Day 3 It's a long way to Tipperary but it's even longer to Cork....

The Instructions were " We leave at 8" and so we did , with eager anticipation! We soon left Armagh and headed out through a border town driving past a checkpoint which looked strangely familiar having seen the ones in Bethlehem...a solomn reminder that "the troubles" were really not that long ago.... I was reminded of the young people we had seen playing games and chatting yesterday, all of whom would have been affected in some way through the generations in their families. It was heartening to see them enjoying life without threat or fear...

It wasn't long before we entered the Irish Republic and the roadsigns were in two languages and the miles were now recorded only as km. S had brought Euros, but guess who hadn't? He siad he had smirked quietly as we had got sterling out the day before from the Sainsbury's cash machine.....love him...

I have lost track of how many counties we have driven through today...many of the earlier ones were just names I had heard on the news in the 70's for sad reasons...I used to work with someone who lived in Connemara, and he loved the place. I used to call it his "Bally Hai" as I saw him look at the postcards in his room during a stressful day and know that he would be wishing he was there fishing and enjoying a quieter pace of life. I knew that I would have to see it for myself one day...apparently I told S this on one occasion...I don't remember.... So he brought us and we all loved it! The gentle sloping mountains, glistening lakes/estuaries, an Irish fjord and a shop selling WOOL!!!! I succombed to a cardigan/jacket in teal...it was either that or buying wool which was very tempting...however not knowing how much I would need to purchase and having no pattern, I decided to hold back on that one....for now...however IF I see a pattern in the next few days....and some local wool......




Down down down we went past Limerick where I made up my own...

There was a lovely lady called Pip
Who loved a good coffee to sip
Not long left from home
Her gaze would soon roam
She needs a large flask on her hip!




The afternoon passed and then suddenly a castle appeared on my left! The car was parked, we had arrived at Bunratty castle, but even better than that....they were hosting a medieval banquet at 5.30...S had tried to book tickets online with no success, they were full...however, ever optimistic,he suggested we go and enquire incase there had been cancellations.. It transpired that there were now spaces and yes, four people no problem! The "luck of the Irish" certainly seems to have rubbed off on him this week! The time was 5 ish so not long to wait....I imagined tossing chicken bones over my shoulder, the guys...probably buxom wenches.....However as it turned out, the evening was actually far more cultured than that!




We were welcome by the butler, dressed as expected in medieval garb and then shown into a hall bedecked with heavy tapestries and massive antlers on the walls. The girls were elegantly dressed and handing out pottery cups which contained mead. I felt giddy within a short time....not to be advised on an empty stomach.....some would say, in my case, not to be advised full stop. A harpist and violinist were playing in the centre and it was all very acceptable! A few medieval words of welcome and we sipped our mead and listened to the music. Soon it was time to make our way to the Grand Hall where we were shown to our benches and long wooden tables....the first course was brought in and sampled by "my lord" who approved.....we began to drink our spiced parsnip soup drinking it from the bowl, no spoons.....Jan S eat your heart out, the pottery was amazing, actually, it could have been yours...the wooden bowls similarly, such simple but practical designs....the parsnip soup was pretty good too!

Between courses we were entertained with singing, both with harp, and violin, sometimes unaccompanied....the voices blending beautifully, all vocal ranges echoing around the rafters. There was banter and the assembled "invited guests" all entered into the atmosphere with great gusto!



2nd course was pork ribs, this was a "cut if off the rack and pick it up with your fingers! They were coated with a barbeque flavouring and pretty salty. I think they wanted to encourage us to drink our fill of the wines on the table!

3rd course chicken breast, boiled potatoes, carrots, broccoli and swede (I think) with a white sauce, very tender, delicious.

4th course, an individual raspberry dessert topped with a thin layer of jelly

Finally a coffee taken downstairs in the basement.

A very successful evening all 'round! D, P and I thought we must be staying fairly near as S didn't appear to be in any particular hurry to herd us into the car....how wrong we were.....Yep, into the car we piled and off to" 6 Mile Bridge" to find a pub called Caseys. This is when we discovered that an Irish right can in fact be a left.....Enter innocent man with dog going on his evening parambulation, minding his own business.....suddenly car sidles up to him , S rolls down window and asks the question, does the guy know where we can find the pub called Caseys.... Man begins to give direction except he points left and says right....long silence, we ask him to repeat the info, again the same actions....by now I am giggling quietly looking away. Then S asks him what colour the pub is...that finishes me off!!! The man lets out an expletive of mild exasparation, but we learn later that he did get the colour right.....we let him go.... D reckons that Irish right must be the equivalent to patient's right when explaining body examinations....

So we enter Caseys.....a tiny pub, a very full pub which is filled with very happy (large) Aussies and Irish singing their hearts out and jiggling along(no space to dance) to 70's music and obviously having a ball! We find a small corner and wedge ourselves in. The point about bringing us here S says is that it was the pub where Euan McGregor first met Charlie Boorman and they planned "The Long Way Round". The pub is described as feeling as if you are sitting in someone's living room....yep, I can see that would fit....apparently it is usually a very quiet pub..... We have a drink and adding,in my case a dose of people-watching, then we leave.





S, it seems has slightly miscalculated, we have a two hour journey ahead of us!! P drives and we three nod off at various intervals. She has instructions to drive on a certain road...it brings us to Cork, it is almost midnight! There follows a phone call to the Youth hostel after negotiating the one way system a few times. Thankfully, this guy, doesn't have an Irish right and he directs us by phone as P patiently receives instructions second hand.

We are soon there and find our room. It is smaller than the previous one, but it does have an ensuite which is where I take up residence until about 3am, catching up on the blog as you will have already read!