B's. We made this choice after checking out a "guest house" (usually a B&B but in town and/or not really ...

A real estate firm in Ennis.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:13:21 -0700

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A real estate firm in Ennis.

Outside a delightful flower shop in Kilkenny.

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:13:24 -0700

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Outside a delightful flower shop in Kilkenny.

Some explanation is in order. In 1998 we stayed in Gort and ate in this restaurant/public house. We just had to return and eat lunch. I had lamb off the "carvery" (buffet) and Cathy had a ...

nobody@smugmug.com (Costello-Events) — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 00:13:44 -0700

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Some explanation is in order. In 1998 we stayed in Gort and ate in this restaurant/public house. We just had to return and eat lunch. I had lamb off the "carvery" (buffet) and Cathy had a ...