All this, by way of an apology for having been more-or-less, 'Here Today and Gone Tomorrow", for the last few months:
Firstly, it has been a mad, crazy past few months, such that I began to believe that June would NEVER come around !
LAST year, we had the house re-roofed, only days before our departure and the associated chaos made me swear that I would NEVER -- EVER -- undertake such an ill-advised, ill-timed and idioticly intense endeaver, forevermore.
So, THIS year, we just completed re-piping the entire house, complete with gutting and rebuilding BOTH bathrooms !
And, while I was intelligent enough to leave the tub, shower and other assorted plumbing duties to the hired professionals, I am too cheap, too fussy, too OCD to just let them do it all -- Sooo ... I finished the walls, re-tiled the floors AND re-wired all the electrical circuitry, 'mine own self' -- , while working around the contractor's schedule so as to not slow THEM up .
So, YEAH, I really do NEED this trip! :
Departing MCO @ 11:57 Am on Jet Blue, Friday 12 June. Arriving JFK @ 2:32 PM
Departing JFK on Aer Lingus @ 6:30 PM and arriving SNN @ 5:50 AM, Local Time
Renting from Dan Dooley, a Ford Focus Manual trans (or equivilent) until mid-day on 28 June for $495.28, charged in US Dollars, through their US office in New Jersey, so NO Foreign Transaction Fee!! . Am using a Bank of America WORLD MasterCard, and waiving the CDW and Theft Insurance. Only charge anticipated upon arrival is a $1000 'HOLD', and the initial full tank of fuel. We shall SEE
Got the place for 270 Euro per week, so 540 Euro, inclusive of heat and electricity. It is about 3/4 of a mile from the center of town, and only a few hundred yards from the Award Winning Millstreet Train Station, so we (or just the Mrs. if she gets bored while I'm doing my research) can catch a quick train into Killarney (30 minutes), or Cork city, Cobh, or even Dublin.
in Athlone, for 109 Euro, B&B. I've a request in for River (and therefor, Castle) view. We're FINALLY going to do the Lough Derg Scenic Drive and visit Clonmacnoice, Clonfert and Birr, enroute. Maybe take a boat ride on the Shannon, or one of the Loughs, but PRIMARILY, we're making the journey for the 8:30 performance by John Spillane, http://johnspillane.com/ at the Passionfruit Theater
Saturday, we'll make our way to Ennis and a hoped for Meet Up with Dude and the Grands. I've booked us into the Queen's Hotel
http://www.queenshotelennis.com/ where we scored a Special of 79 Euro (excluding breakfast. It's next door to Cruise's Pub, so I'm hoping for some good tunes on the night -- either there, or across the street at the King's Pub.
Flying out of SNN at 1:15 PM Sunday, arriving BOS @ 3:10 PM. Depart there @ 8:10 PM and arrive back at MCO @ 11:11 PM.
Plan to spend the night at an as yet, undetermined hotel and then do the 2-2.5 hour drive back home on Monday AM.
Then, it's BACK to Work on Tuesday
And back to planning Trip # 12, as well !
Bob
__________________
Bob
Help Us to Help You. The more you tell us about your plans (dates, interests, budget), the better we can tailor our advice to suit!
You brave soul! No wonder you have been MIA. All the action has been at your house. And I thought I was obsessive about painting the interior of my house myself. You definitely need a vacation from remodeling.
Your self-catering cottage is a steal. And it looks lovely too. Does it have one or two bathrooms? I have really been getting into the self-catering thing myself lately. My poor husband needs a sanity break during our month-long sojurns in Ireland. Where else but in a cottage can he sleep till 11 on a rainy day and have banoffee for breakfast? Not when we are home!
You have a lot planned on the day you go to Athlone. I am thinking some of it may fall by the wayside. However, if you get to Birr Castle Gardens be sure to head outside the formal gardens to the waterfall. It is small but lovely.
I hope you get the R&R you so badly need in Millstreet. But I do know you will have a wonderful time. You always do and always make the best of whatever Ireland throws your way.
The house is a two bedroom. I've had a number of communications via email with the lady of the house and she seems quite pleasant. The house does not allow smoking or pets -- which, as you know, the latter is NOT usually the case.
I'm fine with the first ( haven't smoked inside my OWN house in over 25 years ) and DELIGHTED about the second. We didn't sleep with our pets when we had them ... I'm CERTAINLY not interested in sharing a bed with someone elses' dog or cat !!
I don't think that 'BRAVE' is the correct word, Michele .... 'LUNATIC' springs more readily to mind. The work definitely needed to be done, but I should have either contracted it ALL out, or at least TIMED it a bit more appropriately....
Unfortunately, since my FIL's fall last September, time has been a rather tenuous commodity ...
I really don't expect to do all of the Lough Derg related activities, this trip. I generally PLAN enough activities / Sites each day to fill two or more days, and then modify that list, 'On The Day' based on what we decide is most important AND appropriate to the weather -- If Friday turns out to be a day of hard rain and general nastiness, there will be little sense in trying to do the Scenic, Lough-side drive. Conversely, if the day is gloriously warm and sunny, many of the indoor attractions will offer LITTLE motivation ...
One of the reasons that the Mrs and I manage to 'Keep Our Cool' when our best-laid plans go amiss, is that we KNOW that there will be a 'Next Time'.
Bob
__________________
Bob
Help Us to Help You. The more you tell us about your plans (dates, interests, budget), the better we can tailor our advice to suit!
Looks like a great trip. I've heard some great stuff at Cruises Pub on a number of occasions while almost spontaneously combusting next to the fire.
Not much of Athlone thrills me other than the city center. The castle is pretty interesting and there are some nice pubs down there too. You will have more luck finding roads along the lake with the Ordinance Survey Map. I like the village of Killaloe. Kind of a pretty spot. I agree that your plans for Athlone are a bit too much but you know how to have fun. You'll be fine.
We will have to call you a "brave lunatic" then. When I watch those remodeling shows on HGTV they tucker me out. I like the commercial of the guy demolishing a deck while standing underneath it and the other one where someone puts a ladder through a window. Hope nothing like that happened to you.
It is always good to have more planned than you can ever do each day. Then you have lots to choose from as you go along.
I'm with Bill on Athlone. It is a workaday town and not that interesting. But it is a good stop right in the center of Ireland. Plus you won't be there that long. Just for an overnight and show. Sean's Bar has trad on certain nights but you may be at the show most of the evening.
Clonmacnoise is a lovely monastic site on the Shannon River. Hope you get a nice day for it.
I would check the opening and closing times for Clonmacnoise. my preference would be to arrive fairly close to either of those as midday is pretty heavy with the tourbus crowd and good photo ops with no people in them are wonderful. I was there late in the day and it was wonderful.
Bob, The trip sounds very interesting and the self catering is great -- very good deal! and looks real nice. As always, picked up more ideas just reading your plans. Lough Dern was so beautiful -- our first time going. We were lucky in that one of the three days we had, this year, was clear the day we went to the Lough. Have you ever checked out Riverglebe House in Nenagh? http://homepage.eircom.net/~riverglebehouse/ Sounds like you have been too busy at home, but have made some great plans while in Ireland. Have a wonderful stay!!!.....youngka
__________________
Living in Oregon, like to travel, love going to Europe, Alaska and maybe one day China.