28.5.16
Oxley
Ireland revisited
Oxley
I decided that
getting back into the swing of things as quickly as possible was probably the
best cure for jet lag so picked up Mr D up at 6 and headed for Oxley.
It wasn’t quite
dawn when we arrived but the sun was soon up, although it remained fairly cool
with a north easterly breeze.
The walk was
fairly birdy, a number of eucalypts were in flower and Honeyeater activity was
good. There wasn’t a huge variety, however, mainly Noisy Miners, Lewin’s and Brown
with a couple of Scarlets, both
species of Whistler in small numbers
and a couple of Grey Fantails.
At the end of the
trees before the turn off to the ponds we found the recently reported Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater – a rare
visitor from the west, but a second record for Oxley.
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| Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater |
As we walked out under the high voltage power lines a pair of Little Black Cormorants flew by. A couple of seconds later there was a curious vibrating sound or noise and as we looked two black objects fell to earth. When we examined them we found one was a Little Black Cormorant with only one wing and the second object was the missing wing. It appeared to have hit one of the high tension wires which had cleanly amputated its right wing right at the base! The bird died as we watched, obviously severely injured by the contact and massive injury. The local Toressian Crows quickly gathered for the feast.
The water also had good numbers of birds but again, not a huge variety – mostly the usual stuff with 6 Purple Swamphens being a big increase in numbers, 2 Royal Spoonbills and in excess of 80 Australian White Ibis.
The water also had good numbers of birds but again, not a huge variety – mostly the usual stuff with 6 Purple Swamphens being a big increase in numbers, 2 Royal Spoonbills and in excess of 80 Australian White Ibis.
We also saw a Black-shouldered Kite and a Nankeen Kestrel.
On the return
journey Mr D pointed out a Black Jezebel
Delias nigrina – a butterfly I’ve
been looking forward to seeing in my revitalized insect interest…
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| Black Jezebel Delias nigrina |
We breakfasted in
the usual Hungarian Café Europa in Sherwood and enjoyed the quality and
hospitality we’ve come to expect there.
Ireland revisited
1 - 27.5.16
26 - 27.5.16
Our flight was at
9.30 so we needed to be at the airport by 7.00 or thereabouts. Hence we needed to
be leaving at 6.15.
I had set my alarm
for 5, but didn’t sleep well and was awake from about 3.30. Mr A, Ms K and Mr L
arrived at 6.15 and we left shortly afterwards in two cars. Mum in with Mr L
and me with Ms L.
At the airport we
all bailed out at the terminal and I took the hire car back to the depot.
Everything was OK with it, despite my (usual) worst fears and then I waited 15
minutes or so for the shuttle bus to take me back to the terminal. Mr A was
already in the queue so once I got my hand luggage weighed and tagged I (&
Ms K and Mr L) joined him just as his turn came about.
After we had
checked our bags we decided to go through security as the airport was very
busy. So we said goodbye to Mum and Auntie ‘Rainy and went through to our
departure gate.
The plane was
airborne 30 minutes late, but we arrived at Abu Dhabi on time. It was a long
walk and a short wait for our next (and final) flight to Brisbane.
The last leg went
well, no dramas. We landed in Brisbane at 17.20, floated through duty free and
customs and exited not long after 18.00 – much to Mr L’s maternal grandmother’s
delight.
They dropped me
off at 18.45 and headed home themselves, the long planned trip over.
Now to deal with
the jet lag……..
25.5.16
Mr A, Ms K and Mr
L came round at 8.30 and, after Mum had had a few minutes with Mr L, we headed
off to Kilmainham Jail. Our tour started at 9.45 and we arrived with a few minutes to spare having followed the Nav
Man to our destination.
The tour lasted an
hour and was quite interesting. We had coffee and pastries afterwards at a
local café before heading back to Dale Rd where Mr A and I left Ms K and Mr
L and headed back into Dublin to the
Guinness Brewery.
This tour was more
interesting (to me anyway, having never been on it before) and involved a pint
of Guinness at the end, which is always welcome.
Then it was
another traffic heavy drive back again to Dale Rd, bundle Ms K and Mr L into
the car and then they all went off to get ready for dinner.
When they came
back I insisted on getting some photos of Mr L with Mum and succeeded somewhat.
Then it was in to Jamie’s (a la Oliver) in Dundrum. Ms L and Ms A were also
along and Mr L spent the evening draping himself in Jamie Oliver’s best
spaghetti and meatballs while reading a dinosaur book Ms L provided.
