Ireland trip report finally on line

wojazz3 · Guru

Ireland trip report finally on line

Michele Erdvig · Host

Bill,

I just spent a rainy Sunday reading your trip report. Bravo! My husband kept asking me what I was laughing out loud at. I really enjoyed the story about the golf clubs, your adventures getting locked into Castle Coole, the hillarious horseback riding episode (did you rent from Arnold's Hotel?), and best of all your strip tease at Fanad. A pity Felicity didn't get photos of that!! I suppose there would have been enough blackmail material for the rest of your life. All the photos were great but I especially liked the ones of Felicity sipping whiskey and the lobster traps at Roundstone (great perspective).

Glad to see you finally made it out to St. John's Point. Are you going to be adding any commentary about the B&Bs? We would enjoy hearing your critiques of them. Remember the Toilet Paper Reviews?

Thanks for letting our little community in on your latest Adventures in Ireland first. I know I totally enjoyed being along for the ride.

Michele

wojazz3 · Guru

I hadn't intended a critique, but it's always a possibility. I didn't take any real careful notes on that this time.

I made sure the camera was not near Felicity during my lurid moment. I always manage to get into trouble whcih is good for some laughs.

Yes, we rode from Arnolds. They are really quite good despite the mixing bowl helmet. It's a great, short and only moderately painful ride.

Thanks for the kind words. It's a labor of love and I'm glad I finally got it posted.

Bill

Maggie L · Senior Member

Dear Bill,

Am about a third of the way through your travel journal --- what a terrific job you've done once again! In addition to the interesting narrative, the photos are excellent (or should I say "brilliant")!

Will write more later. Thank you for sharing your adventure with us!

Maggie

wojazz3 · Guru

Maggie:

Thanks so much for your nice comments. It's nice to know that people get something out of all of that rambling.

Bill

Michele Erdvig · Host

Bill,

We don't need "in-depth" critiques of B&Bs. Just let us know what places you liked and would recommend. BTW, I stayed at Crockatinny this year and liked it.

Michele

wojazz3 · Guru

So you don't need a careful evaluation of the toilet paper in each place. hmmmmm, I though that was the most important part.

I try to make comments within the text about the B&Bs, but that makes it hard to find. Here's a shot at it.

Atlantic View (Doolin): I've stayed in Doolin 4 times, twice at the Atlantic View and I like it very much. There is one room that has a view of both the Aran Islands and the Cliffs of Moher. The dining room has the same spectacular view. The breakfast is substantial with good choices. The rooms are large and the beds are comfortable. Definitely worth a return visit. Keep in mind that this is a guesthouse, so it's a bit larger and a few euro more.

An Crugan (Inishmore): Acceptable without being special. Rooms were a bit cool but there were plenty of blankets. The view was nice and it was about a 10-15 minte walk to town (depending where in town you are going). Breakfast was average fare.

Cregg Castle: Fascinating old building. I have some mixed reactions to this though. The food is very good, the rooms are great and walking around the grounds is interesting. Annie Marie is a bit of an odd duck though. There is the idea that concerts are held in the evening though Pat was not there this time and Anne Marie comes and goes. Of course, there is the music reading issue which had Felicity ready to jump across the room and strangle her, but that's a personal thing. It's worth a stay for a few nights. I've stayed there twice though, and don't have a real desire to stay there again.

Tighbeag (Westport/Murrisk): I liked this place, most importantly for the owners. Peter and Ingeborg are good for some laughs. Peter is about as Scottish as it gets. They have excellent tips for the guests on walking in the area and there is an excellent restaurant down the road for dinner. The food was good and I believe there were some extra choices beyond the standard ones. Rooms are smallish bit comfortable. Would visit again.

Dromard House (Enniskillen): A beautiful about 10 minutes south of town. Fine breakfast and very nice owner. I didn't get to enjoy the grounds as much as I would have liked because I was locked in a castle. The rooms were comfortable but not much of a view from them. Would visit again.

Cruit Island (NW Donegal): These are cottages not B&Bs, thus rented by the week. I would definitely stay here again if for nothing other than the location. We had no problems with out unit, but the other usit that my friends were staying in had head and fireplace problems galore. It was nice sitting and enjoying a peat fire late at night. The places will hold as many as 7 but 5 or 6 is plenty. The Washer/Dryer combo works but is a very slow way to wash and dry clothes.

Crockatinney (between Ballintoy and Balleycastle NI): A beautiful building with a beautiful view. The rooms are very comfortable and have a deck that looks out to Rathlin Island. Getting served at breakfast was a bit strange as I was the first down and the last served. Never did figure that out. You need to come prepared with cash in hand as they ask for cash only up front. Breakfast was good but again, I had to wait a very long time.

Mourne View (Carlingford): A rather plain place, not particularly memorable, but nothing wrong with it. I had a similar reaction to An Crugan on Inishmore. The rooms were comfortable, some were rather small. Breakfast was the standard choices. There were some plumbing problems as I remember and it seemed to hold true in other rooms.

