A Quiet Hodgepodge

 

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. Talking turkey...are you cooking the turkey this year? Does ham belong on a Thanksgiving day menu? When it comes to gravy do you pour it over your whole plate, skip it altogether, or land somewhere in between? Cranberries-homemade or jelled right out of the can? Do you look forward more to the main course, the savory sides, or the desserts? 

No turkey cooking for me this year. OS & YS won't be here, so it's just MS & me. 1 of my sisters invited us to her house for dinner so all I have to do is show up!

I'll usually use gravy over the turkey or mashed potatoes...sometimes. YS makes a good cranberry sauce that I've also made. Super easy and really good. The sides are what makes Thanksgiving for me...and the desserts. It's not Thanksgiving without pecan pie!

2. Holiday movies...tell us your favorite and what it is about the film that makes you love it. Is it the film itself or a memory it stirs? 

I have 2 of them: Family Stone and The Holiday. I'll watch them multiple times during the season, although I only braved Family Stone once last year. If you've seen the movie and know about my life, you'll know why. If you haven't seen the movie, definitely watch it!

3. A favorite way to give back and help others? 

I tend to take the easy way out and donate money.

4. Name a place or setting you encountered this month that made you feel grateful. 

Krakow, Poland. More specifically, the Divine Mercy Basilica and the convent of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy where St. Faustina lived. 

I'm saving any explanations to a future post, but let me just say that I am so grateful that I was able to go on this Pilgrimage and sit in front of the original Holy Picture of the Merciful Jesus.

5. Knowing what you know today, if you could redo yesterday what would you do differently? 

No, I would not. It's time to look at the present; not the past or the future, but the here and now.

6. Spill your own random thought here. 

2 of the 3 "boys" are in NC for Thanksgiving Weekend. OS works for a ski resort and they were able to open a few days ago since conditions were good for making snow as well as having some natural snow, so he's a little busy. YS & his fiance are spending time with her family in NC, so I'm keeping the grand-dog. She has calmed down quite a bit over the past year and is such a sweet, smart girl.

She has learned that she can hold 2 balls in her mouth at one time. This is her favorite past-time!

A couple of weeks ago, we had a get-together to celebrate CH. He didn't want to have receiving of friends at his funeral, but said he wanted us to get together with close friends and family a year after his death. His brother suggested a place that CH loved and the owner graciously allowed us to gather at his place. Everyone brought something to eat, and we sat around and remembered him. There were a few tears, but mostly laughter, which is just the way he would have wanted it.

2024 Ireland Adventure-Great Southern Tour Part 4

Our last full day on the Great Southern Tour was jam-packed. We started at New Ross where we shook hands with JFK at the JFK Memorial (his family was from there) and visited the Dunbrody Famine Ship. I was indifferent about visiting the ship but it was well worth the visit. The actors were excellent and quick on their feet with responses to questions asked of them and questions we answered.

Shaking hands with JFK

The Dunbrody Famine Ship

The Eternal Emigrant Flame is from the flame at JFK's grave in Arlington, VA.

The wooden statues around the country were incredible.

Jerpoint Park was very interesting. One of the things we wanted to see was the grave of St. Nicholas. Well, that's not exactly what it was but I'll get to that in a minute. The couple who purchased the property were surprised when they were called to a meeting with the historical society. They were told at this meeting that there is a "lost city" on the property and they would not be able to farm most of it as they had originally planned. On the property were not only the remains of a church but also (what is believed to be) relics of St. Nicholas buried there. They were asked if they would be willing to open the property to the public, and Maeve embraced the history of the property. 

A view of the Lost City

The church was covered in ivy when the couple purchased the property. They had no idea what they bought!

Buried under the stone are what are believed to be St. Nicholas's relics.

Then, it was on to Kilkenny where we had the rest of the day to explore. This town blew me away and is a place I definitely want to go back to when I get the chance. Before the trip, I did a little bit of research on what to see/do in Kilkenny, and Kyteler's Inn popped up as an interesting place so I knew right away where I had to go. Alice Kyteler was accused and convicted of being a witch after her 4th husband became mysteriously ill and died after changing his will so Alice and her son would be beneficiaries. By the way...the other 3 husbands were wealthy and left all of their money to Alice so she was very well off by this time. Her former brother-in-law helped her escape to England; no further information is available on her...she just seemed to disappear. Alice was the first owner of Kyteler's Inn, which is now a pub. We had lunch there (as well as an Irish Coffee), and the atmosphere and food were fantastic. Alice is said to haunt the upstairs bar.

3 of my sisters & I with "Alice"

The inside has been renovated to appear authentic.