The meal was
really good and we all staggered away afterwards at around 20.30 and headed
home to bed. I showered and packed the final stuff including Ms J's leftovers
and presents into my bag, before crashing at about 22.30.
24.5.16
After an early
breakfast Mum and I got the Luas into Harcourt st and walked to the Eye and Ear
hospital. Mum needed some minor work on her ears to better fit her new hearing
aids. So we sat among a surprisingly large number of patients in the A & E
until we were seen by a doctor who vacuumed a candle’s worth of wax outta of her
head and now she can hear the grass grow.
I left Mum to get
the Luas home and walked down to meet the others in Stephen’s Green. When they
finally arrived, we went shopping for all those necessary (?) gifts to take
back to the stay-at-homers.
We had lunch in
Sheahan’s – an old Irish pub off Grafton st – and then dragged our tired bodies
back to the Luas for the trip back to Mum’s. Mr A & Ms K then abandoned Mr
L with Mum and I while they swanned off to do some other shopping in Dundrum
and we enjoyed watching, and helping, Mr L dig up plants, move shells and
stones and splash water around for an hour or so before they came back and took
him home.
I went to the
local library, answered emails and printed tickets for tomorrow’s expeditions.
23.5.16
We all had a late
breakfast together – having got to bed around midnight the night before.
Then Mr A, Ms K ,
Mr L and I packed up and headed back to Dublin and the last AirBnB stay in
Stillorgan.
The owner met us
on site and showed us the apartment and security arrangements. Then we went to
the nearby shopping center for lunch.
Later Mr A dropped
me back to Mum’s and I sorted out some washing, then went to our first Air BnB
to return the dooner we had mistakenly ‘borrowed’ and taken around the country
with us.
22.5.16
Mr C picked me up
at 8.30 and we headed off in a bright sunny morning to look for Great Spotted Woodpeckers. We ended up
seeing 4 occupied nests - 3 previously known and the last one in Glendalough we
confirmed breeding as both adults were in and out of the hole with food.
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| Male Great Spotted Woodpecker |
It was great to
catch up with a species I last saw in Ireland in November 1973.
As Mr C dropped me
back to Ms L’s – a storm broke with thunder and lightning and hail! Only small ‘pea’
hail, no damage done, but lots of it and it lay for a short while like snow.
We all hung out
for the afternoon, had dinner and enjoyed Mr L’s high jinks.
21.5.16
I joined Mr H on
one of his Forage walks where he introduced the group to Wild Garlic, Sorrel
and Cow Parsley among other plants and trees, and then showed them how to make garlic pesto. It was an
interesting morning and I thought he did a very good job – they all left
clutching bags of leaves and samples of their self-made pesto.
I followed him to
a service station on the M1; we had a coffee then went our separate ways – him
to a jam-making demonstration and me to Dublin airport.
I arrived at 15.00
as the plane landed and waited at the arrivals gate for 45 minutes until they (MR
A, Ms K and Mr L) finally emerged. There had been some difficulty with finding
their stroller, it had been put on a completely separate carousel somehow.
We headed into
Dublin city and dropped Mr A off near Croke Park to see a hurling/GAA match. Ms
K, Mr L and I headed on to Mum’s place and had a cup of coffee before we all
headed down to Wicklow and Ms L’s place where we were staying the night. I went
back to Greystones at 21.30 and picked Mr A up at the train station coming home
from the match.
20.5.16
We got up to a
much improved, sunny day. There was, however, a cool north westerly blowing
which kept the temperature at the lower end of the scale.
After breakfast we
drove around several locations on the Ards peninsula checking the commoner
birds, but also finding some long-time-no-see birds for me – Tree Sparrow and Sand Martin being two of that class and Reed Warbler possibly a first Irish tick – its been a long time
since I birded in summer in Ireland. Dunlin
in summer plumage, a Common Gull’s nest
with one egg on the top of the wall beside the road, more Grey Seals and I finally captured an open-winged Orange-tip butterfly.
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| Spring Squill |
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| Bird's Foot Trefoil |
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| Common Gull's nest on top of wall |
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| Dunlin |
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| Orange-tip male |
We returned to the
caravan for lunch and a snooze, then headed back to Mr H’s in Belfast in
incoming rain.
After dinner I filmed
the pair of Great Tit’s nesting in a nest box in Mr H's garden – at half past eight at night!
