Ireland Picture Post #3: Connemara

These photos are from Day 5, Connemara Scenic Drive, Part 1 and Part 2.  Connemara is a beautifully wild, Irish-speaking region northwest of Galway.  It was also easily one of the most gorgeous places I've ever seen.

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Barreling down the Connemara back roads

Ireland Picture Post #2: Galway

These photos are from Day 4, Galway City Part 1 and Part 2. Click any image to view it in the photo gallery. Enjoy!

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Galway town from across the water

Ireland Picture Post #1: Clonmacnoise, Birr, and Galway

I'll be switching gears for a little bit to editing and posting photos before I pick up the story again.  First up are the photos from Day 3, Dublin to Galway via Clonmacnoise.  Click any image to view it in the photo gallery. Enjoy!

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Clonmacnoise Monastery

Ireland Day 8, Part 2: Arrival in Dingle

Descending the pass toward Dingle revealed lovely views of water and greenery.  The roads here were even more twisting than the ones up the mountain.  The bags on the backseat slid back and forth, whacking into each other and against the car doors with a thud-whump-thud kind of cadence. It was one of those moments that cracks you up at the time, but I couldn't explain to you now why it was so funny.  Must have been all that mountain air.

We kept craning our necks out the windows, wondering when we'd see Dingle.  It snuck up on us, and, all of a sudden, there we were with lovely harbor to one side and cozy-colorful buildings on the other, variegated shops and pubs marching around and over the hilly downtown streets.

Ireland Day 8, Part 1: Doolin to Dingle via Conor Pass

Try at least one Irish breakfast per B&B, you say? Challenge accepted.

After savoring one more breakfast at the B&B, we hit the road.  Today's route would be fairly simple.  It's possible to get to the Dingle peninsula by heading east, following the coastal curve inland to Limerick, and then back down southwest.  However, this would easily be close to 5 hours when you factor in stops. After several days with a lot of time spent in the car, we were ready for something more direct.  Instead of the scenic route, we'd be taking a more point-to-point southerly drive, made possible by a car ferry from Killimer to Tarbert.

Q&A #1: Conor Pass and how to choose your lodgings

Have a question about our trip (or Ireland in general)?  I'll do my best to answer it.  Please feel free to ask in the comments!

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Kate asks: "A friend told me that I should go over the Conor Pass. I see you did, but I have not seen many others mention it..what did you think?

I'm interested in the B and B's that you stayed at, how you found them and made decisions about where to stay.

We'll have 18 days..hoping to make it up to Northern Ireland if we have time.

Did you stop at Glendalough?"

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Ireland Day 7, Part 4: Doolin town, Cliffs of Moher by land

Cliffs of Moher ferries: more exciting than Six Flags for a fraction of the price.

Suffice it to say that we made it back in one piece from the Cliffs of Moher ferry.  Thoroughly chilled to the bone, we took some time to collect ourselves in the renowned O'Connor's pub.  It gets some serious points for kitsch factor - they had police badges from all around the world on the walls, and license plates as well.  (Is this a tourist pub thing? We saw it a couple times during our trip.)

Ireland Day 7, Part 3: Cliffs of Moher by ferry

Between the warm sun above-deck, the hum of the motor, and the gentle rocking of the boat, it was impossible not to fall asleep.  I woke up to find we were moored at the dock, my head on Jason’s shoulder.  Instead of disembarking for Doolin, however, we stayed onboard for another leg of the trip: a Cliffs of Moher cruise.  At 10 euro extra, it seemed a great deal.  Plus, cool photo opportunity?  I'm there.  (Never mind our fellow B&Ber’s story regarding her harrowing experience on the cliffs cruise.  Yesterday had been a cloudy, stormy day.  We had clear weather and calm waters now.  Right?  Right.)