On Thursday morning, we departed Galway with our sights set for a night at Ballynahinch castle. First though was a stop that I am sure most people visiting Ireland never see, a lead and silver mine just north of Galway called Glengowla. I saw this brochure in the shops outside Spiddal, and thought it would be an interesting side trip considering James' mining background. We end up visiting mines wherever we go...actually, all 7 of us have already been in a silver mine, in Virginia City, Nevada when we were all vacationing together in Lake Tahoe! Since our driving route was right by the entrance to this mine, we all agreed it was a nice side trip. It was not crowded at all when we arrived...we were only one of 3 groups of people (maybe 15 total) on the tour. This mine was only used right after the Famine, for 15 years or so. A lot of lead and silver were mined in this short time though...but then price and demand dropped and they stopped mining, with the intent to come back at a later date. Trouble is, once the prices were rising again the mine was full of water and the cost to pump it all out was more than the value of what would be mined. Once again, we got a great tour guide - he was very knowledgeable and really enjoyed his job - and we learned a lot. They have just recently restored this mine to tour people through, and just opened a deeper section in the last few months. Aside from the silly hairnets we had to wear under our hard hats :) I think we all enjoyed this side trip.
We departed Glengowla, and headed to Ballynahinch. Our rooms weren't quite ready when we arrived though so we went to visit another little village called Roundstone. Not much there, but a cute seaside town and we had lunch while we were there. We started to wait for a table at one cafe, but Gene decided Irish people don't wait so we headed to another place. It's funny, the Irish are in no hurry (at least once you hit the countryside) so Gene's decision to take us somewhere else was somewhat surprising.
The castle experience was fabulous, and the rest was just what the doctor ordered after a week of going nonstop. We all enjoyed the common rooms on the first floor, and had the staff deliver us a pot of tea and start a fire for us. It was still raining outside and quite damp and chilly, a fire was a welcome relief. We played Scrabble, drank tea and felt a bit like royalty! We decided to eat in the castle pub, while Nana & Papa had a fancy dinner in the castle dining room. They joined us after their dinner and we closed up the bar & pub, while the bartender taught us how to make perfect Irish Coffees :) The dinner was fabulous, perhaps the best dinner I had while in Ireland (pork belly!). We all enjoyed getting a bit dressed up and pretending to be 'special castle guests'. Even the manager, Patrick O'Flaherty, got to know us - particularly Keely, he called her 'Boss' and how right he is! The next morning dawned bright and sunny...thank goodness so we could explore the castle grounds a bit. It was very serene and peaceful. I won't recant, mostly because I can't recall, the castle history - but there is a lot of hunting and fishing on the massive grounds - and I do remember the name meaning 'settlement on an island' and the history involving an argument between the O'Flahertys and the O'Malleys. Patrick is a descendent of the original O'Flaherty family.
After checking out of the castle, we headed back to County Clare where we spent our last night in the Bunratty Castle Hotel. When we got there, we said farewell to Gene. I must say we all enjoyed our time with him...Keely even made him a goodbye present (a letter to Gene) that he said he would put up in his office to remember her. Although from her loud singing while listening to Annie's iPod on the van, I'm not sure how he could forget her :) Seriously, though Gene was great - really a great tour guide, driver and connoisseur of Irish places and history. We do all miss him and I will definitely keep his card for the next time I am in Ireland...he has a little cottage for rent that seems the perfect place to explore Southwest Ireland from!
The night at Bunratty was relaxing, we mostly ended up crashing and relaxing at the hotel pool and steam room. There was another castle to see (Bunratty) but we (at least the four of us and Annie) felt we'd seen enough history and all we wanted to do was chill out. Our last dinner in Ireland was Durty Nellie's, a well known pub on the castle grounds. Once again, a very good dinner and a nice time had by all.
Saturday morning we departed from Shannon airport. The trip home was long, but safe and uneventful. I know I was happy to be back on American soil, if nothing else so I could stop converting from Euros to dollars in my head.
I have to wrap this up by saying that our family of 4 really enjoyed this trip, and we have to give a huge thanks for Nana and Papa for making that possible. I was also quite pleasantly surprised that the 7 of us had a very enjoyable time together the entire time, with only a couple minor snags...9 days is a long time to spend with a group of people, even your family...and at the end, we were all still talking, laughing and enjoying each others' company as much on Day 10 as on Day 1. Definitely the sign of a good trip!
We saw so much, learned a lot, and really embraced Ireland on our time there - and I think most of us want to get back again someday. The memories though will last a lifetime, and I know I am glad we were able to experience Ireland at least once if time or circumstances don't allow another trip.
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