It rained all day Friday in Ireland, but the weather after that was great. After the stop at the Ballyhaunis library, we drove to Knock. We couldn't find the B&B, so finally had to stop at a store and ask. The lady knew my third cousin (one removed) so called her, and she drove up to lead us. It was a really nice, new house with B&B rooms upstairs, modern with private bathrooms, very nice. My cousin, Kathleen, made us tea and biscuits. She's a nice woman in her fifties, very friendly as if we had known her for years. It's interesting - she's only 5 years older than me, but a generation ahead. I suppose the Minnesota Hoban's had to find some way to occupy themselves...After settling in, we had a light sandwich and a beer at a local pub.
Saturday morning started with a full traditional Irish breakfast (cereal and tea, then eggs, link sausages," bacon" more like thin ham, broiled tomatoes, "black pudding" sausage with blood/liver/oats (white pudding has no blood but more livery spicy flavor), breads and toast and jams).
Kathleen led us back to Ballyhaunis to see the church where my great grandmother was baptized, (beautiful stained glass windows) then out to their original farm in the countryside, and met her brother, John. We browsed some shops afterwards then drove west towards the coast to Castlebar, where we looked through the Irish National Museum of Country Life. We loved it, really well done and very interesting. We headed back to the B&B for lasagna and salad, then watched the British version of American Idol in her nice sitting room. Darcy also went for a long after-dark walk around Knock (famous for its Catholic basilica pilgrimages because of an appearance there by the Virgin Mary in the late 1800's -- there are many shops selling Catholic statues and rosaries, etc.; the Pope even visited in the 1980's). He must have looked like he knew where he was going because a couple of people asked him for directions. :-)
Sunday morning started with the same big breakfast, then the three of us drove back to Ballyhaunis for Mass. (We aren't Catholic but the cousins there are) Several more cousins met us after the service. We eventually drove on to Strokestown to see another third cousin. Jim is a retired astrophysicist professor, was born in the US but has dual citizenship so lives half a year in California and the other in Ireland. He and his wife Grace rent a nice apartment in a beautiful park that used to be an English estate.(They're the ones I first wrote to when I was trying to figure out where Ggrandma was born.)
We strolled through the beautiful formal gardens (with a cute kitten chasing after us the whole way. You KNOW I was trying to figure out how to get that kitten back to the States!) Organic vegetables are grown there now for an on-grounds restaurant; the flowers and bushes were beautiful. They were also super-friendly as if we had known them for years. Nice! We drove on to Dublin to our next B&B, recommended by Jim and Grace. In fact, Grace programmed the coordinates in the GPS for us, or we might not have found it! After checking in with tea and cakes, we ate at a nearby pub (Irish corned beef and a burger and Bulmer's hard cider). We later shared a bottle of wine with the lady Patricia, who ran the B&B before hitting the sack.
Monday started again with the identical full Irish breakfast, then we caught a double-decker bus downtown. We strolled thtough Trinity College and toured the Book of Kells exhibit( famous ancient illuminated Latin bible) and the Long Room library (VERY old books on display, the oldest Irish harp, busts of famous Irish). Really good. We toured the Irish National Library and a Yeats exhibit. We strolled through a pretty park, then had cider in a pub, then caught the bus back to our rental car ("car for hire" as they call it) to run to the airport. We got back to Glasgow late, but Andy was there to pick us up.
Tuesday, Andy rented a car so we'd have room in their car for Kristina, me and the kids and in the rental car for Darce, Andy and his parents. We went to Luss (without his parents) to stroll by Loch Lomond and to buy some souvenirs in a nice shop, then picked up his parents to first shop in a big outlet-type mall, followed by High Tea at Cameron House. Very nice. Tonight, we're hanging out -- did some laundry, watched some TV.
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