Pembroke Townhouse (Dublin): A pretty good hike from the city center. There were buses, but I never saw one pass by. Perhaps we were walking on the worng street. Non-the-less, we like it very much. It's in the Ballsbridge area which is very quiet and business like. Our deal included breakfast which offered a bit more than the standard irish breakfast. I had french toast one morning. The rooms were small which is to be expected, but very comfortable. The nice thing is that the walk allowed us the opposrtunity to walk by things that you might otherwise miss including a couple of nice pubs.

There were no places that we stayed that were unacceptable, just a couple that weren't particularly memorable. The service was good trhoughout and my favorite hosts of the trip had to be Peter and Ingeborg. I don't remember any toilet paper that caused excessive agony.

Bill

Michele Erdvig · Host

Bill,

Thanks for posting your impressions of the various places that you stayed. It is always a big help to others traveling to Ireland.

At Crockatinny, I didn't have to pay till morning when checking out. Maybe they wanted it up front because of "the group". But you are right, they don't take credit cards so you must have cash. Too bad the weather was so awful I couldn't enjoy my balcony.

I have found a bunch of great new places for your next trip. Just ask!

Michele

Melissa5 · Guru

RE: Ballintoy sections of your report

Merle · Senior Member

RE: Ireland trip report finally on line

Date: 5:26 PM, 01/26/06

I have just registered simply to respond to this post.

I LOVED READING THIS---I think you should write travel books and publish them. I was laughing out loud and reading the highlights to my husband. I especially got a great sense of Marj--what a kick!! (Does she like your stories?)

We are traveling to Ireland with our four teenagers in June but doing the opposite loop...from Shannon down and around to Dublin.

Thanks for a funny, informative, refreshing report!!

Clancy from Colorado (aka Rooster)

almoon · Member

Hi Bill,

I don't know how I missed this report! I just started reading it and it is very entertaining as usual, nothing less than I would expect. Thanks for sharing again.

Allison

Dana Ballentine · Member

this was fun to read and also had some great info for the first time Ireland traveler. I'm interested in knowing what type of camera you used to take these pictures. You have a great eye. I enjoyed seeing ireland through it.

wojazz3 · Guru

Hi All:

I just came back to this part of the forum and noticed all of the kind responses. Thank you so much!

Melissa:

My memory is that the session in Ballycastle is only on Friday night. We heard about it in Ballintoy from some musicians that were playing on Thursday night. I would guess that there would be entertainment in Bushmills too, but it's hard to say.

The walk to the rope bridge and the island is well worth it IMO. The scenery along the walk is beautiful. Be sure to follow the trail that heads slightly inland from the bridge to get a nice view of the chasm that the bridge crosses. Yoy can also see the bridge and island from a view point well above on the B15.

Merle:

Both of those times are good for traveling in Ireland. Let me know if you have any specific questions about the area.

Clancy:

We're in Colorado also. Uhhhhh, I didn't really mention the stories to Marj. Her quirks could have been iritating, but we made them amusing because we had the right group with us. I've done two other Irish webpages. They include info on the south.

http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2003/

http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2002/index.htm

My photography skills (and equipment) have gotten a bit better over time (thankfully).

Thanks Allison and thanks for leaving a note on the website. It's always nice to hear your comments.

Dana:

I use a Minolta A1 which I think does a pretty good job. I've had it for two years, so of course, something more powerful has come out. I just saw the Minolta A200 which looks like it runs about the same price (you can actually find it in the mid $400s online) and it seems to do everything and more with more megapixels than mine.

Thanks again everyone!

Bill

-- Edited by wojazz3 at 13:30, 2006-02-23

Green Dragon · Guru

Oddly enough, I came across your report while surfing and searching, and then came here and realized you were one of our own. Great report! I really enjoyed it!!!

wojazz3 · Guru

Thanks Green Dragon. I enjoyed yours too! Great stuff.

Bill

Marianne · Member

wojazz3 wrote:

I wanted Michele and her fans to see it first. There is still one error on the 12-13 May page. The "More Photos" link doesn't work on this page. I'll fix it tomorrow. The file is on another computer. All of the other "More Photos" links work. You'll need a great deal of patience and No-Doze to get thorugh it. There's lots of detail that only I care about and a couple of mishaps thrown in to amuse the casually interested reader. I hope you all enjoy. There are LOTS of photos. http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2005_1/ Bill

I can't tell you how much your photos have meant to me. I was in Ireland in January of this year for a 12 day trip which was absolutely wonderful. On the last leg of my journey home to the States, my luggage that contained my camera and film was lost by American Airlines and has yet to be found. To be able to look at your wonderful photographs has meant the world to me. My husband was looking over my shoulder this evening as I paged through your journal and said your photographs were the best he has ever seen of Ireland. Are you a professional photographer by trade? Thank you for sharing them with us. Sincerely, Marianne

Michele Erdvig · Host

Marianne,

I'm so sorry to hear about your lost photos. I would have been devastated. I guess that's why I never let mine out of my clutches on the plane.