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| Great Tit |
It was raining
when we had breakfast and continued thus for most of the morning and early
afternoon. We tried, however, at several locations for Wood Warblers in the oak
forests of the Antrim glens – unsuccessfully as it turned out, but an enjoyable
morning nonetheless and I did get a 40 year tick in the shape of a Spotted Flycatcher.
I took photos of some of the flowers cloaking the floor of the woods.
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| Bluebells |
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| Common Sorrel |
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| Wild Garlic |
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| Wood Sorrel |
At one point we
visited a famous (to some) stretch of road. Known as the Dark Hedges, it has
been a film location, apparently, for Game of Thrones. Although a fan, I,
personally, have no idea whereabouts in the series it was featured, but the
trees are remarkable in their shapes.
We stopped in at
Mr H’s for lunch, then went into Belfast city so I could purchase a pair of Berghaus
Gortex leggings, then headed down alongside Strangford Lough to the ferry and
across to Mr H‘s caravan where we relaxed the evening away.
18.5.16
We got up, had
breakfast and headed north to the Antrim coast at Ballycastle. The ferry cost
12 pounds return – for me. Mr H got it free, as all his public transport travel
is, being over the magic 60 and a resident. Something the Australian
authorities might need to consider…..
I was glad of my
new Berghaus Gortex jacket as it was quite cold – also gave me an excuse to
wear the beanie and gloves I had carried with me. We landed on the island after
a relatively uneventful crossing at 10.40 and started the 3.75 mile walk to the
seabird colony. We could have got a bus for 5 pounds return, but Mr H convinced
me the walk would be worth it…
Well, it was
really, but I moaned and bitched the whole way and I’m sure he felt like
throwing me – or himself perhaps – off the nearest cliff.
We did see some
good birds – a pair of Northern
Wheatears first up, followed by Whinchats,
3 males in the end, and Whitethroats. A pair of Common Pheasants showed exceptionally well - but they are reared and released for shooting on the island. All birds I would have missed – an
accurate fact unhelpfully repeatedly pointed out by Mr H – if we’d got the bus.
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| Common Pheasant |
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| Whitethroat |
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| Goldfinch |
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| Whinchat |
Two hours later we
got to the seabird colony, paid our 5 pounds each entry fee and walked down the
steps to the overview point. Hundreds of Northern
Fulmars, Black-legged Kittiwakes, and thousands of Common Guillemots and (the largest breeding colony in the UK of) Razorbills. But it’s the Atlantic Puffins that draws the punters
and cute they are.
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| Mr H picked out a Bridled Guillemot on a nearby ledge. |
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| Northern Fulmar |
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| Northern Fulmar |
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| Razorbill |
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| Atlantic Puffin |
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| Atlantic Puffin |
A pair of resident
Great Skuas or Bonxies was a highlight for me and we walked across the moor to
where they seemed to hang, apparently defending territory as they flew low
overhead calling and swooped us when we got close to their (presumed) nesting
area. We didn’t push it too hard – they were fairly intimidating.
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| Great Skua or Bonxie |
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| Great Skua or Bonxie |
We walked back the
3.75 miles (Note: MILES, not kms…) and arrived, fairly close to expiring from
the knees down, in time to catch the return boat at 17.30, picked up some food
and drove to a Youth Hostel where we checked in at 16 pounds each – excellent
value.
17.5.16
I went to IMI and
had breakfast while I waited for the others to appear.
We left for the
airport at 9 and stopped off at Mum’s for a few minutes to drop off unneeded
stuff and to say goodbye. Then it was on to the airport, drop off the short
term lease hire car, swap the baby seat into mine and for me to say goodbye to
Ms J for two months and the Mr A, Ms K and Mr L for 4 days.
(Note: got a txt later in the afternoon confirming their safe arrival and access to the next 'holiday home' in London)
Then I headed for
Belfast, calling into the Ibis hotel in an attempt to retrieve a plug adaptor
we left there – they didn’t have it but promised to call me if they found it
when the room was empty.
Got to Mr H’s at
12.30.
We had lunch then
went birding locally in Belvoir Forest Park. We heard heaps of Blackcaps but failed to get a good view
of any – all calling from deep cover. We did have a fair selection of local
birds including Treecreeper, Long-tailed
Tits, Common Swifts, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff. I also managed to get photos of the underwing of an Orange-tip butterfly and a Green-veined White.
