The adventures today including learning how to drive on a different side of the road, visiting a thousand-year-old castle ruin, seeing the Atlantic Ocean and a night of traditional Irish music in a private residence near Doolin. I also added a few comments by Nezzie here and there below.
No photos of the driving, but kudos to Doug and Will for braving the experience! Also big shout-outs to Nezzie who was Will’s navigator and Hannah who was Doug’s. We made our ultimate destination all in one piece!
The big stop on the way to the Atlantic Ocean was the Rock of Cashel. The castle was where St. Patrick crowned King Murtaugh in 450 AD. The very steep hill provides magnificent views.
Various powerful families, mainly the McCarthys and O’Briens owned the property over the centuries and added buildings. The O’Briens added the chapel in 1130:
Cormac’s Chapel had multiple entrances. The little chancel area shown below even had an entrance for the Holy Spirit. Where the arches meet in the center of the ceiling is a little hole for the Holy Spirit to come and go. This chapel is the only surviving example in Ireland of Romanesque frescoes – the dark blue patches. The heads are probably past kings.
The O’Briens donated the site to the Catholic Church, thinking that would end the squabbles over the Rock, and their legacy would be secured. However, a Catholic bishop from the McCarthy family came along a century later and built a massive cathedral in a way that blocked the main entrance of Cormac’s Chapel. See below.
That seems like kind of a jerky thing to do. Nowadays, the chapel is in much better condition than the cathedral, thanks to public renovations to preserve the chapel’s interior. But the McCarthy ruins are still very cool.
Nezzie’s take: I used the Rick Steves book I bought to do a guided walking tour around the Rock of Cashel. The cathedral had this little peephole facing the front but in the middle of the thing so none of the congregation could see it. It was used for poor people to watch the mass through so as not to offend the congregation.
We enjoyed relaxing in the beautiful sunshine on the Rock of Cashel before driving to the Atlantic coast and our bed and breakfast.
Nezzie’s take: After this, we went to this place called “granny’s kitchen” for lunch. It was a soup and sandwich cafe. We filled up like half the place LOL. They were very sweet. I got the vegetable soup and a ham and cheese sandwich.
On the way west, Will, Nezzie and I then stopped at the seaside town of Lahinch for dinner.
Nezzie’s take: After this, we drove towards Doolin, a two hour drive. We found this place about 15 minutes from the bed and breakfast that had diner vibes and good reviews. It seemed like, if tourists were there, they were Irish, but there were still some locals because the waitress knew some people who came in by name. Also, the menu had words that I didn’t understand and come to find out it just meant chicken tenders with either fries or mashed potatoes. The fish and chips I got there were soooo good.
We saw people trying to surf these big waves.
Upon arrrival at our bed and breakfast, we were in awe of the landscape. Views from the Doonagore Farmhouse:
We also fell in love with resident sheepdog, Rocky:
Our final activity of the day was a visit to Doolin Music House, the personal home of Christy Barry, a well-known local musician. He told stories and played traditional Irish music with his childhood friend who is a fiddler.
Christy played multiple flute and pipe instruments.
He even played the spoons!
When we got home, Rocky was ready for play.
Tomorrow’s weather forecast isn’t great, but we hope to see the Cliffs of Moher.
Travel Buddies 
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