6/21/12

Leftover Images from Ireland: Part Four

This group of images was taken as we traveled on our day-long journey from Killarney to Galway.  We stopped briefly in the village of Adare.  This is where we saw most of the thatched roofs, although we did see some in the remote countryside as well.



This one was having its roof replaced.




As I said in one of my earlier posts, the Irish countryside is dotted with ruins of various forts, watch towers, castles, homes, etc.  We saw these little structures on many hilltops.  These are leftovers from the era of the Napoleonic Wars and were used a lookouts.  The Irish were very concerned about an invasion by Napoleon's army, and these structures were used to keep a lookout.



Here, some men played golf alongside this structure, a juxtaposition of modern day life and ancient times.




We stopped for to explore the Cliffs of Moher and took time to eat lunch.  When you looked in one direction, you saw this:


In the other direction, this:


The walls lining the walkways out to the tower were made from slabs of rock that contained fossils of worm tracks, worms, fish, and shells.


I paid two euro to climb to the top of the tower.  Looking in one direction, I saw this:


Looking in the other direction, I saw this:


There weren't a lot of stairs, but they were steep.


Back outside, there was this leftover farm implement.


And lots of wildflowers.


We traveled on to The Burren, which consisted of a rocky cliff that dropped off sharply to the sea,



a rocky hillside,


and lots more wildflowers.


We also stopped briefly to see this monument erected in the memory of John P. Holland, an Irish immigrant to the United States who developed the first submarine to be commissioned by the United States Navy.  This monument was erected in the middle of a parking lot, and seemed strangely out of place.


We stopped along the roadside just to take in this view of Galway Bay.


Each little town we passed through was as charming as the last.  I took lots of pictures of doors, and I'll share more of them with you eventually.  I never grew tired of the colorful paint on these buildings, the simple Irish names of the shops and their interesting doors.


The next group I'll show you will be from the Connamara Marble factory and the Celtic Crystal Factory.  After that I'll be showing you some images from the quilt show.

10 comments:

Teresa in Music City said...

Barbara I'm so enjoying your pictures! Thank you for sharing them! The views of the countryside and the ocean are simply amazing. I SO want to go someday :*) My favorite picture today is the building - Mcreen's. I love the colors and those shutters are too cute! The views from the tower were a real close second =^..^=

Average Quilter said...

Such a beautiful country - the pictures were great. I really enjoyed the tour.

WoolenSails said...

These are such beautiful photos, love the old houses and scenery, lots of inspiration.

Debbie

Anonymous said...

Simply beautiful pictures!!! Love the thatched roofs!!! ♥♥♥ Thank you for sharing these!

Junebug613 said...

I love the thatched roofs! Whoa! I don't know if I could have done that staircase. I have a conditional fear of heights and stuff like that gets me. I agree, what a weird place for a monument. Love all the photos!

quiltzyx said...

I could almost smell the fresh sea air! So, so lovely. The thatched roofs (rooves?) are neat looking, aren't they? So different that what we have.

What is it about rusted machinery that is so photogenic? I love them, sitting out in a green field. Alway wonder what happened that caused them to be abandoned where they are?

Linda Coleman said...

great photos Barbara, makes me want to jump in the car and drive down to see Adare again (been there twice and loved it). A lot of the old style shops in the smaller towns and villages used to serve a dual purpose, one side of the shop was the grocery and the other side of the shop would be the bar. The men would bring the women into the town on market day and probably sell a few sheep, cattle or pigs. The women would sell the eggs and then she would get things like tea, sugar etc while he would have a pint and they would then travel home.
Viewing it through your lovely photos makes me appreciate the good things about our country

Dana Gaffney said...

What a wonderful place for a photographer, you must have been in heaven. It looks like there are wonderful pictures everywhere.

Kathy Felsted Usher said...

Absolutely beautiful!

Irina said...

I recognize the three holiday cottages from the 5th photo, they're in Kinvara, just across the castle, could that be right?
Aren't the Cliffs amazing? I'm glad you enjoyed visiting all those places, it brings memories of when I used to take my parents all around.