I also managed to get nice photos and a video of a Song Thrush.
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| Song Thrush https://youtu.be/0uWpoZIMqUc |
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| Orange-tip on Cow Parsley |
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| Green-veined White |
We all had
breakfast together in the hotel, then checked out and headed south. Turned off
just outside Drogheda and, after some confusion, reached Newgrange, the
pre-historic site.
It was very busy
and the next tour of the site was in two hours so we settled for a cup of
coffee and hit the road again.
Reached Stillorgan
at 14.00 and sat and chatted to Mum while I went to the bank and got some
sterling -197 euros = 150 pounds.
Then Mr A & Ms
K left Mr L with Gran and I and went to Dundrum shopping center. Mr L played in
the garden and helped Gran plant and move flowers around quite happily much to
Gran’s delight.
When they came
back we all went to the IMI resident and checked in. I left them to it – I was
staying at Mum’s, so Ms J had a room to herself and the others could get Mr L
settled in.
15.5.16
I got up at 7.45
and said goodbye to Stephen and Aaron, then I went for a walk with Lorna and
Maurice and the dogs.
After we had a big
fry up breakfast courtesy of Maurice we packed ourselves into the cars and
headed off (at 10.30) We stopped in Enniskillen, just across the border, and
discussed the Mile/hour speed limits and various ‘new’ road signs in Northern
Ireland. Then it was on to Belfast arriving at 13.45.
We checked in and
Mr L decided he needed a sleep so I tried contacting the Black Taxi tour
company I had emailed last week. After several failed attempts to contact them
and other companies I managed to get a tour with Keith Graham’s Taxi Tours who
picked us downstairs in a Black London Taxi in 5 minutes and took Ms J, Mr A
and I on a political and mural tour which was both very informative and very
well presented.
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| Posters erected recently by the Dissident IRA |
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| The peace wall separating Catholic and Protestant suburbs |
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| Ms J signing the wall |
When that was over
we drove out to Mr H’s place and had dinner as pre-arranged. Mr L burned off
some of his pent up energy in the back garden and then we headed back to the
hotel to crash – at 21.30.
14.5.16
In a nutshell - we
spent the day relaxing at Strandhill with family and family dogs.
We went for a walk
in the fields, visited a local farm to see a baby miniature goat, cows, a calf and
a tractor and had take away burgers and ice cream for lunch in Strandhill
itself, on a very busy, very sunny, Saturday afternoon.
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| Mr L and Mocha |
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| The baby miniature goat |
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| Farmer L |
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| Strandhill seafront |
It was good to not
have to go anywhere, Mr L ran around the garden and had a sleep during the day
– got back into a bit of a routine.
Lorna and Maurice
were great. Their eldest son, Wayne, and his wife Jenny came over with their almost
3 year old son, Oscar, to play and, later in the evening, my cousin Stephen and
his 23 year old surfer son, Aaron, arrived for dinner and a late night of
drinks and crazy games.
I tried to get
photos of butterflies and went for a walk late afternoon – the only birding highlight
was a pair of Bullfinches seen
briefly.
13.5.16
I got up at 6.30
and went for a walk. I was very disappointed with the birds; despite the estate
being well wooded and obviously well maintained, without being manicured, there
was bugger all! Whether I was too early or there really was a dearth of life I
only saw about a dozen birds in total in a 3 km, one and a half hour stroll. I
did get good views and photos of a Winter Wren and ditto a couple of Willow
Warblers, but apart from that nothing noteworthy.
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| Willow Warbler |
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| Winter Wren |
We had a leisurely
breakfast, then Mr A and Ms K gave Mr L a big run along the riverbank, so, in
fact, it was midday before we checked out and headed north. It had been good to
have a morning doing nothing.
A bit over an hour
later we stopped for coffee and a snack in the harbour precinct in Westport,
which was very pleasant, then it was a 3 hour run through Mallaranny, Bangor
Eris, Ballina and finally Strandhill - and my cousin Lorna and her husband Maurice.
We were welcomed
with open arms as always and spent the evening watching Mr L explore the garden
and toys, tree and cubby house and generally ‘live the dream’ of a two year old
until he finally agreed to crash at about 20.30, while we enjoyed a few beers
and wine.
12.5.16
I got out at 7.00
and went for a walk down the road towards the sea. The Common Cuckoo was calling loudly and 2 appeared overhead in some
sort of display flight, I assume. A few minutes
later one returned to perch up quite close, providing opportunity for video and
photographs! An Irish Hare also presented well - and seemed to have minimal fear.