Kytelers Inn, Kilkenny

Kilkenny Castle is a prominent landmark. In fact, it is where Alice Kyteler was kept during her incarceration. We opted to skip going in. We visited The Castle Yard, shops with local artists' studios. This area used to be the stables and was really pretty. We didn't see the artists at work but apparently there are times when you are able to watch them.

Kilkenny Castle: Alice Kyteler was held in the dungeon during her trial

The Castle Yard used to be the stables but is now a place for artisans to showcase their products.

St. Canice's is a famous Cathedral that is said to have the best view from the top. There's one catch: You have to walk up hundreds of steps and then a "ladder" to get to the top. The 4 of us decided not to go but one lady braved it and said that the ladder wasn't a ladder like we thought it was. 

1 of my sisters & I found St. Mary's Cathedral. While we were looking for it, we ran into a couple of groups of school girls walking home from school. We asked for directions and one of the girls was able to give it to us. We walked slightly out of the center of town and up a hill to get there.

St. Mary's Cathedral is a relatively "new" church (dedicated in 1857)

Looking down into the Baptismal Font

Beautiful stained glass

I loved the shamrocks in the stairrail. We found this on a bathroom break before walking back to town.

Then came our last day. Rathgall is a rock fortress that had 4 walls with the outer wall being for animals. It's believed that the next wall had water, similar to a moat. There's evidence that this fortress dates back to the Bronze Age.

Activity from the Bronze Age has been proven at this site.

https://visitwicklow.ie/listing/rathgall-hillfort/

The Sheepdog Demo is a must when touring Ireland. If I had known about it on a previous trip, I would have made sure to go. It was so interesting to watch the dog in action and to see the sheep's response. But before we watched Maggie do her thing, I got to do this:

It was fascinating to watch the dog in action

And then something amazing happened on the way to our lunch spot. Denise (our guide) stopped in a carpark in the Wicklow Mountains for a gorgeous view. It just happened to be the same carpark where CH &I spent our last night with the van! There was no way she could have known; it was so surprising.  

The view from the carpark, very near where CH & I spent the night.

The van in almost the same spot as the picture above!

Lunch was seafood chowder & brown bread at Wicklow Heather

Our last stop was another place CH & I stopped at in 2022: Glendalough. We had plenty of time then to walk down to the lake and just take our time. This time, I didn't have as much time but I was able to meander through the monastic settlement and enjoy just being there. The last time I missed the Gateway that was the boundary so my mission this time was to find it.

I still couldn't lock my fingers around St. Kevin's Cross, so no wishes were granted this time!

The double arch of the Gateway

The plaque explaining the Gateway

A stone with a cross etched in it (as described in the picture above)

The grounds are so beautiful; I can't get enough of this place. If you're looking for a quiet place to reflect, this is definitely the place.

That was it for the Great Southern 6-day Tour with Vagabond Tours. The time went way too quickly. Denise, our "Vagaguide" was amazing. Her knowledge and ability to tell history while keeping our interest is definitely a talent. The food was great, the Guinness/Jameson/Irish Coffee was outstanding, and the hotels where we stayed were better than I expected.

We were dropped off at our starting place to catch a cab to a hotel near the airport since my sisters were leaving the next day. Our time together came to an end. We couldn't have asked for a better time or a better group to travel with. It was almost as if we had the whole tour to ourselves; midway through the tour, the other 2 ladies were honorary sisters! 

So...what's next? I still had 1 more week in Ireland! Keep watching the blog for more updates.

2024 Ireland Adventures-Great Southern Tour Part 3

Waterford deserves its own post, but I'm going to share it with a day trip we took with Waterford as our base. When asked about our favorite place we visited at the end of the tour, Waterford was unanimously chosen. There was just something about it. The history, the beauty, the pubs! The Walking Tour of Viking Triangle gave us a quick history of the town although Denise (our "Vagaguide") did a great job of giving us the history while we drove.

The "Murder Hole" in the City Wall. I think it's self-explanatory.

The City Wall

The building where the current Irish Flag was first flown.

The City Wall is marked throughout the town

Wooden sword in Viking Triangle. The sword is in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Strongbow and Aoife. Strongbow attacked Waterford in 1170; he and Aoife were married shortly after. The marriage changed the course of Irish history with the invasion of the Normans.

Waterford was the only place where we stayed two nights in the same hotel. We had large rooms and nice bathrooms, and the location was perfect: right on the water with Reginald's Tower across the street. It was very centrally located. While we didn't have a good view from the room, the view from breakfast made up for it. One of my sisters & I managed to snag the perfect table for the perfect view on both mornings.

