This month my friend Dana came for a quick visit and Jessie came home. This made for a lovely week. We took Dana to some of the traditional spots we take people i.e. Bunratty, the Cliffs and Adare. We did go someplace we had not been before, Birr Castle and Gardens was amazing.
The castle has been inhabited by the same family for the last 400 years, which of course meant that we could not go into the castle, but.... The "Demsne" is open to the public with 5 miles of walking trails and we walked every bit of it. Tomorrow we are off to Copenhagen so I should have some good posts for you all after Wedensday night.
Keep well, oh and I have added a new stream to my pictures called "Nature" have really enjoyed taking nature pictures this summer.
Keep well and enjoy the photos.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12938045@N02/?saved=1
Monday, August 23, 2010
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Crazy Busy Summer
It has been a very busy summer and as most of you know, it included a 6 week stint at home. It was great being home and seeing everybody we were able to see. Sad not to be able to see everybody, but we did get a lot of visiting in. Michael finally done with College was probably the highlight. And then coming home in July, we have gone to the city of Cork for a weekend since we have been back and that was lovely. I was a little dissapointed though because the point of going was to check out the English Market. The market was lovely and the butchers and fish mongers there were amazing. But, unfortunately, the thing I was looking for, more variety in the produce did not exist. Same produce I can get down here in our Limerick market. It was a lovely weekend though and Cork is a great walking city, we really enjoyed going all around the city.
Yesterday, two of my girlfriends and I decided it would be a really good idea to hike Croagh Patrick. Yes, we are insane. That said, I now know what those people who scale Everst feel like when the reach the top. Now, I know that our climb was nowhere near the Everst feat, but for us, and especially me it was. 2,510 feet straight up, very rocky, very steep climb that took 4 hours, lots and lots of breaks along the trail. The fun thing about that though is lots of other people taking breaks and you get a chance to chat with them. And on the last 45 minutes worth of the trail, those folks that are coming down are encouraging to carry on because you are almost there. It supposedly takes the average person 2 hours up and 1.5 hours down. It took me 4 hours up and 2 down, I am quite happy with those stats. Did not think I was actually capable of doing the entire climb. Of course,the climb up is brutal, and the climb down surprisingly equally brutal, feels like it takes forever. It is incredibly hard on the knees and today not only are my knees screaming but my calves and hips. I would say I am just overall stiff but again, I am ok with that.
Croagh Patrick is a pilgrimage site here in Ireland.
The tradition of pilgrimage to this holy mountain stretches back over 5,000 years from the Stone Age to the present day without interruption.
Croagh Patrick is renowned for its Patrician Pilgrimage in honour of Saint Patrick, Ireland's patron saint. It was on the summit of the mountain that Saint Patrick fasted for forty days in 441 AD and the custom has been faithfully handed down from generation to generation. The Black Bell of Saint Patrick was a highly venerated relic on Croagh Patrick for many years. It is now housed in the National Museum in Dublin.
On 'Reek Sunday', the last Sunday in July, over 25,000 pilgrims visit the Reek. Reek apparently means mountain.
Individuals and groups come from all over the world and include pilgrims, hill climbers, historians, archaeologists and nature lovers.
There is a tradition of climbing the mountain in your barefeet or on your knees. We did see one young man who had indeed done the climb up and down in his barefeet. Hopefully whatever he was asking for will be granted to him.
Lori, Pauline and I were very proud of ourselves, although we were well prepared, sandwiches, plenty of water, even bandaids, but we did forget the whiskey for the summit. We agreed that we would remember the next time, but this morning when I got up I figured I am not certain I could ever do the climb again, knowing what it's like. We'll see.
Enjoy the photos
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12938045@N02/
Yesterday, two of my girlfriends and I decided it would be a really good idea to hike Croagh Patrick. Yes, we are insane. That said, I now know what those people who scale Everst feel like when the reach the top. Now, I know that our climb was nowhere near the Everst feat, but for us, and especially me it was. 2,510 feet straight up, very rocky, very steep climb that took 4 hours, lots and lots of breaks along the trail. The fun thing about that though is lots of other people taking breaks and you get a chance to chat with them. And on the last 45 minutes worth of the trail, those folks that are coming down are encouraging to carry on because you are almost there. It supposedly takes the average person 2 hours up and 1.5 hours down. It took me 4 hours up and 2 down, I am quite happy with those stats. Did not think I was actually capable of doing the entire climb. Of course,the climb up is brutal, and the climb down surprisingly equally brutal, feels like it takes forever. It is incredibly hard on the knees and today not only are my knees screaming but my calves and hips. I would say I am just overall stiff but again, I am ok with that.
Croagh Patrick is a pilgrimage site here in Ireland.
The tradition of pilgrimage to this holy mountain stretches back over 5,000 years from the Stone Age to the present day without interruption.
Croagh Patrick is renowned for its Patrician Pilgrimage in honour of Saint Patrick, Ireland's patron saint. It was on the summit of the mountain that Saint Patrick fasted for forty days in 441 AD and the custom has been faithfully handed down from generation to generation. The Black Bell of Saint Patrick was a highly venerated relic on Croagh Patrick for many years. It is now housed in the National Museum in Dublin.
On 'Reek Sunday', the last Sunday in July, over 25,000 pilgrims visit the Reek. Reek apparently means mountain.
Individuals and groups come from all over the world and include pilgrims, hill climbers, historians, archaeologists and nature lovers.
There is a tradition of climbing the mountain in your barefeet or on your knees. We did see one young man who had indeed done the climb up and down in his barefeet. Hopefully whatever he was asking for will be granted to him.
Lori, Pauline and I were very proud of ourselves, although we were well prepared, sandwiches, plenty of water, even bandaids, but we did forget the whiskey for the summit. We agreed that we would remember the next time, but this morning when I got up I figured I am not certain I could ever do the climb again, knowing what it's like. We'll see.
Enjoy the photos
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12938045@N02/
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