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| Irish Hare |
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| Common Cuckoo |
It's a bit shaky to start with, but settles down a little - unfortunately the bird was quite silhouetted against the morning sun.....
Back at the ranch
breakfast was served at 8 and shortly afterwards we took off for the nearby
Cliffs of Moher.
So much change!
The visitor center and outlets have all been cleverly built underground to
reduce the visual impact, I guess. The steps up to the cliffs and around the
restored (?) O’Brien’s tower are all very nice – and safe – but kind of take
away from the original wildness of the place. Tour buses rolled up and people
poured out…..not like it was when I was a kid not much older than Mr L…. There
were still thousands of birds wheeling around below us – Black-legged Kittiwakes, Common Guillemots and Razorbills, Northern Fulmars and, especially, Atlantic Puffins. Unfortunately all too far away to get on camera.
We left after
visiting the center and watching the interactive displays, and headed north
again through Lisdoonvarna and on to Ballyvaughan where we stopped for coffee
and chose a crepe shop which was an unexpected delight.
On then to Galway
and heavy traffic, complicated road signs and, finally, parking and lunch. We
didn’t hang around, but headed out of the town soon afterwards and reached our
next destination at about 16.00 after stopping on the road for some sheeps for
Mr L.
The Ballynahinch
Castle Hotel was lovely. Set in extensive woodlands along a proper river, with
all the attendant extras associated with quality accommodation.
We went for a walk
along the river and Mr L found a beetle.
Returning to the
castle we eventually decided against eating and settled for a couple of drinks
on the terrace, as the sun went down, before retiring for the night. Once again we had been blessed with the weather - an absolutely gorgeous day.
11.5.16
The music didn’t
turn out so good….it wasn’t traditional as we’d expected, but more popular
songs with the odd Irish ballad…..disappointing.
Breakfast at 8, a full Irish breakfast including white and black pudding and a
damp, misty morning. Mr A visited the Tralee police station and got a guided
tour and a party bag of badges etc to take away.
We headed out to
Dingle via the Conor Pass – very steep and rocky, misty and damp, quite
spectacular and very melodramatic in the weather.
The sun came out and when we reached Dingle was quite hot! We tried the Slea Head drive, but it was taking too long, I had grossly underestimated the time required, so we visited the prehistoric beehive huts and then turned off and returned to Dingle for a much needed refreshment break.
On the street we met a man with
a flute, 2 dogs and a donkey. Sounds like a bad joke, but was very entertaining
and even though Mr L wouldn’t get up on the donkey, he fed him carrots and it
was a nice experience. He did get involved with a dolphin further up the road though.
The sun came out and when we reached Dingle was quite hot! We tried the Slea Head drive, but it was taking too long, I had grossly underestimated the time required, so we visited the prehistoric beehive huts and then turned off and returned to Dingle for a much needed refreshment break.
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| Mr L in the perfect sized house |
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| Mr L enjoying his 'coffee'. |
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| Mr L calling in the cows |
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| Limestone Cottage on the left. |
Up at 7.30, rain
had stopped, misty and calm. We had breakfast at 8, supposedly a full Irish
breakfast, but no white or black pudding?
Packed up and left
at 9.15 and headed west. This was the biggest driving day and we stopped at
Baltimore after two hours for morning tea. There was a pirates castle tour in
the local restored castle and we went in and had a look – it was quite good,
actually. Mr L had a fine time climbing the stairs.
On to Kenmare,
another two hours and stopped for lunch. Disappointing – the service was veruy
poor and the food was a bit average. Ms K & I had Guinness pie and mashed
potato which was OK, Mr A had Guinness sausages which were similar, but Ms J’s
cheese sandwich – so simple and Mr L’s ham and cheese were a long time coming
and very poor.
We finally got on
the road again just before 4 and hit The Ring of Kerry. The weather cleared and
was warm and clear and the scenery excellent, but it was a little rushed. The
speed limit was 100 kms/hr, but anything over 80 was pretty suicidal – still
slow drivers, trucks and buses were limiters, but we did the best we could and
enjoyed the scenery anyway.
Around 6 it
started to rain, but we didn’t miss much along the road, arriving in Tralee at
18.45 and finding Sean Og’s B&B which was rooms above a pub – a very Irish
pub with music promised at 21.30.