Breakfast view from The Tower Hotel overlooking the water

Breakfast view from The Tower Hotel looking at Reginald's Tower and Viking Triangle

A few facts about Reginald's Tower: While it is now a museum, it has been in continuous use for over 800 years and has never fallen into ruin. It was the strongest part of the defense wall of a Viking Fortress and was used as a mint as well as ammunition storage. It is now a museum. Unfortunately, we were not informed of its current purpose so we didn't visit. (Next time.) 

The first night we were there, the 6 of us ate at The Reg. In the picture above you can see it behind the Tower and building to the left. The city wall is part of the building, which was pretty cool. We didn't walk around and explore, but apparently, there are 6 bars. 

The City Wall inside of The Reg

The second night, one of the ladies picked out Geoff's, which was a short walk from the hotel. It is a large restaurant; it seemed like it just kept going and going. Service was slow, but we had nowhere to be so we just sat, talked, and enjoyed each other's company. 

Geoff's

Geoff's

Great atmosphere...even on the ceiling!

A festive walk back to the hotel from Geoff's

Earlier in the afternoon (following our excursion to Hook Peninsula---it's in this post!), one of my sisters & I went to the mall in search of contact solution and cough drops. Of course, we were in need of a toilet and I knew we'd be able to find one in a pub. The first one we came to just happened to be the oldest operating pub in Waterford. J&K Walsh isn't the oldest one, but the oldest was undergoing renovations. It was definitely a find! The charm, the history, the snug! We enjoyed the ambiance and the conversation with the barmaid and a local. The pubs you just stumble upon are the absolute best. This brings me to a tip about finding the best pubs: Get off the main road and look for pubs on the side streets or off the busy roads. I'd say that's where the locals go and you'll get a better feel for the Irish people that way.

Original bottles. The clay ones that are on its sides (straight on) were used to mix the spirits.

The backroom used to be a barber shop.

Great conversation with a local and the barmaid.

The Snug

Inside the snug. A friendly Irishman told us to get in there so he could take our picture.

The pass through in the Snug

View of the pub from the front door

J&K Walsh was established as a "Men's only" bar. The original taps are from the 1960's when draught was first introduced.

One of my sisters spotted a pub off the main road as we were walking around, so on the way back to the hotel from Geoff's we popped into Katty Barry's. Everyone else went back to the hotel, so we grabbed a table (after talking with some flirty Irishmen), drank our Guinness, and waited for some "Trad" music. Once the music started, the pub got crowded so we didn't stay long. We decided we'd leave after one more song. That song happened to be "Wagon Wheel". I mentioned in this post from 2022 that CH & I explained to the couple we sat with in a pub in Killarney that we met in Johnson City, TN, so they'd remember us when they heard that song. We thought that was a great way to end the night, so we left after that song.

We found authentic "Trad" music

The day after we arrived in Waterford we were scheduled to go to Hook Peninsula. I was looking forward to visiting Tintern Abbey since that was CH's favorite place of our visit in 2022, but it turned out that the Hook Lighthouse really brought back memories. Neither place was crowded; I'm not sure if it was because we were there during the shoulder season or if it's just that not too many people realize what an amazing place that Peninsula is.

Tintern Abbey's story is amazing. A quick recap: William Marshal sailed from England in 1200. He ran into a horrible storm and feared for his life. He promised God that he would build an abbey wherever he landed. He married Isabella de Clare (Strongbow & Aoife's daughter). The Abbey was converted to a residence in 1575, as it remained until 1959.

Tintern Abbey through the Battlement Bridge

Wall leading from the Bridge to the Church

Gravestones in the church cemetery

The wall and Battlement Bridge

The Abbey

The Ceiling

The details can still be seen

Detail on the arch

Inside the Abbey. You can see where the three additional floors were

Gargoyles on the outside of the Abbey

I found the Hook Lighthouse to be just as spectacular as it was last time. Maybe even more so because it was an extremely windy day. The waves were crashing and our guide told us that just a couple of days before, there was water all the way to the lighthouse. The cafe is a great place to get seafood chowder to warm up and the views!

The Graveyard of 1000 ships

The lighthouse is the oldest intact operational lighthouse in the world. In the 5th century, monks used lanterns on the shore to warn ships of the land. William Marshal built the first lighthouse in the 13th century. Both of these are definitely worth the time to go out of your way while traveling on the Wild Atlantic Way to see both of these places.

Waterford Proper has a lot of museums. 2 of my sisters visited the House of Waterford Crystal and highly recommended it. It didn't interest me, but The Irish Wake Museum did. Unfortunately, it was closed on the day we were there. Maybe another time!

Waterford definitely did not disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed everything we did, especially the pubs. I was disappointed that the Wake Museum wasn't open. It was a new museum when we were there & Denise said she was looking forward to going as well. It's definitely something to put on my list for a future visit.

Watch for 1 more post on the Great Southern Tour. We're nearing the end!