Bill is not a professional photographer, although if he wanted another profession I think he has a good shot at it. He also has other Ireland trips online:

http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2003/

http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2002/index.htm

And you might enjoy the photos on this website where you can also send free postcards:

http://www.irishcorner.com/

Michele

Marianne · Member

Thanks, Michele, I can't get enough of these beautiful photos of Ireland. I know what you mean about not leaving these important things that were in my bag out of my sight. It was the first time I had ever checked in my carry on luggage. I was tired from the trip from Dublin to Chicago and couldn't fathom dragging it from one end of O'Hare International to the other to catch my next connecting flight. I was already carrying a shopping bag of gifts for my family and made a foolish decision. Let that be a lesson to everyone. The crazy part of it is that I had identification all over the outside of the bag...tags, ribbons, and identification in the inside of the bag! Can't figure how they "lost" it.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Marianne,

It sounds like a good excuse for another trip to Ireland!?

Michele

wojazz3 · Guru

Hi Marianne:

I'm so sorry to hear about losing your camera. It's a constant concern for me while I travel. Sad to say, there is a reasonably good chance that it was not "lost". Photos mean so much from a trip.

As Michele says, I'm not a pro by any means, but I have a good time doing it. I'm glad you like them so much. Since you lost all of yours, if there is a photo or two that you really like, let me know and I'll arrange to send you an enlargement. I just hung up about 15 of them in my (in home) Irish pub and the recent ones enlarge quite well.

By the way Michele, the pub had it's grand openning last Friday. The craic was mighty!

Bill

Michele Erdvig · Host

Bill,

Congrats on the grand opening of your own Irish pub! However, my invitation never arrived in the mail. I hope the Guinness and Smithwick's was flowing and you all had a great time. Did the bodhran get a workout?

Michele

Marianne · Member

Bill, I can't tell you how much that would mean to me!! Your generous offer almost made me cry!! (I'm still not over the loss) I will definitely let you know which ones are my favorite which will be hard because there is not an average one in the lot. Which ones did you choose for your new pub ? Have you ever thought of putting them into a pictorial essay on Ireland? Do you want me to email your directly or just by way of this internet site? I am going to take a few days and re read your journal. Thank you again for sharing.

wojazz3 · Guru

Hi Michele:

We would have been honored to have you. The bodhran and whistle both worked hard. We had a couple of fiddles and lots of guitars and we had a wild time. I'll post some pictures (as soon as I take them) on my website.

Marianne:

My email is wojazz3@yahoo.com. I'm glad I can help a little bit. As far as my favorites, I guess I have a few.

The sheep in front of the lighthouse at Fanad head. Just got lucky I guess. http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2005_5/05.26.40lgtHse.jpg

The sheep on the hill next to the castle (watch tower) wall. I printed this as a sepia and I think it turned out nicely. The online version is full color. http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2005_4/05.24.03cstleSheep.jpg

The portrait cliffs of Moher picture. I loved the colors. http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2005_1/05.13.12cliffs.jpg

The portrait version of the stack rocks in Donegal with the flowers and rocks in the foreground. I didn't realize how much I liked this until I printed it. It's the 8th picture down in the frame on this page: http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2005_4/05_24/index.html

The buoys and fishnet on this page: http://www.geocities.com/obeirne_ireland_2005_6/05_28/index.html

There are others too, just the ones I really like off the top of my head. I would like to do something with my pictures if I develop enough that I am really proud of and cover a large enough section of Ireland. Until then, I'll be happy visiting the places and remembering them when I get home.

Let me know what you think.

Bill

petemac · Newbie

I just wanted to add something by saying your photo's and web site are dead on. I hate to get techy, but what kind of account do you have at Yahoo and what program do you use to do such a nice job with all the photo's, they look great. Thanks for the nice virtual tour, love the waterfall. Pete

wojazz3 · Guru

Hi Pete:

Thanks for the nice comments. I use just the basic Geocities accounts on yahoo. The plus is that it is free. The downside is that there are issues when I first post it and lots of people go to look at it with bandwidth. The trick that I use is that I actually reserve 5 different yahoo sites to make the web. If you look carefully at the location window, you'll notice that the name will change from obeirne_ireland_2005_1/xxx to obeirne_ireland_2005_2/yyy as it moves through the pages. The bandwidth thing is still a hassle so I may work on a different plan. Since I have a website for my band which has a huge amount ouf bandwidth, I may put it there and just have the homepage on geocities. After the initial interest has waned, I could move the rest to geocities as a permanent storage. OK, now I'm to techy.

I use photoshop for color correction and to make the picture pages which has the frame with the thumbnails. Building those pages is automated which is a wonderful thing. Photoshop is an incredibly powerful tool, but not cheap. Photoshop elements has some, but not all of the features. In the Elements price range, I actually prefer Paintshop Pro. It's a bit more user friendly if only because it's menus more closely resemble those of MS products if you use them.

OK, now I'm WAY to techy.

Bill

Michele Erdvig · Host

Bill,

It sounds like a grand time! Let us know when you have photos of your pub up and running. We can join in the fun vicariously.

Michele

murphybridget · Veteran Member

A fantastic celebration with plenty of flowing Guinness and Smithwick's. The bodhran definitely got a good workout, adding some lively beats to the festivities.