So….Mr A, Ms J and
I are in the bar now, pints in hand, waiting for the music to start – it promises
to be pretty good, the bar is packed……
9.5.16
We packed up and
left at 9.35, 25 minutes ahead of schedule. After dropping some stuff off at
Mum’s – stuff we wouldn’t need for the next week – we headed out onto the M50
and turned off on the N7.
It was an average
drive south to our first stop at Kilkenny. The roads were excellent, the
signage clear and the traffic minimal. By the time we reached Kilkenny the rain
had started and it was a wet arrival. We lucked out on two parking places 100
meters from the entrance and headed in for the 7euro-a-head self guided tour.
An hour later we
refilled the parking meter (max one hour) and headed down into the main town
area for lunch. The Paris Texas pub/restaurant provided a good meal – usual huge
portions as per Irish style – and we headed back to the cars just within the
second hour.
Back on the road
again and we passed Waterford, then Dungarvan and finally arrived at Youghal
just after 3pm. We were welcomed by our host and shown the two en-suite
bedrooms complete with heaters and electric blankets already switched on.
It was still drizzling and a sharp wind blew in off the ocean, but after settling in we decided to go for a walk anyway. We wandered through the main street then turned down to the harbour, but really it was uncomfortable out in the weather so we retired to the Quays Pub overlooking the inlet and settled in with pints of Guinness and cider and wine.
It was still drizzling and a sharp wind blew in off the ocean, but after settling in we decided to go for a walk anyway. We wandered through the main street then turned down to the harbour, but really it was uncomfortable out in the weather so we retired to the Quays Pub overlooking the inlet and settled in with pints of Guinness and cider and wine.
Dinner and drinks
later we walked back to our accommodation, Mr L splashing in the puddles in his
dinosaur boots on the way, and settled in for the rest of the evening.
8.5.16
Sunday morning and
we went to church with Mum. Mum has a lot of friends in the church and we knew
they would love to see Mr L – and, by default really, Mr A, Ms K and myself, I
guess.
After the service
(when Ms K took Mr L into the crèche and Mr A and I sat it out with Mum), we
headed down to Ms L’s in Wicklow. She had lunch all ready for us and we sat and
gorged ourselves.
After lunch we
took Mr L down to the beach – it was a genuinely lovely day, bright and sunny and warm – about 18 degrees – and
he ran in and out of the water soaking his clothes, but having a really good
time.
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| Blainroe Beach, Co Wicklow |
See the video to
prove that Ireland DOES have sandy beaches and the weather, even in May, is
good enough to play on the SANDY beach!
We headed home
around 5 and spent the evening preparing to move out of our ‘holiday home’ (a
la Mr L) and start on the second part of our trip tomorrow.
7.5.16
We woke to our
first wet day. It had obviously rained in the early morning and was still
drizzling. A typical Irish rain – not heavy but very wet.
We all hung out
through the morning, having a leisurely breakfast, reading and Googling.
At midday Mr A, Ms
K, Mr L and I went for lunch to The Club in Dalkey – a pub I had eaten in
before. We had roast dinners and a drink or two and then headed back home via
an ice cream at Dun Laoghaire. The day had brightened up, although a heavy mist
still lay over the ocean, as is so common along the Irish east coast, and the weather
was very mild.
Ms J had arrived
home in the early hours after a night out in Dublin and was heading back into
the city to buy some bits and pieces before getting the bus with Ms A to
Wicklow to spend the night at Ms L’s.
The rest of the
afternoon and evening was again given over to just hanging out!
6.5.16
We picked up Gran
at 10 after I spent some time in the garden with Mr L catching woodlice and
worms and finding some empty snail shells.
We drove to
Enniskerry via The Scalp, then on into Powerscourt estate. Stopping at the main
house we had morning tea on the terrace overlooking the gardens. It was a
beautiful morning – sunny, bright and quite warm - once one was out of the cold
northerly.
Next stop was the
Powerscourt Waterfall – cost of entry = 21.50 euro, but I negotiated a deal on
the family rate, so it was better than it might have been. We spent quite a bit
of time taking photographs and throwing stones and bits of branch into the
river, and Mr L entertained us with a rap rendition of Old McDonald’s farm
perched on a rock.
Heading out of
there we drove round to Roundwood, then on to Laragh and managed to get parking
beside the ancient cemetery and round tower. We wandered the grounds soaking up
the history while Mr L slept through most of it in the stroller.
