Ireland II - (Cliffs of Moher) - #018

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Our tour this morning was to Enniskillen, strategically situated on the banks of the picturesque River Erne.  We would be visiting a castle which was once the home of the Gaelic Maguire chieftains that represents an important part of Fermanagh's rich history and heritage.

The Enniskillen Castle is situated in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It was originally built in the 16th century and now houses the Fermanagh County Museum and the regimental museum of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers and the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards.

Built in 1567 almost 600 years ago by Gaelic Maguires to guard a pass coming into Ulster, it was strategically  important through its history.  In the 17th century it became an English garrison fort and later served as part of a military barracks.

This historic site houses two museums, FERMANAGH COUNTY MUSEUM and the INNISKILLINGS MUSEUM.

Our admission ticket gave us access to the two museums, Fermanagh County Museum & the Inniskillings Museum and the historic Castle site, known as Enniskillen Castle Museums.  

It was very educational with lots of special things like outdoor displays, several cannons, life-sized mannequins dressed in uniforms and helmets, and inside the building were many signs telling the stories of their past. 

There were tables of silver vases and many other things, many miscellaneous medals for people serving in their army, drums - used for marching, a bugle, guns and swords and many other items - too many to mention!  There are many photos on our 35-minute download that you might want to check out for yourself!  Here's a few that's included on the download!

As we continued our tour it took us on our journey seeing the parts of Ireland that only pictures can describe; from lots of green pastures, rivers and streams, many ruins built out of stone structures, big homes of the countryside and lots of sheep, cows and other types of animals.

We were scheduled to stop here for lunch and we were quite happy with the food and service. A lovely lady took our orders and could not do enough for us . The food was recommended and was part of our tour in Roscommon!  Would highly recommend.

There were so many pictures on the walls and the Pub was attractively decorated with lots of information on James Clarke.  Please enjoy our photos - more on the download!

Boyle Abbey is a beautiful example of a Cistercian Abbey ruin. We had a guided tour with lots of information and many informative plaques about the restoration process upon entry.

Life in a Cistercian monastery was very ordered. It was structured from dawn until dusk between work, prayer and other duties. The order lives in silence. Cistercians are normally known for simplicity in architecture as well as in their way of life but the ruin of Boyle Abbey tells a different story.

In 1161, the Cistercian monks established the abbey at Boyle in County Roscommon. Previously, they had made three unsuccessful attempts to settle in the province of Connacht. 

The monastery, which was completed around 1220, was laid out according to the usual Cistercian plan. It had a church on the north side of a rectangular cloister area, with a chapter house for meetings on a second side, a kitchen and refectory on the third, and store houses and a dormitory likely on the fourth.

Today, only small parts of the cloister remain, as the Elizabethans converted it into barracks in 1592 and the Cromwellians besieged it in 1645. Despite its ruined state, the abbey continues to be an excellent example of Ireland’s early Cistercian foundations.

It was very educational and our guide was a wealth of information and on our guided tour we took an abundance of photos for those of you who would like more information about this great ruin - it's on our 35-minute download you can get for your library!  Here's a few photos...

Our drive to Galway was filled with beautiful scenery, farms, ruins, animals grazing in the green meadows and big homes and churches.

We  enjoyed a walking tour with a local guide to see the medieval city walls, Lynch's Castle and Eyre Square.

Galway, a harbour city on Ireland’s west coast, sits where the River Corrib meets the Atlantic Ocean. The city’s hub is 18th-century Eyre Square, a popular meeting spot surrounded by shops and traditional pubs that often offer live Irish folk music.  

Nearby stone-clad cafes, boutiques and art galleries line the winding lanes of the Latin Quarter, which retains portions of the medieval city walls. Eyre Square, also known as John F. Kennedy Memorial Park is an inner-city public park in Galway, Ireland. The park is within the city centre, adjoining the nearby shopping area of William Street and Shop Street.

Knappogue Castle is a tower house, built in 1467 and expanded in the mid-19th century, located in the parish of Quin, County Clare, Ireland.   

It has been restored and is open to guided tours.   

When you visit, make sure you take a stroll through the lovely walled garden. The castle includes a furnished drawing room, dining room, chapel, great hall and a banquet hall that features medieval dinners.​

As part of our fabulous tour, we visited the castle and enjoyed the whole process; happy hour while they serenaded the pre-diners and when the staff was ready, they seated our group and everything went very timely. 

The servers brought out each phase of the dinner and we were entertained with a great show. The fabulous staff were so warm and friendly, dressed in their special evening outfits and smiling the whole time!

It was such a wonderful experience - we would highly recommend a visit and a big thanks to all the staff and lovely people that made our evening very memorable!

Yes we did take a great amount of pictures of that wonderful evening!  On the download!

The Shannon River is Ireland's longest and largest river by "water flow" emptying into the Atlantic Ocean.  

From early morning as the mist descends the Shannon Estuary to the Wild Atlantic Sea, to the setting of the sun in the late of the evening, Shannon Ferry will take you and your vehicle on this memorable 20 minute journey across the estuary linking the iconic tourist destinations of the Banner County of Clare to the Kingdom of Kerry.

This is a lovely experience for visitors who would like a short break in their journey to relax as they sail across the majestic Shannon Estuary. And if you're lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of the dolphins, which in the summer, can sometimes swim so near the ferry, as if just to entertain you.

As the only vehicle ferry trip on the main spine of the Wild Atlantic Way, this invigorating journey allows you experience the rugged nature of land and sea as you breath in the fresh salty sea air that encapsulates Irelands Wild Atlantic Way.  The service accommodates pedestrian passengers, cyclists, cars, coaches, mini-buses, and commercial vehicles (buses).

Born into a poor farm when times in Ireland were hard on 20 July in 1877 in the village of Annascaul in County Kerry, Tom Crean was forced to leave his family and home and head overseas to England where he joined the Royal Navy at the tender age of 15 spending many years refining his skills as a seaman.  This love of the sea was to grow and Tom took part in three expeditions to Antartica in the 20th century. When Tom retired in 1920 he returned home to his beloved Annascaul, he married and ran “The South Pole Inn”.

Today the pub which was named by Tom Crean is well worth a visit to learn about the life of Tom Crean and his explorations and view the interesting collection of memorabilia and momentos. Across the road from the South Pole Inn you will see a statue of Tom Crean by the Irish American sculptor Jerome Connor who was also born in Annascaul. 

Thomas Crean lived a life full of adventure and exploration, but he returned to the village of his childhood, Annascaul.  The Inn itself sits in a beautiful setting by the river with outdoor seating and is very child-friendly.

Annascaul itself is a beautiful quaint village set on the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry.  It's location is east of the town of Tralee. The village is also known for its famous Anascaul black pudding and for the local pottery.