September 10, 2009 - Amazing Sites Continue

We woke up around 0715 and started getting ready for breakfast. The castle ended up being a great overnight stay....when we woke up there was a light fog that covered most of the grounds....once again it was a beautiful site.

After having breakfast, we drove about 2 hours to the island of Achill, this is the largest of the irish islands and has a population of about 2700 (down from 6,000). To enter the island we crossed over a small bridge and took the Atlantic Coast drive. First stop, a small graveyard at Kildavnet. The graveyard contained plots with multiple individuals in each plot. Sites included a burial site of 31 individuals that drown in Clew Bay and ruins of a small church. Just past the graveyard was the Tower of Kildavnet, which was the house known locally as Grace O'Malley's Castle (a legendary pirate queen). We made our way along the coast to breath taking views and of course more sheep. As we drove around the island, the sheep must have know we were passive....they simply stepped in front of our car and had a scratch....we waited.

After completing the drive through Achill Island, we drove about an hour to Kylemore Abbey (picture of the day). This required us to drive through the Connemara National Park (an absolute must for anyone visiting Ireland). The drive was tedious, but the views were astonishing. To top it off, nestled back at the base of a mountain in the woods was Kylemore Abby. This castle was built by the Henrys and was later passed to the Manchesters (who allowed the abbey to fall in desrepair). After the Manchesters, Benedictine nuns occupied the abbey after being forced to leave Belgium during WWI. My mother loved this place. As we were leaving the abbey a nun passed us in her Saab.

We then made out way to Croagh Patrick, where it is said St. Patrick threw a silver bell off the mountain knocking the she demon Corra from the sky and banishing all the snakes from Ireland. It is said that St. Patrick fasted on the holy mountain for 40 days. Just know if you approach Croagh Patrick from the south the GPS will take you down narrow road number 557 (surely the last of all the roads with grass growing down the middle).

Lesson from today...Dave made the declaration that he "cannot wait" until we got off the road to and from Achill Island. This is simply because the bumps almost made us go airborne.....so what is the lesson for the day, be happy with the one you are with....it could be a whole lot worse (as we have experienced in our travels on the roads here, they can get worse than the one you are on).

Now we are sitting in our nest hotel (Carlton Atlantic Coast) - of which Steven and I somehow ended up with the honeymoon suite. It is very nice, large bathroom, the only room with a private balcony, and a third room for a sitting area. More importantly....the live band is playing folk music in the Bistro and locals are dancing what appears to be traditional Irish dances.