I went to 'Arty' with my camera.....
Once we satisfied
the youngest and oldest with soft serve ice creams we drove the short distance
to the Upper Lake and stood for a while enjoying the view and the protected
warmth of the sun.
Still in 'Arty' mode.....
Back down the road
and we stopped at Lynam’s of Laragh for a very late lunch.
Once that was done
we headed for home across the bogs and moors via Sally’s Gap, Glencree and,
eventually, Enniskerry again.
It had been a big day, the weather had been
perfect and we had ‘done’ the Wicklow mountains.
After a light dinner Mr L went to bed and Mr A, Ms J and myself went to the local for a couple of pints.......
After a light dinner Mr L went to bed and Mr A, Ms J and myself went to the local for a couple of pints.......
5.5.16
Most of us were up
at 6. Breakfast over, Mr A, Ms K, Mr L and I headed for Cabinteely park and a
bit of R & R in the recommended playground. I was surprised to see clumps
of Cowslips dotting the grass – haven’t seen these in this abundance since I
was a kid.
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| Cowslips |
Mr L enjoyed
himself with the manual diggers in the sand pit, a pretty unique bit of kit I
think!
I found a Common Blackbird’s nest in the hedge
and carefully removed an egg for closer examination by Mr L – I, of course,
returned it safely to the company of its three partners.
After a couple of
hours we headed back to Stillorgan and some food shopping and coffee before Mr
A, Ms K and Mr L picked Great Gran up and we headed for Dun Laoghaire.
From there we
drove along the coast to Bullock Harbour – no seals, lucky we went to Howth
yesterday – then on to Sorrento Pt in Dalkey and a view of the island, but the
concrete goat was gone from the park.
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| Dalkey Island |
Round the corner
to Vico Rd and some family, traditional, photo-time.
We continued on
down the coast through Bray and on to Greystones where we met up with Ms L for
lunch at The Happy Pear, a vegetarian take-it-as-it-comes type restaurant/café
where we all had soup and bread (I had Sweet Potato, Fennel and Ginger soup –
delicious!)
Then it was round
to the sea front for an unplanned visit to a typical Greystones Beach for Mr
and Ms L .........
(Note: for privacy reasons I have marked these videos as 'unlisted' in U tube - hopefully they can be seen via these links)
......and a re-visit to a pole that I had last climbed as a boy of about
11……50 years ago. We all had a go including Mr L.
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| Ms J pole dancing |
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| Ms K on the pole |
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| Mr A - with a bit of help |
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| Mr L hanging on! |
Finally it was
time to head home and we left Ms L heading south and we struck out north on the
M50. Again we were very lucky with the weather – a bit cloudy but some lovely,
hot (?) sunny spells and virtually no wind.
4.5.16
We all slept more
successfully and were up and about at 6 or shortly thereafter. We had a slow
morning, taking time over breakfast, hanging out until 9.30 when we headed
round to Mum’s for morning tea with one of her sisters, Thelma, and a brother,
Derek, and his wife, Audrey.
Mr L put on a
perfect display of his skills, communication and attributes much to everyone’s
delight…. and his parent’s relief.
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| Great Gran (90) and Linkman (2) |
At 13.30 we packed
into the cars and headed north for the 60 minute drive to Howth on the north
side of Dublin Bay. This gave Mr L a chance to sleep off the excesses of the
morning and Mr A an opportunity to see the bay at sea level and then an overall
view from the Summit car park.
My main objective
was the Grey Seal population in the
harbour and they didn’t disappoint, showing well quite close to the harbour
wall on several occasions. We walked to
the end of the pier to view Ireland’s Eye, an uninhabited island a kilometer or
so offshore, before returning to the cars and the return trip home. Noted a few
Northern Gannets and summer plumage Black Guillemots.
At 17.45 we picked
up Mum and Aishling and drove a short distance to a local restaurant. Lorraine
met us there and we had a prolonged meal together sponsored by Mum. The service
was poor and the steaks undercooked but otherwise it was a nice evening and Mr
L lasted well. We got home at 20.30 and convinced him it really was time for
bed, despite the lack of ‘dark’ – the northern twilight lasting until about
21.00 at this time of year.
Another lovely late winter/early Spring day of about 13 degrees, sunshine and (mostly) clear blue skies.
3.5.16
Unfortunately Mr L’s early sleep didn’t help much as he was awake at 23.00, 2.00am and finally for good at 3.00. Mr A spent time with him until I emerged at 5.30 and took over in a semi-dazed, droopy eyed kind of way. 6.30 and Ms. J arose and took over and between us we kept Mr L occupied – most of it he did himself, if I’m honest – until 9.00 when both Ms. K and Mr A got up, dressed and by 9.45 we were heading for the Luas.
We got off the electric tram at St Stephen’s Green and spent the day walking Grafton st to Trinity College, O’Connell st, the GPO, the Halfpenny bridge and Temple Bar where we stopped in the Temple Bar itself for a drink and listened to a live guitarist singing famous Irish ballads. All very touristy, but what the hell, it was a nice way to enjoy a pint of Guinness.
It was a beautiful day with blue skies, warm sunshine, but a bit of a biting westerly wind. Temps from 5 -15 degrees, we were never too cold, but stayed rugged up anyway.
It was a beautiful day with blue skies, warm sunshine, but a bit of a biting westerly wind. Temps from 5 -15 degrees, we were never too cold, but stayed rugged up anyway.
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| In St Stephen's Green |
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| Mr L & Mr A with Mr Lynott of Thin Lizzie |
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| Street performers ...and Ms J in Grafton st |
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| The GPO in O'Connell st |
Feeling a little spaced we headed back towards Grafton St, witnessing a police van driving like crazy through the heavily pedestrianized area at high speed – quite spectacular.
Following a family tradition we had lunch at Captain America’s, Mr L had fallen asleep in the pub and stayed comatose until we got to the Luas for the return journey home.
By the time we were home he was awake and active again and we spent the remainder of the afternoon and evening playing with him and generally chilling out. He had a bath and went to bed close to his normal time and the adults followed shortly afterwards – Ms. J had beaten us all to it, she crashed around 6.30.
1 - 2.5.16
We arrived at the airport in plenty of time on a wet, cloudy Sunday morning. Travelling in two cars, Kara, Ant, Link and Mr Jebba in one and Jade and I in the second with Mr Tyson and Ms Karen.
We checked in and headed for the departure gate where we all spent the next two hours drinking coffee and entertaining Mr L. Eventually the (domestic) flight was called and we boarded and took off on time (11.00) for Melbourne.
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| Brisbane airport |
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| Mr L about to set off for Ireland |
Long leg – 13 hours, 55 minutes – we landed in Abu Dhabi at 5.20am (Aus time). Mr L behaved perfectly, eating everything put in front of him, sleeping for several hours and staying happy and contented during it all. I got a few hours, Ms. J also slept a bit, Ms. K got a little, but Mr A only dozed.
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| On the plane |
Onto the bus for the transfer to the departure area, walk through the airport and out to a distant gate with limited seating. Spent the time waiting taking Mr L for walks during which he spotted some equipment on the ceiling and named them ‘Stink bugs’ – quite appropriately, they did look like stink bugs!
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| Abu Dhabi airport |
We boarded our flight to Dublin at 8.00 (Aus time) for the last leg of 7 hours 50 minutes. It took a long time for the flight to leave, but eventually we took off for Dublin. Surprisingly it was bright daylight for most of the flight and we landed in Dublin in similar conditions at 8.20 (Irish time, 17.20 Aus time).
Again Mr L handled it all with aplomb, only finally crashing just as we landed. Exiting the plane we approached the Europcar desk and were advised that we needed to get the shuttle bus to the main office. We managed that and then waited ages to be attended to. It was quite complicated due to the fact that I was paying the outstanding balance on both cars but was only the named driver on one – Mr A was driving the other. Eventually, again, we finalised the transaction and headed out of the airport onto the M50 circle road.
Thirty minutes later we arrived at 50 Dale Rd and were welcomed by Ms L and Great Grandy. Once again Mr L outdid himself and behaved so well we thought someone had exchanged him for another 2 year old.
We spent some time with the family then headed off to our AirBnB address, about 5 minutes away, and dumped our stuff before going to Dundrum shopping center to get some cash, phone and iPad cards and food. Ms L came with us and helped us through the processes. Mr L crashed on the way home and we let him sleep for the time it took for us to have a coffee before heading back to Dale Rd for dinner. He was knackered and kept falling asleep despite our efforts to re-vitalise him. We didn’t stay too long after dinner, but headed home and got him to bed before we, ourselves, dragged our sorry asses off to crash. Everyone was exhausted.
